Finding FreeSCycle Friday

by M.F.

Periodically, the Sustainability Hub at the USC Student Union hosts an event called FreeSCycle Friday. The basic concept of the event is that unclaimed lost and found items from around campus, including places like the campus gyms or laundry rooms, likely still have value and use to the USC student community, even if the items were not important enough to their original owner for them to go looking for. In the room where the event is held, there were two tables set up and on top of them were items like lanyards, wallets, books, headphones, and more (see featured image). The room was rather quiet, with only a few other students perusing the tables. There was something quite striking to me about this experience in general – the fact that this “garbage” that was saved from going to the landfill and instead ended up in the hands of folks who could benefit from it.

My main takeaway from the event was just how useful I felt the items there could be to so many people. I know that earlier this semester, my friend lost his headphones and had to buy new ones. If he had known about this event, he surely would have checked there first before spending his money on something he could have gotten for free, and saving the environment from all of the costs associated with the production of an additional pair of headphones.

Overall, I was left wondering why this campaign was not more intensely advertised, and I felt like the value it brought was enormous relative to how many people showed up – and how many items were still there when I left. When reflecting on this event and what we’ve learned thus far in class, I found myself connecting this event to the documentary Manzanar, Diverted, specifically how it was the knowledge regarding sustainability efforts that actually enables action.

There are so many efforts out there promoting sustainable living and environmentally-conscious decisions, but if nobody knows about these efforts, then nothing changes. My mind went to the scene in the documentary where the inhabitants of the Owens Valley went to a LADWP public meeting to explain to those in charge, as well as the public watching the event, just how negatively LADWP’s failure to fix the water pipe to their reservation has impacted their people, as well as the broader failure of LADWP to address concerns regarding water extraction from the Owens Valley. This particular scene stood out because of the immediacy of the response, with Christina Noonan, a Former DWP Board Commissioner, stating that she was “willing to fix the pipe on [her] own expense, separate and apart from legalities”. This also had the effect of centering the issues of the Owens Valley and its inhabitants in ongoing LADWP debates, which is an important stride toward sustainability and equity in that region. The people of the Owens Valley were able to come together to tell officials and the public about their struggles with water exploitation at the hands of the LADWP and get action on the issue. And while it is still being resolved, publicity surrounding the issue is important for more activists, politicians, and the public to get involved. In sum, this experience – especially in contrast to the work of those in Manzanar, Diverted – has helped me understand the importance of public awareness in fighting for a sustainable future. The more people who know about ongoing sustainability efforts, the more effective we can be in fighting for a greener future.

If you want to watch Manzanar, Diverted and you have a USC account, you can watch it here: https://docuseek2-com.libproxy1.usc.edu/gd-md