You might have noticed these big red mailbox-looking bins around Beijing before, but do you know its purpose?
These are the clothing donation bins for social enterprise 同心互惠 (tóngxīn hùhuì) which accepts donations of clothing, books, and furniture for resale in thrift stores around the city. Their sales proceeds are then used to support the education of migrant and left-behind children.
But they don’t just have one mission, Tongxinhuhui (which translates into One Mutual Heart) also aims to provide workers with fair employment, reduce the cost of living for urban workers, and promote community participation in making effective use of idle resources.
In short, they want the things you don’t need or want anymore because they know someone who will benefit from it. The organization either gives your donations directly to families who need them, or sells the items in thrift stores around the city (particularly in areas where migrant workers reside).
If you’ve got way more to donate than can fit into those aforementioned red donation collection bins, do not fret! Tongxinhuhui has a nifty Mini Program in WeChat that provides free pick-up services for your donations. Hannah Day, who teaches a service learning course at International School of Beijing (ISB), helped to caption these images to simplify the process of using the app, which is only in Chinese. It was Day who first introduced the charitable organization in a WeChat group, having worked with them firsthand with her students.
To get to their Mini Program, search 同心互惠旧衣回收 (Tóngxīn hùhuì jiù yī huíshōu) in WeChat or follow their Official Account by searching 同心互惠 (Tóngxīn hùhuì).
With winter bearing down on Beijing swiftly, warm clothing such as winter gloves, ear muffs, beanies, scarves, coats, and boots, as well as electric heating appliances will be in great demand if you have those to spare. All donations should be clean and in usable condition.
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Images: Courtesy of Tongxinhuhui, Hannah Day
