Looking for a cup of sugar?

In the olden days it was common for neighbors to borrow things (like a cup of sugar) from each other. These days it is common for people to not even know who their neighbors are. A new website is looking to build community while also saving the planet.

Why buy something you can borrow?

neighBORROW is a “green” web-based start-up that facilitates the borrowing and lending things among neighbors or other groups. neighBORROW combines the traditional notion of borrowing a cup of sugar from a neighbor with modern technology, using the Internet to facilitate borrowing and lending of nearly anything among people in local networks.

The website uses accountability metrics such as deposits, user reputations, borrowing history and customizable privacy settings to help ensure the safety of its members’ property. Users have the flexibility to decide what and with whom they are willing to share by participating in private and public networks.

These “neighBORROW-hoods,” have been created in apartment buildings, dormitories, offices, and other natural localities, and have been used to pool and catalog extensive online inventories of CDs, DVDs, video games, books, tools, sporting equipment, baby items and many other durable goods.

neighBORROW is in PRIVATE BETA (pBETA) which means that they have finished the public testing and now have over 5,000 people (neighBORROW-ers) in over 300 places (neighBORROW-hoods) saving money and the environment by borrowing from an inventory of over 10,000 things (neighBORROW-goods) listed and available. The site is now testing neighBORROW-hoods in communities, on campuses, and at companies all over the world. During the pBETA you can join neighBORROW three ways:

1. THROUGH AN EXISTING NEIGHBORROW-HOOD.
2. BY CREATING A NEW NEIGHBORROW-HOOD YOURSELF
3. EXPRESS REGISTERING (gives you an option to join the pBETA or wait until they launch.)

For more info on joining, click here.