Charities Around the World Would Love to Have Your Used Stamps

'Tis the season of giving, and people are using it as an opportunity to donate clothes, toys, and canned goods to their local charities. If you're looking for a more unique way to give back at the end of 2020, there's an item many organizations are accepting that you likely have at home: old stamps.

According to Recycling for Good Causes, the stamps on your old envelopes hold value to charities. Many organizations based in the UK—like Oxfam, Parkinson's UK, MacMillan Cancer Support, and Many Tears Animal Rescue—take used stamps from donors and sell them to collectors. This allows them to raise funds using scraps of paper most people would throw away.

The charities do the hard work of turning stamps into cash, which means all you have to do is hold onto yours and mail them to the right place. After opening an envelope, carefully cut or tear off the corner with the used stamp. Leaving some paper around the edges is fine—just be careful not to damage the stamp itself, or it will be worthless.

Once you've gathered the stamps you want to donate, seal them in a fresh envelope and mail them to the organization you wish to support. The Pen Company has compiled a list of charities that accept stamps in this blog post. You can also mail them to Recycling For Good Causes, which will ensure your stamps are donated to a worthy group. Wait until you've gathered a decent amount of stamps to mail them off if you can (which, if you're on enough holiday card lists, should be easy by the end of the year).

There are many ways to help others with less this holiday season, and you don't have to stop at just one. Here are more charities that could use your support.