Ottawa volunteers help divert waste from the landfill at Repair Cafe

Keeping your favourite items out of the landfill is now a little easier thanks to the Repair Cafe in Ottawa’s Alta Vista neighbourhood.

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"It’s an opportunity to get something fixed that’s been sitting in my basement," said Kirt McIntyre on Saturday, who is hoping to bring his toaster back to life.

At the Repair Cafe, volunteers from all walks of life are helping turn trash into treasure.

"A lot of our volunteers here are successful tradespeople and hobbyists. They bring a lot of talents and information to the conversation," said volunteer Carl Chenier.

Repairing broken down electronics, household items and other beloved possessions, it’s a concept that started in Amsterdam more than a decade ago, fueled by a "throw-away culture" with a rush to replace rather then repair.

"The idea is not only to try and fix it, but it’s also for people to learn and discover how maybe to fix it and maybe how to take the initiative to fix it for themselves," said Brian Smith with the Ottawa Tool Library.

"The items that we’ve seen here today, microwaves, vacuum cleaners, these are big items that otherwise could end up in the landfill as they’re not recyclable," said Ottawa city councillor Marty Carr.

Kris Nanda came hoping to get headphones fixed that he got for Christmas.

"He worked very hard with trial and error and he figured it out," Nanda said. "People are often nowadays just tempted to throw stuff away and it can be fixed or it can be donated to somebody else."

Check the list below for dates and locations of the Repair Cafes taking place in 2024:

Saturday, June 22 - Sponsored by the City of Ottawa

Ray Friel Recreation Complex - Fallingbrook room

1585 Tenth Line Road

10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

 

Saturday August 10

Zibi on Booth St (Just north of the Canadian War Museum)

10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

 

Saturday, October 5 - Sponsored by the City of Ottawa

Walter Baker Sports Centre - Halls A&B

100 Malvern Drive

10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

 

Saturday, November 30 - Sponsored by the City of Ottawa

Tony Graham Recreation Complex, Kanata - Hall A

100 Charlie Rogers Place

10 a.m. to 2 p.m.