Farnham Repair Cafe
Saving the world by fixing vacuum cleaners, radios, clothing, furniture and many other items
17th October 2017
University for the Creative Arts
Farnham
Surrey
GU9 7DS
Organisers and Supporters
The event is co-organised by Farnham Repair Café, The Centre for Sustainable Design ® at UCA and Safety and Reliability Society (Solent Branch)
Consumer Culture, Circular Economy and Repair Cafes
The existing Linear Industrial Model of ‘Take, Make and Waste’ is unsustainable where an estimated 6 tonnes of waste is generated per person from 16 tonnes of material. This is leading to a growing acceptance of the need to move toward a more Circular Economy focused on ‘closing material loops’ through better design and more efficient use of materials. Repair Cafés – community workshops aimed at enabling repair – have emerged in the wider context of a prevailing consumer culture, low cost products and built-in product obsolescence.
The Repair Café Foundation was founded by Martine Postma in the Netherlands in 2011 to bring together people in local communities to repair products and therefore, extend the life of products that would otherwise end up as waste. Repair Cafés provide a place for people to socialise, to share and learn new skills and address issues related to sustainable consumption in a very real ‘hands-on’ way. There are now an estimated 1400+ repair cafes worldwide and 35 in the UK. Farnham Repair Café was established in 2015 and became a charity in early 2017 and has diverted nearly 1 tonne of materials from landfill and saved over 8 tonnes of CO2, and achieved a repair rate of 63%.
Professor Martin Charter will introduce the concept of the Circular Economy, discuss the emergence of new groups of ‘Fixers’, highlight results of a worldwide survey on Repair Cafes and introduce Farnham Repair Café. A second presentation by Steve Privett will present the findings, analysis and conclusions of a recent study of 382 items brought into Farnham Repair Cafe for repair between 2015-2017. This will be followed by discussion, and an opportunity to ask questions.
Programme
| 6:00 | Arrival & Refreshments |
| 6:30 | Farnham Repair Café: Background and Case Study Professor Martin Charter, Director, The Centre for Sustainable Design, University for the Creative Arts and Chairman, Board of Trustees, Farnham Repair CaféAnalysis of repairs completed at Farnham Repair Café Steve Privett, Member, Board of Trustees, Farnham Repair Café |
| 7:30 | Discussion & Q&A |
| 8:00 | Close |
Registration
The event is free of charge but registration is required.
Please email rcarruthers@uca.ac.uk to register.