From corporate to community scale, here are the repair stories we read in September.
Last month, the Right to Repair tug-of-war between corporate and individual interests continued, small-scale community repair events proliferated, and businesses showcased different ways in which they are putting repair front and center in their ethos and practice. Let’s get into it!
In Right to Repair:
Auto data campaign builds momentum around right-to-repair issue
Associations Now
The Right to Repair movement is about being able to take things apart and put them together again. But it’s also about access to data.
Apple warns iPhone 11 users against third-party display repairs
Engadget
Apple has stressed its disapproval of using third-party spare parts to repair its devices yet again.
Congress Is Investigating Apple’s Repair Monopoly
Vice
The United States House of Representatives’ Judiciary Committee is launching an antitrust investigation into Apple and its anti-competitive behavior.
Apple to expand third-party repair program
EScrap News
The move will mean greater ability for repair firms to tackle Apple devices.
In Community Repair Stories:
Don’t toss that broken vacuum — you can fix it for free at Five Cities Repair Cafe
San Luis Obispo Tribune
“We’re trying to establish this new culture of, ‘Hey I might be able to fix this myself, or look at it. Let’s see if I can take it apart.’ It’s intimidating to see a blender or to see a vacuum cleaner, and you think, ‘I have no idea how to pop this open.’ But then you do it and it’s not that hard.”
Senior citizens give broken things second chance at Repair Cafés
Newsday
“You know, Long Islanders produce 7 pounds of waste per day, as opposed to 4 pounds per day by other New York State residents. I thought it was about time to do something.”
In Repair & Circular Economy:
Circular Fashion project drives FW brand launch
Just-Style
The real innovation results from a tailored business model that means customers will be able to repair their clothing if needed.
Repair Nerds Suitably Impressed With the Very Repairable Fairphone 3
Gizmodo
With the third generation of its modular device, the Dutch company is living up to its promise of a truly and easily repairable phone.
In Culture of Repair:
The life-changing magic of making do
The Globe and Mail
Making do is about taming the reflex to discard, replace or upgrade; it’s about using things well, and using them until they are used up.
Our Stories:
Why hasn’t the “sharing economy” saved us yet?
I bought in to the wave of sharing economy excitement – I saw it as a way to monetize and scale more efficient and environmentally friendly ways of using resources than the typical buy-and-dispose. A way to incentivize sharing, reuse and repair. But the “sharing economy” in the world of tech startups has become something else.
Know Before You Go: Library Makerspaces
By not charging a fee and offering free materials, these libraries allow folks to have a low-stakes visit, hang out, make something new, make mistakes, and learn and grow as creators.