OhSoWe: Helping Community Groups Share More, Consume Less, & Save Money

Solutions to the problems associated with over-spending, clutter, and mass consumption just may lie within our own neighborhoods. One easy way to explore exactly how we can share skills and services locally comes to us through the online collaboration platform for neighborhoods, OhSoWe.com.

OhSoWe.com was developed with the purpose of matching neighbors’ needs with nearby resources. Rather than each individual household purchasing items or services they rarely use, neighbors can pool resources and spend less money. OhSoWe, created by entrepreneur Chuck Templeton, draws on geographic data to display the items closest to you, working to reduce the carbon footprint by cutting the amount of travel required to get a product or service.  

For instance, one would only need to borrow folding chairs for a special gathering instead of buying them and keeping them stacked in the garage year-round taking up space. Neighbors could coordinate their snow shoveling or yard care to take advantage of cost savings – the possibilities are endless.

In any given neighborhood there are groups of people in need. The site currently is helping “friends, colleagues, parent groups, teams, classmates, churches, Google Groups, clubs, hobbyists, meetups and other local groups” easily do more than just share physical items. They are sharing information on new local businesses, organizing neighborhood watches, learning to compost, coordinating carpools, and arranging joint garage sales.

Examples of topics include the re-zoning of neighborhoods, upcoming block parties, etc. The Share section displays recently added needs, items to share, skill to share, local groups, and members.

Take a northern Chicago neighborhood, for example. Currently, there are many shovels and scrapers available to remove ice and snow from the sidewalks. One family has requested a carousel slide projector to view their Christmas slideshow. A researcher from the university’s astronomy department is happy to lead school groups, community centers, or other groups in a winter night sky observation session. In fact, no matter what your neighbors’ hobbies or interests are, by using OhSoWe.com, they are sharing more, consuming less, and saving money.