Episode 27 Chris Hellawell – Edinburgh Tool Library

05/09/20 • 36 min

Chris Hellawell is founder and director of Edinburgh Tool Library, which works like a lending library, sharing tools rather than books. Chris is passionate about the concept of sharing as a way to tackle the climate crisis, and also as a way to save money, and to build social connections in communities. By sharing, everyone is richer. The Edinburgh Tool Library started out as a set of shelves in a spare room. Now it’s a city-wide organisation with multiple sites, including a tool maintenance depot, two wood workshops, a library and a police box. The Library runs classes, youth programming, skills development for disadvantaged groups, and a volunteer programme transforming community spaces throughout the city.

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Episode 26 – Katie Briggs of the Textile Review

Katie Briggs set up The Textile Review, to close the loop on fabric from the events sector. She has found customers who value that pre-used fabric, and she helps both buyers and sellers reduce their costs and impact.

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Episode 28 (revised) Chris Diplock – The Thingery

Chris Diplock is the Founder and CEO of The Thingery, the parent organization of neighbourhood Thingery branches, and a leader in Vancouver’s collaborative economy. You could describe the Thingery as a ‘library in a box’ – the box being a shipping container! The containers are solar-powered and so can be sited in disused spaces near the communities that will use them. Technology allows people to access the container and then use the built-in systems to easily log what they are borrowing or returning. That means it is less reliant on volunteers, and can be open 24/7 if needed. Chris wants to make it easy for any community, worldwide, to set up their own Library of Things. We hear about the concept, the funding model, and the practicalities.