Reusing
UCL has a target of reducing waste by 20% per person by 2024. Take a look at some of our reuse initiatives and resources to help us reach this ambitious target.
![Image of the reuse guide front page shown on a smartphone](https://www.ucl.ac.uk/sustainable/sites/sustainable/files/styles/large_image/public/800_x_500_reuse_guide_.jpg?itok=8g1BWLKV)
12 March 2020
Last year our reuse platform, Warpit, helped us to reuse over 7000 items, diverting 26 tonnes from waste and saving 17 tonnes of CO2 - that’s the equivalent of taking 53 cars off the road. To meet our target of reducing waste by 20% per person by 2024, there's a lot more reusing, repairing and sharing to do!.
Reuse Initiatives and Tools
Hazaar - the sustainable student marketplace
UCL have partnered with Hazaar to provide students with the opportunity to sell their pre-loved items, reducing waste and providing a sustainabel, affordable outlet to buy clothes and other items.
Warp-it – UCL’s Reuse Platform
To reduce items being disposed of, UCL encourages the re-use of any unwanted items through our waste action re-use portal, known as Warp-it.
Swap Shops - free clothes exchange events
Throughout the academic year, Sustainable UCL runs Swap Shop events, allowing staff and students to donate unwanted clothes and take pre-loved items in exchange, for free.
Repair Cafes - mending and repair events
Each term, Sustainable UCL and the Institute of Making run Repair run Repair Cafes, where staff, students, and the public can bring damaged or broken items to be repaired for free.
Moving out sustainably guide
Sustainable UCL have put together a guide for students on how to reduce waste when they move out of their accommodation for summer.
> Moving out sustainably guide.
Reyooz – External Reuse Platform
Reyooz is an external reuse platform staff can use.
> Reyooz.
Quartzy - Chemical Sharing
UCL has adopted Quartzy, the free online database, where research groups and labs at UCL can log all of their chemicals.
This enables labs to first know the size of their stocks, quantities, qualities and locations of chemicals. Secondly, by having a full inventory, it allows labs to share resources from across UCL; where previously labs may be buying and throwing away the same chemical at the same time in different parts of the department.
UCL’s Chemistry Department was the first to adopt Quartzy. Once this system was up and running, it started to gain interest from other labs as people could see the efficiencies at work and the decision was made to roll out Quartzy across the entire department. They now have a database of over twenty thousand bottles of chemicals, each individually labelled and located.
Quartzy can allow sharing in just internal labs, whole departments, or across all of UCL, depending on your needs. It is most effective when a whole department signs up. Quartzy is one of a few different lab management systems available. UCL promotes departments adopting a system, but the choice is up to the users.
> Quartzy;
> Case study on the Chemistry Department's experience with Quartzy.
UCL Research Equipment Catalogue
The UCL Research Equipment Catalogue is a searchable database containing information on all UCL’s major research equipment and facilities.
This catalogue encourages equipment sharing and collaboration by making visible our research technologies/capabilities across all faculties at UCL.
> UCL's Research Equipment Catalogue.
UCL's Reuse "How To" Guide
Want to save money AND help the planet out? We’ve got you covered. This guide is packed full of hints, tips and inspiration to lead low-waste lifestyles.
> Reuse Guide (pdf).