Repair your items for free with Repair Cafés!

Do you have an object to repair? Turn to Repair Cafés! These are places that allow you to repair your defective items instead of throwing them away! We had the opportunity to talk to Luc Deriez, communications manager of the Repairs Together association, which represents the network of Repair Cafés in Brussels and Wallonia. 🔧

Presentation

The Repair Together association was created in 2012 in order to be able to support the Repair Cafés in their development. 

What is a Repair Café? 

It's a place where you learn how to repair your objects with the help and tools of volunteer repairers. In addition to fighting against waste, you meet new people who pass on their know-how to you. Who says Repair Café says coffee, so you will find in each Repair Café, a corner set up to enjoy a hot drink while waiting for a volunteer to be available.

" It's a multicultural place, where people of all ages, genders and social classes meet." – Luc Deriez

In a few figures in Brussels and Wallonia, there are 171 Repair Cafés, 3000 volunteers and 177 tonnes of waste that have found a second life! 

 Repair Together Repair ©Shop

The measures put in place in response to Covid

Considered a non-essential place, the Repair Cafés are closed.

"We are impacted like everyone else, the Repair Cafés are closed. The lockdown reveals two things: the lack of contact and the fact is that there has never been so much talk about repairs."

As a result, the association has adapted by offering online content regularly such as tutorials made by repairers. We explain how to change the battery of your laptop, repair a sewing machine, etc. 

Faced with the pandemic, the association has set up an online remote help platform called Repair Connects with the help of Statik. In this way, although the Repair Cafés are closed, the volunteers are still repairing. Citizens register their broken appliances on the platform and the repairers in turn try to remotely help these citizens to repair themselves. This helps to maintain the spirit of conviviality and solidarity of the Repair Cafés.

Outside of Covid times

Repair Together organises repair training courses for volunteers only. They allow members to share their knowledge throughout the network. 

In addition to meeting and exchanging with new people, you will improve your knowledge. Training is provided on the basics of repair and repair of specific devices. All training courses are free of charge and require registration.

The association also offers educational activities to all types of public: schools, citizen groups, neighborhood associations, companies, students. They set up events related to the circular economy or planned obsolescence.

At the same time, the association campaigns for eco-designed appliances that are durable and repairable by all!

 What are the association's recruitment criteria? 

As a recruitment platform, Luc Deriez was asked what the association's recruitment criteria were? 

" For recruitment, we give priority to people who are active in the network as volunteers and activists." 

Today, there are 9 employees running Repair Together and all of them belong to the network! 

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