To build a repair economy we need:
Many other initiatives already exist. They can be deployed elsewhere, providing an accelerator to solutions. The Stories sections on this site provide case studies for solutions. As a starting point, the links and references here identify resources for exploration, inspiration, access and support:
Finding Repairers:
Community repair events are run by Repair Cafés and the Restart Project. The Restart Project also provide a repair directory for commercial repairers, primarily in London. A more UK-wide directory is The Repair Finder, developed by Frank at Transition Marlow, it continues to add new repair locations and businesses.
As part of the Community Repair Network they also maintain a UK-wide map covering Restart, repair cafes and sharing libraries. In Glasgow the ReMade network provide affordable drop-off repair services to help communities repair their broken things. In Bath, Share and Repair run repair cafe events and have a pop-up repair shop and Library of Things where people can borrow tools and items that they only occasionally need and avoid waste. The Reuse Network are a a network of charitable organisations dedicated to reuse. New Fixing Factories are opening up in London that provide more repair locations in recycling centres and on the high street, making them easier to access, and provide a wider rearrange of services. There should be one on every high street.
In Ireland Repair My Stuff provide an online repair directory to direct people to local resources.
For industrial and commercial businesses, see Repair Dont Waste and industrial E-waste repair information.
In New Zealand Aotearoa, Repair Café Aotearoa New Zealand provide a network of community repair events and links to other sustainability groups.
Recycling is often not the best option for electrical and electronic devices. It is much better to keep them in use, to maintain and repair them, refurbish them, and reuse them ( sell on or donate). Recycle your Electricals provides links to places in UK to sell on, repair and donate your electrical and how to recycle them properly. Only look to recycle them once the other options are exhausted and then do so via an electronics recycling centre to ensure that we make the most of the valuable materials within them.
Knowledge and guidance:
For extensive on-line repair guides, repairability assessments, tools and spare parts, see iFixit They are now partnering with manufacturers like Apple, Google Pixel, Microsoft and Samsung to help them improve the repairability of their designs. There is also a great resource for budding fixers on the Restarters wiki. For things like White Goods iFixit provide online guides and spares supplies companies like eSpares provide online guides and videos.
Culture and Education:
There is also a monumental website dedicated to the Culture of Repair with lots of links and resources, including those for educators. They have a more extensive list of resources and initiatives here.
The Restart Project run repair education and events for schools and Team Repair, an award-winning company founded by a team of Design Engineers from Imperial College London. They have a mission to increase STEM uptake and tackle the e-waste crisis, using the magic of repair for schools and at home.
Advocacy:
The Open Repair Alliance is an international group of organisations committed to working towards a world where electrical and electronic products are more durable and easier to repair. Cool Products are a coalition of European NGOs working to ensure that ecodesign and energy labelling truly work for Europeans and the environment.
In Europe, R2REurope – the Right to Repair campaign was launched in September 2019, and quickly grew to over 40 organisations, from more than 16 European countries. The campaign members represent community repair groups, environmental activists, social economy actors, self-repair advocates and any citizen who would like to obtain their right to repair. Steadily, they are making progress on on changing EU repair legislation.
RREUSE is an international non-profit network supporting the development of social enterprises in the circular economy through innovative policies and partnerships, and the exchange of best practices.
Advocating the right to repair in USA are the Repair Association. with members iFixit, USPIRG, and Secure Repairs. Also with a US focus, but covering events more globally is SecuRepairs’ founder Paul Roberts Fight to Repair substack, which provides regular updates on news, changes in legislation on the fight and right to repair, and FixitClinic run regular in person and Zoom based repair events. In Canada there is CanRepair.