In support of Repair Day (19th October), the exhibition will highlight the importance of repair and reuse and the need for a better Right to Repair. For more information and events taking place on international Repair Day (19th October) see https://openrepair.org
There will also be copies of the unbroken.solutions photobook to view and copies of the ‘act now‘ zine.
An update on the ‘act now’ campaign to make better use of community facilities for sharing, repair and reuse.
In 2023, I sent ‘unbroken‘ photobooks and ‘act now‘ zines to all major UK councils and local authorities. I have just updated the campaign. More copies of the books and zines have gone to councils that recently changed control. Books have also been sent to the newly elected mayors and to the recently appointed government ministers at DEFRA and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
Whilst we really need a better ‘Right to Repair‘, there is still much more we can do with the resources we have.
There are over 1000 under-utilised council-owned properties that are likely suitable for sharing, repair and re-use. Many are empty. Sian Berry (Greens) described these spaces as ‘Dead Spaces‘. They do not need to be dead. If a fraction of these became ‘meanwhile’ use for local communities, it could help reduce waste, reduce council disposal costs, help with cost of living and help build local communities. It really begs the question – so, why would you not want to do this?
The RSA has recently adopted the idea of making better use of these ‘Dead Spaces‘ as part of its Day One Manifesto. This will form part of the ongoing campaign into 2025. More to follow.
International Repair Day (19 October) is fast approaching. As part of that, I am putting together an exhibition to be shown at a ‘meanwhile’ shop outside Leytonstone Station. E11. It is supported by We Flock CIC. More on this in the next few week.
It felt like a lot had happened in 2023. But already there is much happening in 2024, especially on the campaign front.
In the UK
After months of nudging, a few councils and waste authorities have responded positively to the ‘act now‘ campaign. This aims to provide more support for repair and reuse in the UK. A particular ‘shout out’ goes to North London Waste Authority, Scottish Government, South Cambridge, West Midlands and Powys. They all took the time to respond and provide more information on their commitments.
DEFRA have also responded, but focussed on their policy paper “The waste prevention programme for England: Maximising Resources, Minimising Waste”. This aims “to use fewer new resources, drive up the repair and reuse of existing materials, and increase recycling“. They are currently consulting on “reforming the producer responsibility system for waste electrical and electronic equipment“. There are a number of good provisions (around funding and producer and large retailer responsibilities). But there are major concerns about the proposals to use kerb-side collection for electrical and electronic items. Given that around 40-50% of these items are reusable and repairable, leaving them ‘kerb-side’ is not god. It is likely to render them all useless and simply create more waste! You have an opportunity to provide input to this consultation – the deadline to respond is 7 March 2024, the link is here: https://consult.defra.gov.uk/product-regulation-and-producer-responsibility/consultation-on-reforming-the-producer-responsibil/
In the USA
USPIRG, iFixit and other campaigners continue to make progress on getting state legislatures to adopt Right to Repair. Following success in California, Oregon is adopting a right to repair. Importantly, Google have come out in support of meaningful proposals. These include:
– Repair parts: ensuring that parts are accessible to the public and no parts pairing or registration. This enables small businesses and local repairers to thrive and grow.-
– Accessible tools: and an on-device Diagnostic App to help users test device functionality before and after repairs.
– Clear instructions: with redesigned repair manuals and information on how to order parts, view repair manuals, and run diagnostic tests.
All good stuff. We look forward to Apple and Samsung doing likewise very soon.
In other news
More community repair groups are starting up in the UK. This includes Islington Fixers, who will hold their first event on 20 January 2024 at the Islington Climate Centre. This is in partnership with the Restart Project.
On 24 October, a group of Right to Repair advocates, including R2REurope, RREUSE, ECOS, and EEB held their “The Price is Right’ event. The event was a day before the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee (ICMO) vote on ‘Sustainable Consumption of Goods – Promoting Repair and Reuse”.
The event challenged MEPs, NGOs and the public as they attempted to work out the ‘official’ price of spare parts for well-known consumer electrical and electronic products. This fun event aimed to educate and remind people of why it is important to have a proper right to repair.
During the event, many were stunned at the cost of spares. For example, the power cable and plug for a steam iron could cost as much as 40% of the price of the iron alone. Or that a replacement screen for an Digital TV was more expensive than the TV itself. Even where spares were more reasonably priced, they were often much more expensive than the price of spares on the aftermarket.
The good news is that the IMCO report was voted through. It significantly improves the Commission’s proposal by introducing provisions to tackle the high cost of repair. It proposes transparent pricing of spare parts, and bans on unfair anti-repair practices.
Without these measures, repairs will remain expensive and, electrical and electronic items will needlessly be disposed of. This is a waste of resources. It costs local authorities money. It damages the environment. It drives the public to buy another expensive product! The report proposes:
Access to more information and parts for independent repairers and end users: guaranteeing access to all information and spare parts for everyone, including independent repairers, remanufacturers, refurbishers and end-users.
Affordability of repair: requiring manufacturers to supply parts at reasonable prices.
A solid ban of anti-repair practices: such as the use of software barriers.
A new obligation to repair outside of legal guarantee: stressing that consumers should be able to pick the provider of their choice, promoting independent repair and self-repair.
Priority to repair within the legal guarantee framework: the priority should be given to repair instead of replacement.
Next Steps …
The next step is the confirmation of the ICMO position in the main European Parliament. Then finally, for the European Council to enact these rights.
Given the broad support for repair amongst the public and at the EU Parliament – the Council should enact the ambition. In the meantime, the case for a proper right to repair continues …
… and in the UK?
In the UK, following FixFest 2023 in Cardiff, an updated Repair and Reuse Declaration has been published. The UK lags behind Europe (and some US states). The UK is the second highest producer of electronic waste per capita in the world, and on track to become the top producer.
The UK is also falling behind other countries in support for repair and reuse. Repair and reuse are central to achieving a circular, less wasteful, economy. The Declaration asks UK legislators and decision-makers at all levels to support repair and reuse. It really should not be hard …!
Note – The Right to Repair campaign is a coalition of European organisations pushing for system change around repair. It consists of over 100 members in 20+ countries, including NGOs, repair businesses, repair networks, and repairers themselves.
This year, 2023, marks the 10th anniversary of the Restart Project and Hackney Fixers. It is also the 20th anniversary of iFixit. Groups that have been battling for decades (literally) to give us all a right to repair and the capability to do it.
In 2003, Kyle Wiens and Luke Soules found themselves with a broken iBook G3. Their attempts to repair it led to what is now iFixit. iFixit was actually born PB FixIt after the preeminent Mac notebook of the day: PowerBook. Today iFixit offer online repairs guides for lots of different products. They offer spares and the all important tool kits. A special mention goes out to their security drivers allowing you to access product that manufacturers make difficult to open!! In October 2013, iFixit Europe was born with Stuttgart in Germany as a central European location, which I visited in October 2019.
Since 2015, they’ve worked to support Right to Repair laws, with partners like USPIRG and partners in Europe from the Right to Repair Europe movement.
Restart Project and Hackney Fixers
The Restart Project started in 2013. Although based in London their reach is much wider with Restart groups and parties across the UK, in Europe and further afield. They collaborate with other groups, particularly in Europe to advocate for our Right to Repair.
Ugo Vallauri and Nathan Proctor – Restart Project and US PIRG
The Hackney Fixers, promote electrical and electronic repair in Hackney as an alternative to growing mountains of waste and consumption and work closely with the Restart Project. Like many communities repair groups they hold local events to help people repair their things. Many of the original founders are still volunteering.
James Diamond, Hackney Fixers
Images from Hackney Fixers repair event at Woodberry Down Community Primary School, London in March 2023.
Happy Anniversaries
All of these groups are battling against waste by making better use of things. They support communities with real solutions. Solutions that we need to adopt, adapt and accelerate. Keep supporting them!
