The Pirate Swap Playbook

Abstract

Pirate Swap’s purpose is to maximize sustainability in the Greenville area and on East Carolina University's Campus. We address many aspects of sustainability, the first and most prominent being clothing waste. As ECU students we see firsthand the clothing waste that happens on our campus. Many students do not have access to transportation and therefore end up throwing away clothes instead of donating them. The fast-growing fashion industry contributes highly to this. Students can buy cheap clothing to wear for one season and then discard them months later. This is just one aspect of fast fashion that is harmful to the environment: today fast fashion accounts for 10% of the global carbon dioxide emissions, more than international flights and shipping combined. While fast fashion is a new phenomenon it is quickly damaging our environment. Our Pop-Up Thrift Shop addresses both of these problems. We give students a place to safely donate their clothing to be repurposed and not put in landfills, while also giving students a place to buy cheap and free clothing. Lastly, we donate some of our profits to other sustainability clubs to extend the reach of our efforts. Our project is about helping East Carolina and the Greenville community to create more sustainable habits.