To get to a thriving healthy future, we need a full-on reuse transition—where waste is a thing of the past and where recirculating durable, returnable products and packaging is the new normal.
Here’s what we know ⤵️ ✨
🌱 The future is promising -
In the past five years, the reuse movement in North America has grown significantly, with research highlighting the environmental benefits of reusable packaging, expanding reuse services, and over 100 policies incentivizing reuse for over 25% of the US and Canadian populations.
🤝 There are also many challenges -
Despite expanded infrastructure, large-scale reuse is limited by the need for more facilities and logistics. But who is responsible for fixing a systems-level problem and building the solution? And who pays for what’s necessary to create the alternative economy?
By focusing on normalizing reuse, growing reuse systems, and creating enabling policies, Upstream leads the change in transforming the take-make-waste economy into a circular, equitable, and regenerative one.
Read Upstream’s Strategic Vision for Change at upstreamsolutions.org 🫶💓
#upstream #upstreamsolutions #betterwaythanthrowaway #weheartreuse #indisposable #reusewins #thefutureisreusable #choosetoreuse
Upstream is leading a multi-year effort to transform the Grand Canyon’s concessions from single-use to reuse—making it the largest reuse system in the U.S and the first at a National Park.
Together, we can eliminate 7.2 million single-use items every year, protect one of America’s most iconic landscapes, and create a model for reuse across all National Parks.
❤️ Your support makes it possible. Donate to help us build a future where reuse wins, and consider a monthly donation to sustain this vital work.
Donate today at our #linkinbio 🌟
#weheartreuse #nationalparks #thefutureisreusable #grandcanyon
Something we don’t talk about enough in reuse is love ❤️ the kind that connects us to each other and the systems we’re part of, creating a shared sense of purpose that goes far beyond the act of simply throwing something away.
🌟 Learn more about the switch to reuse at upstreamsolutions.org
#reuse #reusewins #climatejustice #weheartreuse
According to the @ellenmacarthurfoundation , replacing just 20% of single-use plastic packaging with reusable alternatives presents a $10 billion opportunity💰✨
This stat is more than a number...it's a call to action. When we shift from single-use to reuse, the benefits go beyond environmental impact. We're talking REAL economic value, job creation, and long-term resilience for businesses and communities alike 🌍💕
💌 Let's keep building the infrastructure, policy, and partnerships needed
to make reuse the norm. Learn more at upstreamsolutions.org
#reuse #circulareconomy #packagingwaste #choosereuse
The question isn't if consumers are ready for reuse - the question is how awesome operators can make the experience for them ✨🍽️
When reuse is easy, intuitive, and convenient for both customers and staff, participation follows. That’s what makes reuse systems successful — and what helps reuse scale.
Across reuse pilots and large-scale systems, we’re seeing strong consumer support (and high return rates) when operations are designed thoughtfully and built to fit naturally into everyday behavior.
💚 From stadiums to citywide circular systems, the evidence shows that seamless, well-designed systems are key to scaling reuse.
Read more at our #linkinbio!
#reuseeconomy #choosereuse #reusables
Help us help you — by contributing to Upstream’s Case Study Explorer 📚🥗
Upstream’s Case Study Explorer helps advocates, businesses, venues, and more learn from existing reuse projects and pilots. You can explore everything from return rates and logistics to operational insights and impact data.
But the movement gets stronger with more shared knowledge!
➡️ If you have a reuse case study or data to contribute, we’d love to include it in the library.
The more we learn from each other, the better equipped we are to design systems that work in the real world and scale with confidence 🩵 Submit your case study at our #linkinbio
#reuseeconomy #reuseinaction #choosereuse
The industry’s first foodware reuse analytics platform 🥗✨
Whether planning a reuse transition, managing an active program, or shaping policy, you need reliable data to justify investment and measure success.
Chart-Reuse® provides institutions and companies the ability to create impact projections and also evaluate the real-world impact of ongoing systems or pilots. These impacts are expressed through five primary metrics:
☁️ GHG savings
💧 Water savings
🌱 Waste reduction
🍽️ Single-use unit reduction
💰 And cost savings
Data are the foundation of successful, scalable reuse systems. And Chart-Reuse is the tool the movement needs — transforming fragmented pilot programs into a coordinated, data-driven movement capable of scaling reuse at a systems level.
💚 Learn more about Chart-Reuse at our #linkinbio!
#choosereuse #reuseinaction
Does your milkman have RFID tracking?🥛📡
The reuse economy may be rooted in a familiar idea (borrow, return, wash, repeat), but today’s systems are powered by something new — data!
Technologies like RFID tags or QR codes turn yesterday’s reusable containers into today’s data-tracking assets. These resources can help us
➡️ understand customer behaviors
➡️ improve return rates
➡️ reduce loss of containers
➡️ scale reuse systems with confidence (and solid data 💛)
In a robust, enduring reuse economy, technology allows these systems to be seamless for users and provides businesses with the data to be effective at scale.
Read Part I of our series at the #linkinbio ✨
#reuseeconomy #reuseinaction #tech
Understanding return rates is key to building reuse systems that actually work 💪🌱 Because without returns, there is no reuse system.
This is what we’re seeing in real-world pilots and programs ⤵️
- Systems with deposits or fees reach return rates around 96%. (These are usually open loop systems.)
- Even without a financial requirement, systems still see strong returns — around 86%! (These are usually closed loop systems.)
- And simple signals, like QR codes for tracking containers, can help consumers understand that their container should be returned.
But across every model, one thing stands out: When systems are easy and intuitive to use, people participate.
🌟 Understanding these insights helps us design better reuse systems that can work at scale and create meaningful, lasting impact.
Read more at our #linkinbio ✨
#choosereuse #reuseeconomy #reuseinaction
Today is International Workers’ Day, and we’re celebrating the workers behind the new reuse economy 🍽️✨
Everyone from drivers to dishwashers, and back-of-house staff to wash hub managers. The people who show up every day to keep reuse systems running.
As reuse scales, so does the opportunity to create local green jobs — from collection and washing to logistics and redistribution.
We ❤️ you and all that you do to keep the movement accelerating.
Read more at our #linkinbio
#internationalworkersday #mayday #reuseeconomy
Reuse is taking root in the Grand Canyon school system 🎒🥗
With support from Plastic Free America @plasticfreerestaurants , Grand Canyon schools are introducing reusable trays and sporks from @wewillreuse into their lunch program.
The impact is immediate ⤵️
Only 150 reusable trays will eliminate 17,712 foam trays each year
With 220 sporks helping to avoid 42,000+ plastic utensils annually
When reuse becomes part of everyday routines, it helps normalize the behavior and build a culture of conservation.
🌟 This same mindset is guiding our broader reuse work at Grand Canyon National Park as we design systems that keep packaging in circulation and protect the Canyon for future generations.
📸 @grandcanyoncomposting
#reuseinaction #grandcanyonnationalpark #choosereuse
Building strong reuse systems starts with understanding how people *really* interact with them.
Upstream was part of the peer-reviewed study, “Visitor Perceptions of Reusable Foodware Implementation at Grand Canyon National Park,” aimed at better understanding how visitors think about reuse, what motivates participation, and how to design systems that are clear and easy to use.
These insights are already informing the design of the reuse system at Grand Canyon National Park. We know that scaling reuse requires us to build systems that work for people in the real world 🧡
Learn more at our #linkinbio ✨
#choosereuse #reuseinaction #reuseeconomy
