Busy summer for Elmpt's repair shop: no halting of service during summer season
The Repair Café: A Community-Driven Initiative Promoting Sustainability
The Repair Café, an affiliate of the Kolping family, is a community-based project that encourages sustainability by inviting people from all walks of life to bring their broken household items for free repair by volunteer experts.
At the heart of this initiative is a team of dedicated volunteers, including Michael Dege, a graduate engineer in electrical engineering and a passionate tinkerer, who uses his precision tools to diagnose and solve problems with the devices. Michael specializes in working on older devices, relishing the challenge of figuring out the technology inside them.
Marianne Janssen, one of the key volunteers, is responsible for filling out the intake form and directing customers to the appropriate repair technician. Tobias Magon, Peter Witte, and Marianne are the first points of contact for customers with broken electronic devices, torn clothes, or flat children's bikes. Peter, a member of the team, handles the finances.
The Repair Café's mission is to promote sustainability by reducing unnecessary waste, fostering community connection, and encouraging skill-sharing and lifelong learning. The events create opportunities for people to connect, learn, and contribute to environmental sustainability by rescuing broken items from landfill and promoting reuse and repair culture.
In about 30% of cases, the repair technicians are unable to fix the device. However, customers who bring in devices that cannot be repaired are often satisfied because they can dispose of them guilt-free. The Repair Café's donors contribute to its financial sustainability, with donations collected in a pink piggy bank at the exit.
The workshop has a lively atmosphere, with regular customers who visit frequently. Sonja Müller, Kerstin Tigges, and Karin Witte are part of the "café" team that takes care of the guests, encourages conversations, makes connections, and offer a small buffet with coffee, tea, mineral water, and homemade cakes.
Solutions may involve replacing a resistor or re-soldering a contact, or sourcing replacement parts for a later repair. The Repair Café is not-for-profit, but donations are accepted to help cover its costs. The team expresses their gratitude to their donors for their generous contributions.
In essence, the Repair Café is a testament to the power of community-driven initiatives in reducing waste, promoting sustainability, and fostering a culture of repair and skill-sharing.
Participants at the Repair Café, such as Marianne Janssen who manages the intake forms, aim to establish a sustainable lifestyle by facilitating home-and-garden items repair, extending the lifespan of these products and reducing waste. The Repair Café's welcoming environment, including the hospitality provided by Sonja Müller, Kerstin Tigges, and Karin Witte, encourages community members to engage in DIY home-and-garden-related repairs, fostering a community-driven home-and-garden sustainability culture.
