Warming Hearts, Saving The Planet: How Donating Your Old Coat Can Change The World

As Earth Day draws near, the spotlight often falls on plastics, emissions, and sustainable swaps—but what about your closet? According to Beth Amodio, President & CEO of One Warm Coat, there’s an often-overlooked way to make a massive environmental and humanitarian impact: donating your gently worn outerwear. Since 1992, the nonprofit has redistributed over 19 million pounds of textiles through their community coat drives and Zero Waste Initiative—keeping people warm while keeping clothing out of landfills.

In this eye-opening Q&A, Amodio shares how One Warm Coat is bridging sustainability and social good, why coats carry one of the highest carbon footprints in fashion, and how you—yes, you—can make a difference this Earth Day simply by giving your outerwear a second life. —Noa Nichol

One Warm Coat’s mission sits at the powerful intersection of environmental sustainability and social good. How did the idea of merging coat donation with zero-waste principles first come about?

When One Warm Coat was founded in 1992, the focus was on providing warmth. Through the Coat Drive Program, thousands of coat drives have been held, with more than 8 million gently worn coats being collected and redistributed to children and adults in need. Several years ago, we realized our coat drives were doing more than providing much-needed warmth, they were also giving new life to outerwear that might otherwise have been discarded and ended up in landfills.

Textile waste is often overlooked in conversations about sustainability. Why do you think coat donation specifically is such an impactful entry point for people wanting to reduce their environmental footprint?

Donating a coat is a simple, tangible action. One Warm Coat encourages people to clean out their closets and their family’s closets and set aside items they no longer use. Then, they can search our Donate Coats map to find a drop-off location near them. It’s a great way to teach kids about giving back and giving items a new life at the same time.

With 60% of all clothing ending up in landfills, how does One Warm Coat work to educate the public—and especially businesses—about the environmental cost of discarding apparel?

One Warm Coat constantly strives to inspire people with our mission of providing free coats to children and adults in need while promoting volunteerism and environmental sustainability. In addition to the simplicity of donating coats, it’s easy for individuals and organizations to participate in a deeper way by holding a coat drive. Organizing a coat drive is free and fun, and it’s a great way for businesses to engage their employees and customers.

The Zero Waste Initiative is a unique model that goes beyond charity. How are you working with manufacturers and retailers to rethink their role in the circular economy?

The Zero Waste Initiative provides a solution for retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers with excess inventory to offload. One Warm Coat will arrange for the overstock or irregular items to be distributed to people in need through one of our 1500 local nonprofit partners. It’s a win-win situation for the company because it receives a tax benefit and the opportunity to promote its positive impact on people and the planet.

One Warm Coat has distributed more than 503,000 coats in the last year alone. What does that number represent to you beyond the statistic—what stories come to mind?

It’s always exciting to see the number of coats that are up-cycled each year, but it’s even more meaningful to think about more than half a million people receiving the gift of warmth along with the feeling of comfort and support from their community. There are always so many heartwarming stories – last year, a grandmother came to one of our nonprofit partners to pick up coats for her two grandchildren that live with her. She was excited because she worries that they spend too much time sitting inside in front of a screen. Now that they have warm coats, she can take them to the park to play in the fresh air.

How has the organization expanded its reach into more remote or underserved communities, particularly in Canada and the United States, where traditional coat drives might not happen?

One Warm Coat supports coat drives anywhere in the U.S. and Canada – if someone wants to organize a drive and there is not a partner nonprofit near them we will help locate a nonprofit to receive and distribute the coats. It’s also free for any nonprofit organization to join our distribution network.

You’ve built a volunteer-powered network of community coat drives across North America. What role does local engagement play in the long-term sustainability and impact of One Warm Coat’s mission?

Local volunteer engagement is the cornerstone of One Warm Coat’s programs. More than 3,500 individuals and organizations hold coat drives each year, and the vast number of people who donate coats and hold drives enables us to execute our mission with a small, remote team of employees. This keeps our overhead extremely low and has earned us a platinum transparency rating from Candid each year.

What do you wish more people understood about the environmental impact of outerwear specifically, and how their small actions—like donating a single coat—can ripple outwards?

People are bombarded with so much content every day, much of it stressful or negative. They see that people are struggling and want to help, but don’t know where to start. Donating a coat is a small act of kindness that makes a tangible impact. Many people start with donating a few coats and then organize their own coat drive and love it so much they continue it each year. We have coat drive organizers who have been teaming up with One Warm Coat for decades to provide warmth to people in their communities.

As we approach Earth Day, what message would you most like to share with Canadians and Americans who want to make a difference but aren’t sure where to start?

There are 3 ways each and every person can team up with One Warm Coat to make a difference in honor of Earth Day or any time of the year:

• Donate coats. Clean out your closets and visit our Donate Coats map to find a drop-off location nearby.
• Hold a coat drive. Register on our website and One Warm Coat will provide all of the resources needed to hold a successful drive.
• Make a financial contribution. Visit our website to make a gift. Every $1 donated warms 1 person.