>> Makers & Fixers - Circular Economy & Grassroots Innovation: Ten Lessons Learnt

Background

Makers and Fixers: Circular Economy & Grassroots Innovation will explore the emergence of new decentralised, grassroots approaches to making and fixing products. New places are emerging to help individuals experiment, make and fix products. These include tech shops, fab labs, makerspaces focused on makers, and hacklabs and repair cafés focused on fixers. A number of these maker places are starting to explore more sustainable production methods eg the use of 3D printing using recycled plastics. Within hacklabs and repair cafés inventors, entrepreneurs, designers, engineers and hobbyists appear to be coming together to collaborate with a view to extending the life of products through repair and/or changing product functions, therefore extending the use of materials. In addition, a number of companies and social enterprises are emerging to help consumers and users repair or fix a range of products. The emergence of Makers and Fixers has significant implications for the sustainable production and consumption of materials and could contribute significantly to the drive towards a more circular economy.

Makers and Fixers are represented in a diverse collection of organisations, non-profit and profit-generating businesses and subcultures. The Centre for Sustainable Design® is undertaking research to develop a classification of different types of Makers and Fixers based on a range of criteria and will be identifying potential environmental and social benefits of their activities. Furthermore, the research will seek to identify how businesses and other organisations can learn from these groups to innovate, upscale and where appropriate commercialise activities.

Makers & Fixers: Circular Economy & Grassroots Innovation will present findings from new research and will include invited presentations, innovative processes and provide excellent networking opportunities.

Agenda

To download presentations click on pdf logo and videos click on Youtube logo


08:30
Registration
09:15
Welcome
Professor Martin Charter, Director, The Centre for Sustainable Design ®, UK
09:20
Circular Economy
Judith Merkies MEP, European Parliament, Belgium
09:30
Circular Economy & Grassroots Innovation
Professor Martin Charter, Director, The Centre for Sustainable Design ®, UK
09:45
Grassroots Innovation
Dr Adrian Smith, Senior Research Fellow, SPRU, University of Sussex
10:15
Survey Results: Global Repair Cafés & Hackspaces
Professor Martin Charter & Scott Keiller, Director & Project Manager – FUSION, The Centre for Sustainable Design ®, UCA, UK
10:45
Coffee & Networking
11:15
Case Studies - Makers & Fixers

RDM Makerspace
Jurjen Lengkeek, Co-Founder, RDM Makerspace

Reading Hackspace
Ian Petrie, Member, Reading Hackspace

Thames Valley RepRap User Group
David Price, Member, Thames Valley RepRap User Group

Brighton Repair Café
Victoria Jackson & Samantha Jarman, Co-Founders, Brighton Repair Café

Remakery
Rob Maslin, Director, We All Design Youtube logo
12:15
Panel
Chairman: Professor Martin Charter, Director, The Centre for Sustainable Design ®, UK

Gerrard Fisher, Electronics Expert, WRAP
Jurjen Lengkeek, Co-Founder, RDM Makerspace
David Price, Member, Thames Valley RepRap User Group
Dr Adrian Smith, SPRU, University of Sussex
13:00
Lunch
14:00
Case Studies – Fixing Businesses

iameco
Paul Maher, Managing Director, Micropro Ltd youtube icon

IFixit
Kyle Wiens, CEO & Founder, IFixit

The Restart Project
Janet Gunter, Co-Founder, Restart

Goldfinger
Rob Maslin, Director, We All Design
15:00
World Café 2.0
1:
New Business Models
Chair: Jane Ollis, CEO, BSK-CIC
2:
Consumer Behaviour
Chair: Dr Rebecca Collins, Lecturer, Department of Geography & Development Studies, University of Chester
3:
Product Life Extension
Chair: Dr Debra Lilley, Senior Lecturer – Design & Co-ordinator, CLEVER Project, Loughborough University
4:
Consumer Electronics
Chair: Gerrard Fisher, Electronics Expert, WRAP
5:
Clothing & Apparel
Chair: Mo Tomaney, Subject Leader, Post Graduate Fashion and Business, University for the Creative Arts
6:
Places for Making & Fixing
Chair: Bob Pulley, Head of School, Craft & Design, University for the Creative Arts
16:30
Report-Back & Discussion
17:15
Summing up
Professor Martin Charter, Director, The Centre for Sustainable Design ®, UCA, UK
17:30
Networking
18:00
Close

Fees & Registration

There is no charge for this event. Please download the Registration Form

Map & Directions

Please refer to the map at ucreative.ac.uk/farnham/map

Social networking

Use the social networking share buttons at the top to tell your colleagues and networks about the opportunity. If you're tweeting you may want to copy in the following: @mcharter1

For further information on the Makers & Fixers project and FUSION please contact:

Ros Carruthers
The Centre for Sustainable Design ®
University for the Creative Arts,
Tel: +44 (0) 1252 892772
Email: rcarruthers.t1@ucreative.ac.uk

Social networking

Use the social networking share buttons at the top to tell your colleagues and networks about the opportunity. If you're tweeting you may want to copy in the following: @mcharter1 @CfSD_UCA