Why?
We’re often so annoyed when something breaks that our first reaction can be to immediately replace it with something shiny and new. But everything we buy adds to our carbon footprint because energy is needed to make, transport and sell it. Despite our decreasing reliance on fossil fuels, most energy generation still produces greenhouse gases.
This ‘embodied energy’ can’t be recovered. Once it’s been used to make our stuff, that’s it. However, we can reduce the impact of embodied energy on our carbon footprint by making things last as long as possible. Many, if not most of our items can be repaired and be given a new lease of life.
Most of the impact of small electrical items happens before they are used (e.g. 84% for blenders, 81% for tablets, 79% for mobile phones), extending the life of these items reduces emissions.
Repairing something actually makes you feel good too – we have a complex relationship with our stuff, and coaxing something back to life is immensely satisfying.
Not buying a new laptop avoids about the same emissions as a return flight to Rome.
How?
Cambridgeshire continues to see a proliferation in Repair Cafés, community events where experienced volunteers can carry out and advise you on repairs. Check out our complete list of upcoming Repair Cafes in the Cambs area.
The Restart Project is great for repair movement news and resources.
For local repair businesses, a quick internet search usually pulls something up, or try our Circular Directory
The internet is a goldmine for repair tips and advice. Simply doing an internet search on your particular item can help reveal whether others have had the same problem and whether spares are available. There are countless YouTube repair clips (some easier to follow than others) and Videojug can be good . iFixit is a fantastic repair resource, and grades its repairs by difficulty.
Remember to ask around your community too, in person or on social media like Nextdoor.co.uk. There’s bound to be someone, or someone who knows someone, with the skills you’re looking for, or who can recommend somewhere you can take your item to.
Pictures and videos that others share of their creations can be a great source of inspiration. See Pinterest and find thousands of ‘How to…’ videos on YouTube, Videojug in particular is a good source.
Support
- The Vacuum Cleaner Centre, Cambridge Appliance Repair, The Apple Guy, Cambridge Upholsterer and other businesses listed in the Circular Cambridge Directory help with serving and repairing your household good and appliances
- Have electrical goods, jewellery, bikes and more repaired by local repairers for free (donations welcome) at a Repair Cafe
- Many craft courses run at Parkside, Hills Rd, Witchford, Impington Village Colleges and Cottenham Village College, www.craftcourses.com, Instrucatables.com and Treehugger.com are also good sources, particularly for online learning options
