Greenpoint Trash Club: NYC's Anti-Loneliness Social Movement

How Tom Aulenback turned Wednesday night trash pickup into the city's most honest social movement

On a Wednesday evening outside Rounder's in Greenpoint, two dozen New Yorkers gathered. Not for the NBA playoffs. Not for Rounder's famous Guinness Martini. They came for trash.

Welcome to Greenpoint Trash Club—where the cover charge is zero, the dress code is "bring gloves," and romance is apparently just four garbage bags away.

Since August 2024, Tom Aulenback has been running what might be the most accidentally brilliant social experiment in Brooklyn: What if the antidote to urban loneliness was just... picking up trash together?

No apps. No awkward icebreakers. No $18 cocktails as the price of admission to human connection.

Just grabbers, garbage bags, a bluetooth speaker, and a bar at the end.

Turns out, that's all you need to build a movement.

The Origin Story: G Train Shutdown → Social Revolution

Tom Aulenback moved to Greenpoint four years ago. Like many Brooklyn transplants, he wanted to do something good for his neighborhood. He found Bushwick's Pick-up Pigeons and started volunteering.

Then came the G train shutdown last summer.

Suddenly, his noble volunteer work required an hour-long commute each way across Brooklyn. The math stopped mathing.

So Aulenback did what any rational person would do: He started his own trash club in Greenpoint.

He posted on Reddit: "Anyone want to pick up trash with me?"

"I was fully convinced I was going to be the only one there and no one was going to show up," Aulenback remembered.

Ten people showed up.

Then 10 to 20 people started showing up every week.

Then the Brooklyn Eagle wrote about it.

Then someone had a missed connection that went viral on r/Williamsburg.

Now it's the hottest club in North Brooklyn—and it's built entirely around garbage.

The Format: Stupid Simple, Impossibly Effective

Every Wednesday, Aulenback posts a map and instructions on Instagram.

The route changes weekly—zigzagging through different Greenpoint streets between Freeman, Green, Franklin, and Manhattan Avenue.

The equipment list:

• Trash bags

• Gloves

• Grabbers

• Hand sanitizer

• Bluetooth speaker (for vibes)

The time commitment:
About an hour of actual cleanup.

The output:
Usually around 75 pounds of trash removed. Four full garbage bags on a good night.

The real reason people come:
The bar afterward.

"Most people wouldn't be coming out every week if it wasn't a good place to make friends," Aulenback said. "You don't need to spend money to come out to these, hang out and just talk to people—it's pretty rare."

The Secret Sauce: Low-Stakes, High-Connection

Shayla Walsh nailed why this works:

"I wanted to meet people, but I also wanted to help my community and I feel like it's a low stakes thing. It's like an hour of cleaning up trash and then you can get a drink afterwards and you feel good and you make friends."

Low stakes.

That's the magic phrase.

Compare Trash Club to the traditional NYC social landscape:

Dating apps: High stakes. Performance anxiety. Algorithmic judgment. Swiping fatigue.

Networking events: Transactional. Business card theater. Who-do-you-know Olympics.

Bars/clubs: Expensive. Loud. Surface-level. "What do you do?" on repeat.

Trash pickup: You're literally holding garbage. There's nowhere to hide. No one's trying to impress anyone. You're just... here. Helping. Sweating a little. Making small talk while dragging a bag of street debris toward a trash can.

It's the least sexy social activity imaginable.

Which is exactly why it works.

There's no pretense. No performance. Just presence.

And at the end, you actually did something good for the place you live. You didn't just consume—you contributed.

That feeling is rare in a city where most interactions are extractive.

The Unexpected Benefit: Romance in the Rubble

Chris Puch lives in Staten Island but comes to Greenpoint to reconnect with his Polish roots. A few weeks ago at Trash Club, he met someone.

"A tall and pretty woman," he described.

They talked. They walked. They picked up trash together.

And then: "One thing led to another and before I knew it, it was 'see you later, nice meeting you' and I totally dropped the ball. I never asked her for a number. Then I blinked and she was gone."

Puch did what any modern romantic does: He posted on r/Williamsburg asking about his missed connection.

The post went viral.

Laura Weinstein, who came out with friends, said the post "incentivized all these single people to come out."

Translation: Trash Club is now Brooklyn's most wholesome dating scene.

Think about that for a second.

In a city saturated with dating apps, speed dating, singles mixers, and every algorithmic attempt to engineer human connection—the thing that works is picking up garbage together.

Because it's:

• Shared purpose (we're making the neighborhood better)

• Physical activity (walking, bending, moving—the body relaxes)

• Side-by-side connection (not face-to-face interrogation)

• Built-in conversation topics ("Look at this weird thing someone threw away!")

• Natural continuation (the bar afterward is earned, not forced)

It's everything dating experts say works... accidentally built into a trash pickup.

The Philosophy: Anti-Loneliness Through Action

What Tom Aulenback created—probably without intending to—is a perfect anti-loneliness machine.

The structure addresses every modern isolation pain point:

1. It's Free

No financial barrier. In a city where a coffee costs $7 and a cocktail costs $18, this matters.

2. It's Regular

Every Wednesday. Same time. Predictable. You can plan around it. Routine breeds community.

3. It's Purposeful

You're not just "hanging out." You're doing something. Purpose dissolves awkwardness.

4. It's Physical

Movement is medicine. Walking side-by-side is how humans have bonded for millennia.

5. It's Open

No membership. No application. No gatekeeping. Just show up.

6. It Has an End

One hour. Then the bar. Then you choose whether to stay or go. There's an exit ramp if you need it.

7. It Scales Naturally

The format works with 5 people or 25. Growth doesn't break the model.

The Replication: From Greenpoint to Astoria (and Beyond?)

Here's where it gets interesting for world-builders:

This model is spreading.

After seeing Trash Club succeed, Vicky started similar events in Astoria. Tom showed up at the first three events with all the equipment—grabbers, bags, sanitizer, the works.

Now Astoria Trash Club runs on its own.

That's the emergence pattern.

Tom didn't build a franchise. He didn't write a playbook. He didn't create an LLC or apply for grants.

He just... showed people it was possible by doing it.

Then he showed up to help them start.

Then he let them run it themselves.

That's synarchy in action: leadership that creates more leaders.

The World-Building Lesson: Start With What's Broken (Literally)

Most people trying to "build community" start with:

• A manifesto

• A mission statement

• A website

• A business plan

• A fundraising deck

Tom started with:

• A Reddit post

• Ten trash bags

• A route through his neighborhood

He didn't ask permission. He didn't wait for funding. He just started picking up trash and invited people to join.

The first event was the proof of concept.
The second event was the pattern.
By the third event, it was a movement.

The Trash Club Formula:

1. Identify something broken in your neighborhood (literally: trash on the streets; metaphorically: people are lonely)

2. Design the smallest possible version (Wednesday night, one hour, one route, meet at a bar after)

3. Make it stupid easy to participate (bring nothing, just show up)

4. Do it weekly (consistency beats intensity)

5. Make it social (the work is the excuse; connection is the outcome)

6. Let it spread organically (people will copy what works)

The Hidden Innovation: Workout + Therapy + Community + Impact

Let's inventory what Trash Club actually provides:

✅ Physical exercise (walking, bending, carrying—basically a light workout)
✅ Mental health boost (purposeful action, outdoor time, endorphins)
✅ Social connection (weekly gathering, new friends, potential romance)
✅ Community impact (cleaner streets, visible neighborhood care)
✅ Environmental action (removing 75+ pounds of trash weekly)
✅ Civic engagement (showing up for your neighborhood)
✅ Financial accessibility (completely free)

That's a seven-in-one solution.

Most startups would kill for a product that delivers three of those benefits.

Tom built it with trash bags and a Reddit post.

The Expansion Roadmap: What This Could Become

Right now, Trash Club is organic, scrappy, and perfect as-is.

But if you wanted to scale the model (without losing its soul), here's what's possible:

Local Replication:

Every neighborhood in NYC could have a Trash Club. Not franchised—federated. Each one autonomous but connected.

The Trash Club Network:

A simple directory: "Find your local Trash Club." Different neighborhoods, same format. Maybe they meet up quarterly for a city-wide "Trash Summit."

The Starter Kit:

Tom's already doing this informally (showing up with equipment for new clubs). Formalize it: a simple guide + offer to mentor first three events.

The Constellation Effect:

As clubs multiply, they start collaborating. Astoria Trash Club joins Greenpoint Trash Club for a big waterfront cleanup. Bushwick's Pickup Pigeons teams up with Trash Club for Earth Day.

The World President Tie-In:

This is a perfect "world to watch." Tom is essentially the President of Greenpoint's Cleanliness & Connection World. His term length: weekly. His cabinet: whoever shows up. His re-election: every Wednesday when people come back.

And now he's helping other neighborhoods elect their own presidents.

That's the synarchy model in action.

What This Teaches World-Builders

The Trash Club story offers several principles for anyone trying to build a world:

1. Start with presence, not platform

Tom didn't build a website first. He showed up with bags and posted "who's coming?"

2. Design for participation, not consumption

People don't come to watch. They come to do. That's the difference between an audience and a community.

3. Make the barrier to entry embarrassingly low

"Just show up" beats "fill out this form, pay this fee, commit to this program."

4. Embed the social reward

The bar afterward isn't optional—it's the structure that makes the work social instead of solitary.

5. Let the format be copied

Tom could have trademarked, controlled, monetized. Instead, he helped Astoria start their own. Now the idea spreads.

6. Solve multiple problems at once

Trash Club isn't just cleaning streets OR building community OR fighting loneliness. It's all three, integrated.

7. Trust emergence over control

Tom didn't plan for romance or viral Reddit posts or Brooklyn Eagle coverage. He created conditions for things to happen. Then they happened.

The Invitation: Start Your Own Trash Club

If you're reading this and thinking "My neighborhood needs this"—you're right. It does.

Here's how to start, Tom Aulenback-style:

Week 0: Make the decision

Pick a day. Pick a time. Pick a route. Pick a bar. That's it.

Week 1: Post the invitation

Reddit, Instagram, neighborhood Facebook groups. "I'm picking up trash [day] at [time]. Meeting at [location]. Then going to [bar]. Who's coming?"

Week 2: Show up even if you're alone

If 10 people show up, great. If zero people show up, you still cleaned your neighborhood. That's a win.

Week 3: Show up again

Consistency is the whole game. One event is a fluke. Three events is a pattern. Eight events is a tradition.

Week 8: Help someone else start one

When someone from another neighborhood asks how you did it, show up to their first event with extra grabbers.

That's the whole model.

No LLC. No nonprofit status. No grants. No sponsors.

Just people who care enough to pick up trash together and then grab a drink after.

Worlds To Watch: Greenpoint Trash Club

Founded: August 2024
Founder: Tom Aulenback
World Type: Hyperlocal community initiative
Format: Weekly trash pickup → bar hangout
Attendance: 10-20 people per week
Output: ~75 lbs of trash removed weekly
Side Effects: Friendships, romance, viral Reddit posts
Replication: Astoria Trash Club (operational)

Current Status: Active and growing organically

Follow: @greenpointtrash on Instagram

Why This World Matters:

In a city where loneliness is an epidemic and connection costs money, Tom Aulenback proved you can build community with trash bags and consistency.

No business plan. No funding. No app. Just a guy who posted on Reddit and showed up every Wednesday.

That's world-building at its purest: see what's broken, design the smallest fix, do it weekly, invite others, let it spread.

Greenpoint Trash Club isn't just picking up garbage.

It's picking up the lost art of showing up for each other—one Wednesday, one bag, one neighborhood at a time.

The Call: What's Your Trash Club?

You don't need to literally pick up trash (though you could).

But what's the simple, weekly, participatory thing your neighborhood is missing?

What's the thing where if you just did it and invited people, they'd probably show up?

What's the version in your world that's:

• Free to join

• Easy to participate in

• Purposeful but social

• Weekly and consistent

• Ends with connection

That's your Trash Club.

The format is replicable. The principle is universal.

Community isn't built by programs. It's built by showing up.

Tom Aulenback figured that out with a Reddit post and ten trash bags.

What are you waiting for?

Want to start a Trash Club in your neighborhood?
→ DM @greenpointtrash on Instagram
→ Join the Trash Club Network (coming soon)
→ Nominate Your World for a feature in Juicy Times

This is part of Juicy Times' "Worlds To Watch" series—documenting movements that prove community building doesn't require money, just consistency and care. Read more at juicy-times.com.