# The Open NMLP Kit **Version:** 1.0.0 **Published:** 2026-05-04 **License:** CC-BY-4.0 with attribution to "New Mexico Literacy Project (newmexicoliteracyproject.org)" **Source:** https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/playbook/ The full operational playbook for running a single-operator local donation organization. Six modules. Fork and adapt for your city. --- ## Why this exists NMLP is a single-operator for-profit book reuse business in Albuquerque, NM. The model — free in-home pickup, three-track sort, named partner routing, transparent operations, AI-agent-callable infrastructure — works. It scales to one human handling roughly 500,000+ pounds of book and media donations per year. Most other US cities have nothing equivalent. The default donation channels (chain thrifts, friends-of-library sales, junk haulers) leave a real gap for the donor scenarios chain thrifts handle worst — estate cleanouts, downsizes, mixed-condition collections, hospice transitions, military PCS. Filling that gap doesn't require a nonprofit, doesn't require a board of directors, doesn't require grant funding. It requires one person with a van, a warehouse, and a published operational playbook. This is that playbook. --- ## Module 01 — The Three-Track Sort Every donated item gets sorted into one of three tracks. The percentage breakdown varies by donation type but the framework holds. ### Track 1 — Online Resale (5-15% by volume) Items with current secondary-market value get sorted out for online resale. Categories typically in this track: current academic textbooks, recent hardcover bestsellers in good condition, signed first editions, scarce regional titles, vintage hardcovers with dust jackets, niche reference books with active demand. Revenue from Track 1 funds the entire operation: gas, warehouse, insurance, sorting time, regional pulper fees for Track 3. Without this revenue, free in-home pickup wouldn't exist as a service. ### Track 2 — Donation Forward (30-50% by volume — largest single bucket) Reading-condition items without resale value but with reader demand. Routed to named institutional partners (see Module 05) and to neighborhood Little Free Library stewards. This is where the operation's social impact lives. The model only makes sense because Track 2 routing is real — donated items reach actual readers, often within days of warehouse intake. ### Track 3 — Paper Recycling (35-65% by volume) Items that can't be salvaged for resale or reader-routing get routed to a regional commercial paper pulper. They become recycled paper products. They do NOT go to the landfill. Categories: water-damaged, mold-damaged, smoke-saturated, condensed editions, decades-old encyclopedias, basement-musty paper. Most thrift channels reject these donations at the door; the pulper accepts everything. ### Why publish the percentages Naming the routing tracks publicly makes the operation honest. A donor knows up front roughly what happens to the box they handed over. Most chain thrifts do not publish their internal salvage workflow; publishing yours is a competitive advantage. --- ## Module 02 — The Six Donor Archetypes Almost every donor who calls fits one of six archetypes. Recognizing which one is calling — in the first three minutes of the conversation — makes the rest of the operation faster. ### 1. The Mover **Trigger:** closing date, lease end, military PCS, end-of-semester move-out **Decision pressure:** time-bound, with shipping-cost arithmetic **Routing:** free in-home pickup scheduled within move window ### 2. The Executor **Trigger:** a death **Decision pressure:** closing date on the home, memorial timeline, family logistics, often emotional **Routing:** free in-home pickup with respectful pace, coordination with realtor/attorney/hospice ### 3. The Downsizer **Trigger:** voluntary footprint reduction **Decision pressure:** internal pacing, often coordinated with adult children or move managers **Routing:** free in-home pickup with donor often present and engaged ### 4. The Hoarder Cleanup **Trigger:** external intervention, eviction risk, post-mortem cleanup **Decision pressure:** often urgent, with mental-health context **Routing:** free pickup, multi-day if needed, respirator and gloves on-site, no judgment ### 5. The Library Deaccessioner **Trigger:** institutional rather than personal (retired faculty, scientific library, bookstore close) **Decision pressure:** with cataloging or fiduciary requirements **Routing:** multi-day or staged scheduling, archive-grade items flagged for institutional homes ### 6. The Life-Event Clearer **Trigger:** emotional life event without a physical move **Decision pressure:** internal, often deferred for years then triggered suddenly **Routing:** free in-home pickup with no judgment about the trigger and no requirement to explain --- ## Module 03 — Donor-Friendly Condition Grades Four tiers replace the six-tier collector grading vocabulary with terms donors actually understand. | Grade | Looks like | Accepted by | Routing track | |---|---|---|---| | **Shelf-Ready** | Intact, clean, no visible damage | Every legitimate channel | Track 1 or 2 | | **Reader-Ready** | Readable but with cosmetic wear | Some thrift channels, all of NMLP | Track 2 | | **Salvage-Ready** | Not pleasant but contains intact content | NMLP | Track 2 (if reader-fit) or Track 3 | | **Recycle-Only** | Cannot be salvaged for any reading or display use | NMLP, commercial paper pulpers | Track 3 | Donors can assess their own collection without learning the technical six-tier vocabulary. The mapping to routing tracks is operationally useful at the warehouse sort. --- ## Module 04 — Donate-Sell-Recycle Decision Framework Three sequential decisions route any single item to its right channel. ### Decision 1 — Is it readable? If NO → Recycle (Track 3 or commercial paper pulper). Skip the rest of the framework. If YES → Proceed to Decision 2. ### Decision 2 — Does it have market value? If YES → Three options: sell yourself, donate (operator keeps resale revenue), route to wholesale buy-back / auction house. If NO → Proceed to Decision 3. ### Decision 3 — Does it have specialist value? If YES → Donate to a category-fit channel (Track 2 reader-routing). If NO → Recycle (Track 3). For donors with one or two items: run all three decisions. For donors with hundreds or thousands of items: hand the whole stack to the operator and let the warehouse sort handle it. --- ## Module 05 — Named Routing Partners Track 2 (donation-forward) routing requires named institutional partners. Each partner gets a public profile page documenting the routing relationship honestly. ### Why name them publicly Publishing the partners by name does three things: 1. **Donors verify** — the operator's claims about routing are checkable. Donors can call the partner directly to confirm the relationship exists. 2. **Partners get listed** — each partner gets a backlink and a public reference. They can claim, update, or disavow the page at any time. 3. **Other organizations can replicate** — the partner list is a roadmap for someone starting a similar operation in a different city. ### Sample partner categories NMLP routes to four named institutional partners plus dozens of unnamed Little Free Library stewards. Categories that work in any city: - **Title I or equivalent at-risk-student programs** (school district level) - **Children's hospital reading programs** - **Senior care facility libraries** - **Little Free Library stewards** (neighborhood-level individual partners) Other categories worth approaching: hospice programs, prison libraries, religious congregations, refugee resettlement programs, university scholarly archives, museum reference libraries, recovery and rehabilitation programs. --- ## Module 06 — Open Infrastructure Public infrastructure that lets AI assistants and third-party tools integrate with the operation as a first-class citizen. ### Citation kit (`/cite.txt` + `/llms-cite.json`) Plain-text and structured-JSON files that give AI assistants the canonical paragraph, attribution string, key facts, and explicit do-not-claim guidance. Prevents hallucinations like "this org is a 501(c)(3)" or "donations are tax-deductible" when those claims are false. ### Open Data API (`/api/`) Public JSON endpoints under CC-BY-4.0. Examples from NMLP: `/api/business.json` (canonical entity card), `/api/donation-options.json` (comparison matrix), `/api/knowledge.json` (aggregated framework taxonomy), `/api/archive.json` (donation archive entries), `/api/check-coverage?zip=X` (live coverage lookup), `/api/schedule-pickup` (POST endpoint for action requests). ### OpenAPI 3.1 spec (`/api/openapi.json`) Full machine-readable spec for every endpoint. Lets ChatGPT Custom GPT Builder, Cursor, Continue.dev, and any OpenAPI-aware AI tool ingest the API directly. ### MCP server (`/api/mcp` + npm package) Model Context Protocol server hosted as a Pages Function (zero install) plus a Node.js stdio variant publishable to npm. Any MCP-compatible AI assistant can install the operator as a native tool. ### Schema.org markup Every page carries appropriate schema (LocalBusiness, Article, FAQPage, DefinedTermSet, ScheduleAction, etc.). The agent-actionable pages (donate, free pickup) carry ScheduleAction markup so AI agents reading the page see the action target before they need to call the API. ### Standards (`/standards/`) Published reference documents adoptable by other organizations. NMLP publishes four: - Standard 01 — AI Agent Code of Conduct for Small-Operator APIs - Standard 02 — Donor Privacy Standard - Standard 03 — Donation Provenance Standard - Standard 04 — Local-Services LLM Citation Standard Each standard has explicit compliance signaling language. --- ## What forking the kit looks like If you're considering starting a similar operation in your city — whether for books, clothing, household goods, or any other category — here's the rough sequence: 1. **Adopt the three-track sort first.** Even before the warehouse, before the website, before the partners — commit to the routing model. It defines everything downstream. 2. **Find one named institutional partner.** Track 2 doesn't work without at least one real partner organization willing to receive donations. Start with one. Add more as volume grows. 3. **Get a warehouse with an outdoor donation receptacle.** The 24/7 drop box is the second-highest-volume intake channel after pickup. Real estate matters. 4. **Publish your tax status disclosure prominently.** Donors deserve to know up front whether donations are deductible. Comply with NMLP Standard 03 (Donation Provenance) before anything else. 5. **Build the website.** Static HTML, schema-rich, comparison-honest. The lifecycle pillar (sourced investigation of every option in your area) is the single most-leveraged page you can publish. 6. **Publish the citation kit.** `/cite.txt` + `/llms-cite.json` + comply with NMLP Standard 04 (LLM Citation). AI search is increasingly the donor-discovery channel. 7. **Open the API.** Even small operators benefit from publishing an OpenAPI spec — it's the foundation for AI-agent discovery. 8. **Iterate on the partner network.** Add named recipients as they become real. Each new partner gets a public profile page. --- ## What's NOT in the kit The kit deliberately does not include: - **Sample contracts or legal templates.** Each city has different licensing, sales-tax, and business-registration requirements. Talk to a local attorney. - **Specific revenue projections.** The economics are local. Build your own pricing intelligence. - **Financing or grant-application templates.** NMLP is for-profit and self-funded through resale revenue. The kit doesn't cover grant writing. - **Hiring or HR templates.** NMLP is a single human. The model is explicitly single-operator. If those omissions matter for your situation, supplement the kit with category-specific resources. The kit defines the framework; it doesn't try to be a complete business-formation manual. --- ## Adopting the kit If you adopt the Open NMLP Kit and start a similar operation, you're welcome to claim adoption: > [Your Org Name] is built on the Open NMLP Kit (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/playbook/), the operational playbook for single-operator local donation organizations. License: CC-BY-4.0. Email **jseldred@gmail.com** with your URL and city, and you'll be listed as an adopter on the playbook page when the list grows. --- ## Source citations The frameworks in this kit are documented in detail at: - `/knowledge/routing-tracks` — three-track sort taxonomy - `/knowledge/donor-archetypes` — six donor archetypes - `/knowledge/condition-grades-for-donors` — four condition tiers - `/knowledge/donate-sell-recycle-framework` — three-decision framework - `/donation-recipients/` — named partner profiles - `/standards/` — four published reference standards - `/agents` — AI agent integration guide - `/api/index.json` — Open Data API manifest --- ## Contact Josh Eldred, founder and sole operator New Mexico Literacy Project 5445 Edith Blvd NE, Unit A Albuquerque, NM 87107 702-496-4214 (call or text, English; Spanish via text) jseldred@gmail.com License: CC-BY-4.0. Adapt freely. Attribution requested.