One of the things we are proudest of here at TextbookRecycling.com is our 1/2% buyback donation program. Every time we receive a shipment through our online textbook buyback program, we donate 1% above the total price paid to support Feeding America, DoSomething.org, American Forests or Oxfam America. As our customers choose from among these organizations where to direct the 1/2% donation, they are making a difference in towns and cities across our nation.

For example, Feeding America, one of the organizations we proudly support, is America’s largest hunger-relief organization. According to a recent posting on their website, since 2006 there has been a 46% increase in the number of Americans receiving food aid. Their new study suggests that the impacts of a slack economy are hitting some individuals, families, and communities very hard, with nearly 1 in 8 Americans having sought emergency food assistance. Our method of helping to address this serious problem is by supporting Feeding America with cash contributions funded by our 1/2% buyback program.

When you sell textbooks for cash on our website, you also help DoSomething.org engage teens and others to get involved in their communities. On their website, www.DoSomething.org, they put it best: “It is our aim to inspire, support and celebrate a generation of do-ers: people who see the need to do something, believe in their ability to get it done, and then take action.” Their goal is to foster and create a do something generation, one in which 51% of young people are involved with community action. In addition to their ongoing programs such as Social Action Boot Camp and The DoSomething Awards, there are several current campaigns such as Support Our Troops and Increase Your Green that are helping to make a difference.

Another nonprofit organization we are proud to support is American Forests. Boasting a four-star rating from the Charity Navigator and approval from the Better Business Bureau’s Wise Giving Alliance, American Forests serves communities all over the USA. As indicated on their website, “whether it is planting trees to restore ecosystems damaged by wildfire, working with cities to reverse the decline in urban tree cover or instituting a Living Classroom project at a local school, everything we do is community based.” Since its inception in 1875, American Forests has pursued its mission of planting trees worldwide, and it has a goal of planting an additional 100 million trees by the year 2020.

Oxfam America is the fourth organization that has the opportunity to benefit from your donation when you sell textbooks online through our website. Whether it is responding to current emergencies such as the devastating earthquake in Haiti or ongoing initiatives that seek to dismantle barriers that lock people into poverty, Oxfam America’s mission is to create lasting solutions to poverty, hunger, and social injustice. Oxfam America is a member of Oxfam International, a confederation of 14 organizations working together with over 3,000 partners in more than 100 countries.

So here’s a big shout-out to all our customers who have helped make our 1/2% buyback donation program such a success. With your feedback and continued support, we hope to grow better as we grow bigger, confident that any additional success we have will help us contribute more to the people and organizations that are making differences that really matter in people’s daily lives.