#Tag
@tinker Just wanted to thank you for reminding me about #repairCafes . I had forgotten about this and now I'm sitting in my local #library here in #taos. I have a new library card and I'm talking to the librarians about how to set up a repair cafe here.
At my library's repair cafe as a volunteer.
It's the first time they're running it and they're hoping to do this regularly.
I came in thinking I would help with computer troubleshooting... but they have enough people doing that.
So I figured I could help with Linux OS install... but the local Linux Install Party is here and has enough people.
Then a guy brought in a bicycle! And no one is here doing bike repair. But I brought my allen wrench set and a multitool.
So I just got done running and installing a new bicycle brake line on an older bike. Brake works just fine now!
I'll bring my full set of bike tools next time!
@tinker Just wanted to thank you for reminding me about #repairCafes . I had forgotten about this and now I'm sitting in my local #library here in #taos. I have a new library card and I'm talking to the librarians about how to set up a repair cafe here.
RE: https://infosec.exchange/@tinker/115517060878052214
This, by @tinker, from a really useful thread on lessons learned from running a #Linux install party, and on #RepairCafes in general.
Designing a repair cafe around a nearly universal frustration (a.k.a. Microsoft Windows) is a really, REALLY good way to bring the concept of #MutualAid into the mainstream. (Or, more to the point, to warm the mainstream to the concept of mutual aid networks.)
@johntimaeus - Biggest thing is to not worry about perfection at first. Do an initial go and then learn as you go.
That said, for an initial go you want:
- A solid waiver and release form. Something like this (though other templates exist): (Edit to fix dead link and add new example:
Example 1: https://tldp.org/HOWTO/Installfest-HOWTO/legalprotection.html
Example 2: https://web.archive.org/web/20190725063027/https://www.angelfire.com/linux/linuxitna/InstallFest_Waiver.html )
- USBs loaded with the ISO you are installing
- Some USBs that dont have anything installed but are ready to load with another distro (eg a 32bit ISO for a 32bit system)
- Some cheap low storage USBs to let people make backups who forgot to
- Some laptops (with extension cables or surge protectors to plug them in) to load fresh ISOs on or look up manuals for neighbor's laptops
- Some demo laptops loaded with the ISO that you're installing for people to play with
Explain to folks that you all will do your best to install Linux but it might not work. Explain that the attempt will wipe all the software and files and photos that were on it originally.
Last thing is gear this experience towards non technical people. To folks that just want their machine to work. They can know the limitations (it wont run some programs that are native to Windows or Macs for example). But dont approach them as if they have to bend to the tool. Do everything to make the tool bend to them.
Alrighty then. Thanks to everyone who participated in this week's #SolarPunkSunday, especially, @BrambleBearWhuffling and @MaQuest ! We'll be talking about #SeedStarting and #GardenPlanning soon, and for those in the #SouthernHemisphere, late summer gardening! And, of course, #RepairCafes, #VisibleMending, #DIY, and other related topics!
Alrighty then. Thanks to everyone who participated in this week's #SolarPunkSunday, especially, @BrambleBearWhuffling and @MaQuest ! We'll be talking about #SeedStarting and #GardenPlanning soon, and for those in the #SouthernHemisphere, late summer gardening! And, of course, #RepairCafes, #VisibleMending, #DIY, and other related topics!
Next Event: Saturday February 14, 2026 · 11AM - 3PM
"Do you have something broken? Bring it in, and we will try to repair it for FREE
Location: Charles River Museum of Industry & Innovation
Parking: Embassy Parking Lot on Cooper St (hourly rates)
Main Entrance: Signs will direct you over the footbridge that leads from the Embassy Lot to the museum's main entrance, which is directly adjacent to the Charles River, along the Charles River Greenway, on the southern side of the building."
Source:
https://www.walthamrc.org/events
#SolarPunkSunday #RepairCafesMA #RepairCafes #Massachusetts #MAEvents #FixIt #RightToRepair
#HudsonValleyNY - Calendar of January 2026 #RepairCafes and events!
"Repair Cafes are free community events where you bring your broken but beloved items and volunteer repair coaches help you FIX THEM!
What kinds of items get fixed?
LAMPS • VACUUMS • CLOCKS • CHAIRS • ELECTRICAL ITEMS • SMALL APPLIANCES • DIGITAL DEVICES • CLOTHING & TEXTILES • DOLLS • STUFFED ANIMALS • TOYS • TOOL SHARPENING • JEWELRY • AND MORE!
#RepairCafeHudsonValley needs your help to keep going and growing. With your donations, we can support more new cafes, keep spreading the Repair Cafe movement and FIX MORE STUFF!"
Calendar:
https://www.repaircafehv.org/calendar?view=calendar&month=01-2026
#HudsonValleyNY - Calendar of January 2026 #RepairCafes and events!
"Repair Cafes are free community events where you bring your broken but beloved items and volunteer repair coaches help you FIX THEM!
What kinds of items get fixed?
LAMPS • VACUUMS • CLOCKS • CHAIRS • ELECTRICAL ITEMS • SMALL APPLIANCES • DIGITAL DEVICES • CLOTHING & TEXTILES • DOLLS • STUFFED ANIMALS • TOYS • TOOL SHARPENING • JEWELRY • AND MORE!
#RepairCafeHudsonValley needs your help to keep going and growing. With your donations, we can support more new cafes, keep spreading the Repair Cafe movement and FIX MORE STUFF!"
Calendar:
https://www.repaircafehv.org/calendar?view=calendar&month=01-2026
#SydneyNSW, #Australia - Why Buy When You Can Borrow?
"The #Sydney #LibraryOfThings is a not-for-profit service that provides the local community with access to a collection of extremely useful but only occasionally used items that can be loaned out for a short period of time.
We’re like a normal library but with things instead of books! Joining your enables you to borrow from ALL of our branches and you don’t have to live in the local area of the branch you want to join! Find out more about subscriptions and how it works here.
We hope that by encouraging people to borrow instead of buying or throwing away their unwanted items, together we can create a better connected, more sustainable and stronger community.
Did you know we also deliver #RepairCafes and run a #ToyLibrary? Check out #FixItHub Waverton, #TheFixery Cromer and The Lane Cove Toy Library.
We acknowledge the original custodians of the lands we work from, and pay respect to Elders past and present and all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples."
FMI - https://thesydneylibraryofthings.org.au/
#SolarPunkSunday #BorrowDontBuy #FixIt #Australia #Decolonise #Degrowth #Decapitalise #LibraryOfThingsAustralia
"It just shows the power of community skills and generosity and the value of repairing rather than replacing": Local #RepairCafe saves hip-hop legends' gig
The band’s sampler had packed up
By Will Simpson, published 20 November 2025
"An #ArrestedDevelopment gig was saved last week when volunteers from a local repair cafe stepped in to fix a sampler that had broken down during a soundcheck.
"The incident took place down in Falmouth, #CornwallUK, where the Grammy-winning conscious hip hoppers were due to perform at the Princess Pavilions. The piece of equipment failed when the band were soundchecking in the afternoon. Cue some frantic phone calls by the promoters before they alighted on the only people who could save the day: #FalmouthRepairCafe.
"Simon Baker, chair of Falmouth Repair Cafe, told the BBC: 'We've repaired a lot of things over the years, but saving a Grammy-winning band's historic equipment was definitely a first.' "
#SydneyNSW, #Australia - Why Buy When You Can Borrow?
"The #Sydney #LibraryOfThings is a not-for-profit service that provides the local community with access to a collection of extremely useful but only occasionally used items that can be loaned out for a short period of time.
We’re like a normal library but with things instead of books! Joining your enables you to borrow from ALL of our branches and you don’t have to live in the local area of the branch you want to join! Find out more about subscriptions and how it works here.
We hope that by encouraging people to borrow instead of buying or throwing away their unwanted items, together we can create a better connected, more sustainable and stronger community.
Did you know we also deliver #RepairCafes and run a #ToyLibrary? Check out #FixItHub Waverton, #TheFixery Cromer and The Lane Cove Toy Library.
We acknowledge the original custodians of the lands we work from, and pay respect to Elders past and present and all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples."
FMI - https://thesydneylibraryofthings.org.au/
#SolarPunkSunday #BorrowDontBuy #FixIt #Australia #Decolonise #Degrowth #Decapitalise #LibraryOfThingsAustralia
"It just shows the power of community skills and generosity and the value of repairing rather than replacing": Local #RepairCafe saves hip-hop legends' gig
The band’s sampler had packed up
By Will Simpson, published 20 November 2025
"An #ArrestedDevelopment gig was saved last week when volunteers from a local repair cafe stepped in to fix a sampler that had broken down during a soundcheck.
"The incident took place down in Falmouth, #CornwallUK, where the Grammy-winning conscious hip hoppers were due to perform at the Princess Pavilions. The piece of equipment failed when the band were soundchecking in the afternoon. Cue some frantic phone calls by the promoters before they alighted on the only people who could save the day: #FalmouthRepairCafe.
"Simon Baker, chair of Falmouth Repair Cafe, told the BBC: 'We've repaired a lot of things over the years, but saving a Grammy-winning band's historic equipment was definitely a first.' "
#TorontoCanada - #EastEndFoodHub's first #RepairCafé is happening on Saturday, November 8!
"Bring your beloved broken household items to get help from our volunteer fixers and learn how to do the repair yourselves. It is all free.
The event will start at 12 noon. Registration closes at 3 p.m. One item per person.
Volunteers are Needed and Welcome!"
FMI - https://repaircafetoronto.ca/rc-events/east-end-food-hub-repair-cafe/
#SolarPunkSunday #RepairCafes #RepairReuse #RepairReuseRestore
#FixIt #RightToRepair #RepairCafesCanada #RepairCafesToronto
#RepairEconomy Reinvigorated in Central #NewYork, #Syracuse Institute Leads the Charge
May 30, 2025
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK — "Broken lamps, torn clothes, a coffee machine that just won’t work — items like these are common in most households, and all too commonly wind up in the trash bin. Thanks to cheap replacements and a struggling repair economy, #consumerism —and waste — is at an all-time high. In the wake of #tariffs, #ClimateChange, and rapidly shrinking NYS #landfill capacity, a rising repair movement in Central New York is pushing back against the status quo.
"The Repair Cafe held on Saturday, May 10 embodies a social movement shaped by residents, #activists, and community leaders who want to reduce waste through building strong community networks. The event was facilitated by #RepairCafeCNY, an organization established by the Institute for Sustainability Engagement ( #ISE) as an offshoot of the global #RepairCafe network. The group aims to reinvigorate repair in Syracuse and the greater CNY region by serving as a central coordinator for free community repair events in the area.
"Repair Cafes are not a new concept to the area. The last known effort locally was that of the Syracuse Repair Cafe, which was operational for a few years before the pandemic halted operations. With repair energy now reinvigorated, organizers hope for the Syracuse Repair Cafe’s soon return."
#SyracuseUniversity #ISE #SolarPunkSunday #RepairCafes #RepairCafesNY #RightToRepair #FixIt #Sustainability
#RepairEconomy Reinvigorated in Central #NewYork, #Syracuse Institute Leads the Charge
May 30, 2025
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK — "Broken lamps, torn clothes, a coffee machine that just won’t work — items like these are common in most households, and all too commonly wind up in the trash bin. Thanks to cheap replacements and a struggling repair economy, #consumerism —and waste — is at an all-time high. In the wake of #tariffs, #ClimateChange, and rapidly shrinking NYS #landfill capacity, a rising repair movement in Central New York is pushing back against the status quo.
"The Repair Cafe held on Saturday, May 10 embodies a social movement shaped by residents, #activists, and community leaders who want to reduce waste through building strong community networks. The event was facilitated by #RepairCafeCNY, an organization established by the Institute for Sustainability Engagement ( #ISE) as an offshoot of the global #RepairCafe network. The group aims to reinvigorate repair in Syracuse and the greater CNY region by serving as a central coordinator for free community repair events in the area.
"Repair Cafes are not a new concept to the area. The last known effort locally was that of the Syracuse Repair Cafe, which was operational for a few years before the pandemic halted operations. With repair energy now reinvigorated, organizers hope for the Syracuse Repair Cafe’s soon return."
#SyracuseUniversity #ISE #SolarPunkSunday #RepairCafes #RepairCafesNY #RightToRepair #FixIt #Sustainability
#TorontoCanada - #EastEndFoodHub's first #RepairCafé is happening on Saturday, November 8!
"Bring your beloved broken household items to get help from our volunteer fixers and learn how to do the repair yourselves. It is all free.
The event will start at 12 noon. Registration closes at 3 p.m. One item per person.
Volunteers are Needed and Welcome!"
FMI - https://repaircafetoronto.ca/rc-events/east-end-food-hub-repair-cafe/
#SolarPunkSunday #RepairCafes #RepairReuse #RepairReuseRestore
#FixIt #RightToRepair #RepairCafesCanada #RepairCafesToronto
