As per Statista, over 2 billion metric tons of municipal solid waste is generated worldwide every single year. It’s estimated that by 2050 this number is bound to grow by around 70%.

Meanwhile, humankind produces more than 350 million metric tons of plastic waste each year, which is set to triple by 2060. The lifespan of plastic products is around 10 years on average, but some plastics can take up to half a millennium to decompose.

As for edible produce, globally, a trillion dollars worth of food is thrown away each year. It’s estimated that in 2022, the world produced 1.05 billion tons of food waste, with an average amount of 132 kilograms of food waste per capita, 79 kilograms of which was household waste.

Food waste generates between 8% and 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions and takes up almost 30% of agricultural land globally, as reported by the United Nations in its 2024 Environment Programme's Food Waste Report.

The Dumpster Diving subreddit has been inviting people to have “fun with garbage” since 2009. In the nearly 16 years since being created, the community has grown to 339k members. The focus of the sub sharing advice, information, and first-hand accounts about finding cool stuff in the trash. Internet users are also encouraged to share the cool stuff they made out of what’s been thrown away.

Obviously, no matter how environmentally conscious you are, your health and safety should come first. Don’t start dumpster diving without a plan just because you saw a post online about someone finding a giant TV, cool furniture, or something else spectacular. Think ahead. Have a plan. Be prepared. Have the right gear. Take care of your hygiene. And don’t do anything risky: saving some money on a cool knick-knack is not worth sacrificing your life for.

You also shouldn’t break the law. You should not go dumpster diving if your local laws prohibit it or in private territories. You ought to bring a good pair of gloves and boots so you don’t hurt your hands and feet. Naturally, you should wear sturdy clothing you don’t mind getting dirty so you don’t hurt yourself.

Having a small step ladder or something similar can help you get inside and out of dumpsters more easily. When you’re done, clean up after yourself. For instance, you should close the lid of the dumpster after you’re done perusing its contents so that wild animals don’t get inside: they might get stuck inside and get hurt or worse.

Look, the fact is that you’re bound to find some really awesome things that have been thrown out, left on the curb, sold in secondhand stores, or yeeted into dumpsters.

However, before you thank your lucky stars, you should seriously slow down and think about what it is you’ve uncovered. Some items are very dangerous to bring home. Others can pose serious health risks. In some cases, another person’s trash isn’t your treasure—it’s still trash that should be disposed of for everyone’s sake.

Some items can become damaged with use, so they lose their primary function. And it’s not always obvious at first glance. According to MarketWatch, some things that you should never get secondhand include car seats, helmets, and baby cribs.

They might have undetectable damage, so, as a rule of thumb, don’t use them if you find them thrown out. In this case, buying new is very much recommended.

Other things that you should avoid getting secondhand include knives, toy chests without safety hinges, blenders, recalled toys, and anything older that looks like it might have lead paint.

Meanwhile, avoid getting secondhand phones, too. For one, you don’t know if the device may have been stolen. And secondly, you don’t know that it doesn’t have malware on it.

You should also avoid bringing home things like mattresses that you find on the curb or in a dumpster.

They could have bedbugs in them that could spread throughout your home or they could be contaminated with microorganisms that can then infect you and seriously harm your health.

What are the coolest and weirdest things you’ve ever found on the curb or in the trash, dear Pandas?

Have you ever gone dumpster diving? If so, what inspired you to do it? Was it out of necessity or because you wanted to live a more eco-friendly life?

We’d love to hear your thoughts on this! Share yours in the comments.