Welcome to GCU’s ideas on how you could reduce your environmental impact by re-using pre-loved items rather than buying new.  This page is a work in progress and will be updated regularly.

• Visit GCU’s Stationery Station on the ground floor of the Sir Alex Ferguson Library for pre-loved/surplus pens, pads of paper, folders, document wallets and more (all free, subject to availability and whilst stocks last).
• Check out Glasgow Caledonian University Second Hand Books group on Facebook to buy/sell pre-loved books used on GCU's courses (NB. this group is not run by the University).

Here are some other free options for re-using/making things last longer:

• Freecycle.org - a grassroots & entirely non-profit movement of people who are giving and getting stuff for free. Items are posted online, in an email mailing list or the TrashNothing app.
• BuyNothing – similar to Free Cycle.
• Repair Café (Glasgow) - A volunteer-run movement that will attempt to repair your broken stuff. Click here to find out where the next Repair Café will be held.

This article in the Guardian explains Buy Nothing works and highlights other ways you could re-use it. If you can’t get what you want for free, these resources are great for sourcing other pre-loved stuff:

• Glasgow Tool Library – borrow a wide range of tools for a small subscription fee.
• Too Good to Go – Allows retailers to sell (at a discount) unsold, still in-date food through their app.
• List of pre-loved bike shops in the Glasgow area.

If you know of a fantastic re-use idea please share it with sustainability@gcu.ac.uk and we’ll consider it for inclusion in this page.