Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

Living in late-stage capitalism, it can be difficult to match your money with your values, let alone have any extra cash to put toward organizations or causes you wish to support.

On top of this, there’s the fear that power is only in the hands of the wealthy and charity exacerbates this issue by cementing money instead of systemic change as a problem solver.

[insert tired exhaustion]

We’re doomed!!!

…Or are we?

Are there ways to support causes you care about without making more time or money magically appear at your fingertips? There are! (Yes, I realize that each of the below are businesses).

Terracycle

Not only does TerraCycle provide free recycling programs for hard-to-recycle materials and items clogging the pipes of our often neglected environment, it also turns them into donating power. For every shipment of containers/packaging/etc… you submit , you earn points to redeem for a donation or action in one of their existing betterment projects or for a donation to a school, non-profit organization, or charity of your choice (provided it meets their terms for approval).

When signing up for any of their free recycling programs, make sure you note and follow the minimum shipment weight required to earn reward points. If you mail in a batch of recycling that is below the program’s minimum weight, you won’t earn any points.

Kroger

If you shop at any of the Kroger Company family of stores, you can link your shopper’s card to their Community Rewards program and ensure that the purchases you make going forward (provided your shopper’s card info is input) also contribute donations to your chosen participating organization. The program is no extra cost to you.

According to the Kroger Community Rewards page, “Kroger donates annually to participating organizations based on your percentage of spending as it relates to the total spending associated with all participating Kroger Community Rewards organizations,” so the exact formula of what gets donated is unclear to say the least, but by checking your “account details” in the app or online, you can view the amount aka “community contributions” your purchases earned for the chosen organization during the previous quarter. For myself, it usually ranges from $2.00 to $4.00 a quarter.

To link your shopper’s card to the Community Rewards program, you can click here.

thredUP

Have clothes you need to donate? thredUP is most known for their consignment program, but they also provide a free donation program. It gives clothes an extended life and also donates $5.00 per mailed bag of clothing to your choice of their partnered charities.

In order to request a free shipping label for their donation program, you do have to create a thredUP account, so feel free to use my referral link (code ZSAOB1) to get $10 off should you decide to make a purchase from them.

If you know of other programs that provide ways to donate to causes you care about without additional time or money, please share them in the comments and as always, remember the power of voting.