Goodwill and Levi's Parter for the Planet

Feb. 2, 2010 - PRLog -- Care instructions such as “machine wash warm” and “tumble dry low” are common on the tags inside our clothing. Now, Goodwill and Levi Strauss & Co. have partnered to add one more step to those care instructions: “Donate to Goodwill when no longer needed.”

Goodwill and Levi’s new joint initiative, called “A Care Tag for Our Planet,” is aimed at reducing billions of pounds of unwanted clothing from our landfills. Levi’s jeans now feature a care tag that encourages owners to donate their items to Goodwill when no longer needed.  Jeans tagged with the new “Care Tag” are available everywhere Levi’s are sold and can be purchased through March 31.

‘Care Tag for Our Planet’ is the first partnership of its kind to encourage donation as a way to extend the life cycle of clothing and textiles and reduce the environmental impact of caring for clothing.

“Every year, more than 23 billion pounds of clothing and textiles go into landfills,” says Jennifer Swift, Vice President of Retail Operations for Goodwill Industries of Southwest Florida (http://www.goodwillswfl.org).  “If everyone donated their gently-used Levi’s to Goodwill, it would make a huge difference.”

“Our research shows that the greatest opportunities for reducing environmental impact happen after consumers take their jeans home,” said Robert Hanson, president of Levi Strauss Americas. “That is why we're excited to partner with Goodwill to let people know that they have a huge role in the climate change impact of their clothes.”

Donating to Goodwill (http://www.goodwillswfl.org) not only diverts unwanted items from landfills but also helps people with disabilities and other disadvantages in Southwest Florida. Donations of gently used clothing and other items are sold in Goodwill’s 24 Southwest Florida Retail & Donation Centers, where the revenue helps fund job training and placement programs, the L.I.F.E. Academy Charter School, income-sensitive housing for senior citizens and people with disabilities, youth mentoring programs, and other social services.

Goodwill Industries of Southwest Florida serves Lee, Collier, Charlotte, Glades and Hendry Counties.  

For more information about Goodwill, its programs and services, or the “Care Tag for Our Planet” campaign, visit http://www.goodwillswfl.org.

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About Goodwill Industries of Southwest Florida:
Goodwill operates 24 thrift stores in Lee,Collier, Charlotte, Glades, and Hendry counties to support its mission of removing barriers to independence for people with disabilities and other disadvantages. Programs include income-sensitive housing, career placement assistance, the L.I.F.E. Academy Charter School, Four Wheels for Work, and others.