I had the opportunity to interview Mr. André Reboul, head of the Repair Cafés association in the Villé Valley.
What is a Repair Café?
This is an opportunity to repair a broken item at home together. Skilled volunteers in various fields are there to help us.
The priority is to revive repair, thereby responding to the environmental emergency of overproduction of waste.
What can you bring to a Repair Café?
My main question was: what can we bring? André told me that we can bring anything we can carry in our arms. This includes electrical and electronic devices, children's toys, small wooden furniture, etc. Large appliances like washing machines are not accepted and must be entrusted to professionals.
The service is free but operates on a donation basis; a small piggy bank, made from recycled materials, awaits you at the exit.
Repair Cafés Around the World
There are thousands of Repair Cafés around the world, especially in Europe (hundreds in Belgium, France, Switzerland and the Netherlands). The movement is even spreading to India, Japan and the United States.
In Central Alsace, we find three, explains André, Osthouse which extends its area of intervention to Erstein and Barr, Châtenois, with the Ried and Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines, as well as the Villé Valley.
A glimpse into History
The first Repair Café was organized by Martine Postma in Amsterdam on October 18, 2009. The success of this event led to the creation of the Repair Café Foundation in 2011. This year marks the 15th anniversary of the movement. The Repair Café Foundation has therefore asked the Giesen Repair Café to create a triangular pennant to represent all the Repair Cafés worldwide.
In France, the movement began in the spring of 2013 in Paris, then spread to other cities such as Vauréal, Nice and Valbonne.
In the Villé Valley, it was the MJC that launched the concept in 2019.
The Giesen Repair Café
The first Repair Café meeting took place in February 2019. The first volunteers discovered the concept in Ste-Croix-aux-Mines, and then in May 2019, the very first workshop was held at the MJC Le Vivarium community center. The second town to host the association was St-Pierre-Bois. Today, the Giesen Repair Café is celebrating its 5th anniversary and embarking on its third tour of the valley with 23 active volunteers.
Last year, over 300 items were saved, totaling 1.3 tons of repairs carried out by volunteers. The Repair Café is open every month, except July, August, and December, in a different town each time.
The association aims to be, above all, a friendly place where everyone contributes their DIY skills and much more! Volunteers welcome visitors in the morning when it opens and supervise pairs of people at the repair tables in the afternoon to offer their help. Nathalie also manages the social media, featuring one of the volunteers each month.
Members share a breakfast, usually provided by the host municipality, and have lunch together. André emphasizes that the association's core values are conviviality, camaraderie, exchange, respect, and sharing.
Regarding training, it's not currently scheduled regularly, but opportunities do exist. Last year, the Smictom (waste management authority) provided a one-day training session with an instructor, which was greatly appreciated by André and the volunteers. Even though they aren't planned regularly, the volunteers continue to train each other, always working in pairs.
To become a volunteer
If you'd like to volunteer, simply visit one of the Repair Cafés and participate in two half-sessions with the volunteers. You can also be sponsored by a member of the group.
A typical day at the Repair Café:
9:00 AM: Installation
9:30am: Briefing, daily news, national news, valley news.
9:45: Team table <- morning and afternoon welcome in pairs at a repair table.
10:00 am: start of the day and arrival of the first customers.
12:00 PM: Informal meal
13:30 p.m. to 16:00 p.m.: New customers arrive.
16:00 PM: put away the stands and return the trailer to the MJC.
The communication surrounding these events in all of this:
Promotion is primarily done on social media, but also through articles in the DNA newspaper, via Azur FM radio, in the JDS newspaper, by Intramuros, and with the Villé Valley Tourist, Trade and Crafts Office. There is also an article in the Gazette Climontaine to reach residents of the Bruche Valley.
To conclude
Repair Cafés offer an opportunity to repair broken items instead of throwing them away, thus contributing to waste reduction and environmental preservation. The Vallée de Villé Repair Café looks forward to welcoming you on Saturday, April 27, 2024, in Thanvillé.