Here at Upright Labs, we celebrate Earth Day every day! But we take this time of the year to reflect on the sustainable movement we are proud to be a part of.

With our e-commerce software, Upright Lister, we have helped secondhand retailers all across North America save donated materials from ending up in landfills and incinerators. In March 2021, nearly 865,000 lbs of materials were sold online through Lister. That's 19 pounds of material sold every minute!

When something is thrown away, there is no real “away”. Discarded materials that end up in landfills and incinerators are a major contributor to climate change. Landfills are the third largest emitter of methane in the United States. Methane is a particularly potent greenhouse gas- 84 times as potent as carbon dioxide. Thus, items donated to secondhand retailers are given another chance for reuse, and a powerful solution to climate change.

The highest and best use of any material is to focus on reducing and reusing. Through Upright Lister, our clients can list on Shopgoodwill, eBay, Facebook Marketplace, and Shopify at the same time. Our software ensures each product has the best possible chance of selling and avoiding landfills. The items sold may end up in a new home to be cherished by a collector, or ready to be reused. The items may also end up with folks repurposing the products. We have seen some incredible creativity!

But what about products that cannot be sold? Upright Labs works with secondhand retailers to find innovative recycling opportunities. We provide solutions to improve aftermarket and salvage operations that result in both higher revenue, and more products being recycled. We do this by developing creative, circular economies for aftermarket products.

Join us in celebrating Earth Day by purchasing a pre-owned item instead of a new one!