Context
New York City discards enough furniture every year to fill over 100 Empire State Buildings. On top of that, more than 200 million pounds of textiles are thrown away annually, most of it still usable. The average NYC household discards 2,000 pounds of goods a year, and during peak moving season, curbside furniture disposal jumps by up to 40 percent. This waste is visual, cultural, and environmental.
And yet, on the same sidewalks, a quiet culture of reuse has bloomed: stooping, thrifting, dumpster diving. From East Village vintage hunters to Brooklyn stoop crawlers, New Yorkers have already proven that a circular lifestyle isn’t just possible, it’s stylish.
Greenriot exists to power that shift. We are not starting a movement, we’re scaling one. Our app meets the moment by giving people an easy, joyful, and radically local way to rescue items, reduce waste, and rethink consumption in a city that throws away more treasures than most people own. Every day, thousands of usable items end up in landfills. Greenriot transforms this problem into a community-powered solution by connecting people who have something to give with those who need it.
The Fix:
A mobile-first app that helps users find, share, and rescue items directly from their neighborhoods—creating hyperlocal, secondhand economies on the go.
Soon on NYC Streets
How Does Stooping on Greenriot Work?
Explore and find
Discover or share discarded stuff in your city. Whether it’s a mirror on a sidewalk or a dresser in a hallway, every stoop tells a story.
Share items on the street
Spotted something useful on the curb? Snap a photo, publish the location in 20 seconds, and help someone rescue it before it becomes waste.
Scoop up your find!
Ready to give that stoop a second, or even third life? See it on the app, and go scoop it up!
How Does Thrifting on Greenriot Work?
Browse nearby catalogs
Explore thrift store catalogs around you. Buy, sell, negotiate, and support local circular businesses..
List your thrift store
Drive traffic to your store, list items easily, and make sustainable fashion profitable. Connect directly with your community.
Connect with buyers
Users can browse your inventory, chat with you, and get your exact location. More visibility, more movement, more mission.
Easy money
Make cash from the things people no longer need. Clear space, create value.
CIRCULAR MARKETS
Turn your garage into a Circular Market. Sell items, receive donations, and give every object a second life—right from your driveway.
Donate and cut waste
Got something you no longer need? Just snap it, list it, and let someone nearby give it a second life. You can donate to nearby circular markets and chat directly with them.
Glossary:
These are the terms that shape our movement and connect our community. This living glossary helps our users, partners, and creators stay aligned on what we mean, and why it matters.
Stooping
The NYC-born practice of leaving unwanted items on the sidewalk for others to take for free. It’s spontaneous, stylish, and circular.
Dumspter Diving
The act of reclaiming discarded goods from trash or recycling bins—once fringe, now reframed as resourceful.
Thrifting
Shopping secondhand for unique, affordable finds that support reuse over fast fashion or mass production.
The Scoop
Local Thrifting: Shopping at Thrift Stores, Flea Markets or Garage Sales
What is local thrifting? Local thrifting is the practice of visiting second-hand stores, flea markets, or garage sales to hunt for unique and affordable products. It’s a local shopping experience where you can meet interesting people and hear their stories. It plays a key role in fostering the circular economy, a sustainable alternative to the […]
Stooping: Finding or Sharing Free Treasures on the Street
What is Stooping? Imagine walking through your neighborhood and spotting a vintage chair in perfect condition abandoned on the sidewalk next to a dumpster. Would you leave it there? If your answer is “I’d take it!” then stooping is for you. Stooping is the practice of sharing valuable objects left on the street via the […]
Dumpster Diving: Rescuing Treasures from the Trash Isn’t Just for Homeless
What is dumpster diving? “One person’s trash is another person’s treasure”—this phrase perfectly describes dumpster diving, a practice that challenges rampant consumerism. Dumpster diving involves searching for useful items like furniture, decor, electronics, and more in dumpsters to prevent them from ending up in landfills or recycling plants, where tons of items in good or […]
GOOD FOR YOUR POCKET
GOOD FOR THE PLANET
