Reuse Rockstars: Nowhere Collective & Trashy Markets

Introducing Reuse Rockstars. Reuse Rockstars is a series that spotlights people with unique visions and vessels that turn trash to treasure. These people inspire me and I hope they’ll inspire you too. 

This installation features Katy Osborn, the founder of Nowhere Collective and the Trashy Markets. Nowhere Collective is a circular economy marketplace for anyone and everyone to participate in the reclaim, reuse, repair, & upcycling process. The Trashy Markets are a junky jamboree featuring artisans that transform reclaimed materials into one-of-a-kind goods.

“It’s amazing what our minds are capable of doing unconsciously. This is the challenge we face as humans who want to do the right thing.“

When I met Katy Osborn in 2017, we bonded instantly over sustainability and community. As someone who champions reducing waste everywhere she goes, I could think of no better person to kick off this series than her.

Katy has a strong artistic vision. She directed and produced a documentary, Head to Head, that highlights women who experience hair loss.  She is an adept connector of people and highly values community. At every other sustainability event, I seem to bump into Katy. In fact, her unique ability to connect people has propelled sustainable success.

For many years, Katy and I talked about how we could use our skills and passions to drive a positive impact. However, her sustainability journey had started long before.

“I moved to Chicago in 2007. As a way to make friends, I joined the Chicago Conservation Corps program. It taught me about so many local sustainability issues and really opened my eyes to how much I could be doing on a personal level. 

As a part of that program, we were tasked with a final project. I decided to talk to restaurants offering a trash audit and sharing alternatives to reduce their waste. I met Helen Cameron of Uncommon Ground in that process and she was extremely gracious with her insights into how she built a sustainable restaurant. I could not convince many food establishment owners to talk to me for more than a few minutes. 

That process helped me understand that most other people will not care about this as much as I do so figuring out how to present other benefits of trying – outside of ‘it’s the right thing to do’ – became my mission.”

The weight of climate change can feel existentially overwhelming. It creates an itch to do something. That “something”, however, often feels uncertain. I’ve felt this same dilemma. It’s not easy to put these thoughts to action.

We have nowhere to go and we are in this together.

In 2019, Katy had an idea. What if she could create a community explicitly crafted around turning waste into value? How would it look? What form would it take? 

And what would it be called? She had a few ideas, but one name called to her – Nowhere Collective. We have nowhere to go and we are in this together. In the words of Senator Bennett Johnston, “We have only one planet. If we screw it up, we have no place to go.”

Initially, Katy thought that this could be a physical space, perhaps a coworking space, attracting members who could work symbiotically and inspire each other to create a more circular economy. One day, this might become a reality. She then thought of creating an online space that could connect craft makers, material suppliers, art collectors. There was a real need to bring this community together who could mutually benefit. But first, she would need to get the word out.

Trashy Markets

In early 2021, Katy began organizing waste reduction markets, textile reuse workshops, and community discussions around sustainability. In 2022, the Trashy Markets were born. The Trashy Markets are “a junky jamboree featuring artisans that transform reclaimed materials into one-of-a-kind goods.” In short, a reuse art fair with a whole lot of flair.

Since the first event in 2022, there have been six Trashy Markets. They have become hugely popular, exciting eco-passionate artists and customers alike. The Trashy Markets have inspired people to rethink consumerism and have fun while doing so. I attended a Trashy Market on Black Friday. Its theme? Reverse Black Friday.

An Online Reuse Marketplace

Nowhere Collective is expanding. Katy’s idea for an online space is coming to light. The soon-to-be-released Nowhere Marketplace App is bringing together ReMakers –  artisans, craft-makers, community partners who incorporate trash or unwanted goods into their inputs. The Marketplace connects people looking for waste inputs with people who have waste outputs to share. Through this platform, they will be able to build community and create art using would-be waste. Think Buy Nothing and Etsy, with a sustainable twist. You can see a preview of the app here (along with reuse goods of some ReMarkers below).

Redefining Value

“My vision is for everyone to see the perpetual value in goods and materials because they can connect that material to the people who helped create it.”

Katy is connecting people to products in a way that redefines value and makes production participatory.

“I am building a new circular system, which I like to call participatory production. People have been conditioned – by corporate systems – to feel disconnected from the people who make and transport the goods we buy and use each day. That disconnect from production and people has created a mindset where most materials lose value after it has served its initial purpose. Which is why overconsumption is a thing and so much stuff ends up in the trash.

My vision is for everyone to see the perpetual value in goods and materials because they can connect that material to the people who helped create it. When we’re connected to the people who make our products, we’re more inclined to reuse, repair, restore, repurpose that thing – squeezing every last drop of value. By bringing everyone into the production process, transforming buyers into suppliers and connecting them to makers who creatively transform their almost-trash, we keep more stuff out of the landfills, conserve more natural resources, and feel communal joy while doing it.”

Nowhere Collective and the Trashy Markets are continuing to evolve and spread as Katy’s sustainable impact continues to grow. Katy sees a future where the Trashy Markets mushrooms in other communities.

“I really admire the way Buy Nothing has created and multiplied pockets of local sharing. They have scaled their gift economy globally and reached millions of people without falling subject to the pressures of fast exponential growth. The future of Nowhere Collective follows a similar model where materials are exchanged locally and personal connections between the supplier and the maker grow at a community level. Yet, because we are for-profit, we need to address the financial business model challenges of this, which is why we are looping in the commerce side. These upcycling artisans deserve to have a place that is tailored to them. Etsy has abandoned this segment of creators. 

Nowhere Collective helps convey the importance and value of what these artisans are creating, so that the artisans can do more of (and charge a fair price for) what they love, making, rather than marketing. Trashy Markets will continue to serve as a community-building tactic where we can foster face-to-face relationships in a lively environment. I’d love to see organizers in other communities bring Trashy Markets to their area and the Marketplace app can be the continuation of those in-person connections.”

Ask Yourself Why

The growth of Nowhere Collective and Trashy Markets has been impressive. It didn’t happen overnight, and the path wasn’t always clear. I asked Katy what advice she has for others in their sustainability journey and how they can make an impact.

“Wipe your face with your sleeve instead of wasting a paper napkin. Kidding, but that does bring up laundry. I was walking by a house today. They were obviously doing laundry because I could smell the dryer sheets from outside. Many years ago, I learned more about the chemicals that produce those smells (same with air fresheners) and they are not good for our bodies or the environment. Over time, like Pavlov’s dog, I mentally started to associate that smell with toxicity and now I have a negative physical reaction to it. Unscented only from then on. 

It’s amazing what our minds are capable of doing unconsciously. This is the challenge we face as humans who want to do the right thing. Our day is made up of auto-pilot habits that are hard to break. When I started to learn about sustainability, I faced an immediate guilt minefield. I realized there is a negative consequence to everything I do. The easiest way out is avoiding the truth, just stick to the routine. Except I made it my job to know, so I am now blessed and burdened with knowledge. I learned to give myself grace when I know what I’m doing has a negative impact. 

I recommend you start with non-judgmental self-reflective curiosity. Why am I drawn to this object/activity? Why do I buy this? Why is this thing made this way? Why is it this price? Who is benefitting from this? Who is being harmed? Gather info from your own reflections and a variety of sources. Don’t worry about solutions at first. Then, you’ll need to decide what answers you can live with and what is crossing the line for you personally. Talk to friends and family about what you learned. It creates accountability by just saying something out loud to a person. Explore alternatives together that you can easily fit into your routine. There is rarely a perfect solution that eliminates harm and optimizes benefits. Then, forgive yourself when you inevitably falter and, if you can, find a way to make it up to yourself elsewhere.”

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To connect with Katy and learn more about Nowhere Collective and the Trashy Markets here or sign up for their News Going Nowhere email list here. Or watch and subscribe to her YouTube channel, Currentsy.