What is a Repair Cafe? A Repair Cafe is an event where people with experience in repairing things, or ‘fixers’, help people repair their broken items, for free. They gain this experience either as a hobby or from their work (e.g. as a bike mechanic).Repair Cafe fixers work on anything that needs repairs, such as books whose bindings have fallen apart, socks with holes, non-working toasters, laptops that won’t start, cracked vases, and other formerly working items.Started in Amsterdam in 2009, the Repair Cafe movement quickly spread all over the Netherlands and to more than 20 countries. The Repair Cafe Toronto was founded by a small group of volunteer fixers and have helped thousands of people with their broken items. Their goal is not to fix things for people but to teach them how to fix things for themselves.In our existing culture, we are encouraged to throw away our broken things, even things which require only minor repairs. In fact, many things are designed to break down easily and are even designed to be difficult for regular people to repair. Apple, for example, has designed their brand of popular phones such that they can only be opened with specially made tools which no one who isn’t an Apple technician would have. Many people with a damaged Apple phone are often told that the repairs would cost almost as much as a new phone so why don’t they just get a newer model? Or perhaps a $10 skirt from H&M develops a small hole – easily repaired by someone with the knowledge and tools, but since it’s so cheap anyway the owner decides to throw it away and just buy a new one.Corporations have encouraged the growth of this throwaway culture because it leads to greater profits for them. Many people have either forgotten that they can repair things themselves or they have forgotten how. Many older people still have the knowledge to fix things, knowledge that younger generations have lost. The Repair Cafe movement is trying to change that. Fixers take peoples’ broken items and try to fix them. However, the point is not just to fix things for people but to teach them how to fix it themselves. Fixers will take people through the repairs that they are doing so that the owners can learn how to do it. Not every item can be fixed but many can still be diverted from the landfill.The Repair Cafe Toronto is in a different neighbourhood each month; on June 18th, it will be at the Driftwood Community Centre (4401 Jane St) from 12 to 4 pm. People are encouraged to come early as it can become busy. There will be free, donated refreshments available so attendees can wait, chat with their neighbours and fixers, and find out how fun it is to repair things.