How do we contribute to the circular economy?
To achieve sustainability, we consciously work with refurbished bicycles, because we believe it is important that fewer bicycles are thrown away and produced unnecessarily. Dutch bicycle depots are currently packed with bicycles. The number of bicycles is estimated at 23 million, while there are just under 17.5 million people. The unused bicycles are often still of good quality. There is no structural solution, especially for the enormous amount of unused children's bicycles. They are often bought up and melted down abroad, while there are many children in the area who need a new, suitable bicycle.
We have come up with a more sustainable solution with BikeFlip: returning the bicycles to society! Producing a new bicycle produces average emissions of more than 100 kg of CO2 (Trek Sustainability Report, 2021). Each bicycle we upcycle therefore results in a CO2 saving of 100 kg because no new one needs to be produced for this refurbished bicycle! Reuse instead of making and buying new again and again. From a linear economy to a circular economy! How this circular process works can be seen in the image below, which is based on the work of the Ellen McArthur Foundation (2013).
Sustainable Development Goals
BikeFlip contributes to the Sustainable Development Goals established by the United Nations in various ways. These are 17 sustainability goals that must be adhered to by all signatory states, including the Netherlands, to keep the world livable, now and for future generations. As a BikeFlip customer you contribute to these goals:
Goal 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
At BikeFlip we believe it is not only important to support sustainable mobility, but also to emit as little CO2 as possible within our own logistics. That is why we only use cargo bikes to transport the bicycles from our storage or the repair shop to customers.
Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
We have a fantastic cycling culture in the Netherlands that is the envy of many countries. BikeFlip wants to maintain this sustainable form of mobility and make it even more sustainable. Moreover, BikeFlip cleans up the crowded streets of Utrecht by giving discarded children's bicycles a new purpose.
Goal 12: Responsible consumption and production
About 1.2 million bicycles are produced in the Netherlands every year. Then we don't even count the number of bicycles that are imported via ships from other countries. At the same time, thousands of bicycles are also thrown away every year. By refurbishing and reusing children's bicycles, we ensure that these numbers decrease and we work towards a cleaner world.
Goal 13: Climate action
There are almost 4 million bicycles unused in Dutch sheds, bizarre! A shame about all those CO2 emissions that were needed to produce these bicycles. The bigger BikeFlip is, the more impact we can make on the climate. So there is work to be done to reduce that unused bicycle mountain!
