Glasgow Device Library aiming to develop a superior modern society by sharing Do it yourself package
THEY began with just a couple of spanners and screwdrivers, but the founders of a Scottish device library are hoping they can encourage individuals to establish a better society.
Opening on comparable principles to a standard library, Glasgow Software Library lends out helpful bits of Diy gear and runs workshops demonstrating how to use them.
As properly as providing a social provider, it is hoped the design will inspire persons to feel about the detrimental results of mass consumerism and non-public possession.
Now with 500 resources ranging from sanders to high-priced drills, lawnmowers and strain washers, Glasgow Software Library has 150 members and is launching its initial community on the web speak this 7 days.
It will feature three speakers who are preventing for alternate models of possession that remodel how wealth and ability are dispersed, altering how men and women relate to every other and to the environment.
“We set up the Glasgow Instrument Library as a social and political project to promote communal types of ownership and challenge our wasteful obtain-use-dispose consumerism,” explained Chris Strachan, co-founder and occasions co-ordinator.
“Our personal and financial gain-driven possession models, irrespective of whether that is the possession of land, means, community services, solutions or understanding, are environmentally and socially damaging. We need new varieties of ownership for the 21st century, from the grassroots to the nationwide level.”
Although a lot of individuals may possibly never have heard of them, Scotland is in fact a “hotbed” for tool libraries, in accordance to Strachan, with the 1st in the Uk recognized in Edinburgh in 2015.
“They are now popping up all over the place and we are organizing a nationwide conference at a fringe celebration at COP26,” he claimed.
Glasgow Device Library was established up in 2017 as a neighborhood-led social business and collective marketing sharing, collaboration, and finding out as forms of “resistance, empowerment, and resilience”.
To use the assistance persons can turn into users for an annual cost of £20, allowing them entry to hundreds of tools for repairs and renovations, gardening, craft and carpentry.
“We have all the things you require – you could build a dwelling, generally,” explained Strachan.
The library is now increasing its collection of products to athletics and leisure, occasions and perform. It welcomes donations and is wanting for extra volunteers as new members are joining all the time.
Said Strachan: “We want to problem purchaser practices and give a services as effortless as proudly owning so that we make borrowing greater than buying. Our intention is to check out and build a instrument library throughout the town where people today can pop out to their local resource library or have issues sent to them and it is as handy and as uncomplicated as shopping for off Amazon but devoid of the economic and environmental prices of everyone possessing the same factor. We see it as a lengthy-expression option to our current wasteful society.”
There are also designs to open up a local community workshop wherever persons can go to develop their very own shelving or sand down a piece of home furniture.
In the meantime, Glasgow Device Library is hunting to hook up with nearby communities and organisations, like community gardens, that could advantage from making use of the company.
Working gatherings as well as lending is portion of the services and workshops on carpentry and craft have been preferred.
“A important section of the device library is not just furnishing people with instruments but also education and know-how on how to use them,” stated Strachan. “There are obstacles not just in phrases of value but in understanding how to repair matters in your individual residence or make your own home furniture. These are techniques that have been lost.”
AS the workshops can’t be run at current simply because of the pandemic, it was resolved to start out a series of on the net talks to examine the principles guiding the establishment of resource libraries.
“People interact with those people tips when they come to the instrument library and assume sharing is this kind of a excellent concept, but we want to thrust individuals strategies extra to the forefront and get men and women to issue why we have these ownership designs that are rather individualistic and very economically and environmentally detrimental,” mentioned Strachan.
The three speakers on Wednesday are Dr Carey Doyle from Local community Land Scotland, who will communicate about city group ownership, land reform, and the new Glasgow and Clyde Valley Local community Possession Hub Thomas M Hanna, director of analysis at the Democracy Collaborative, who will speak about the upcoming of democratic community ownership, reflecting on the possession of new belongings these as electronic infrastructure and information and Sabrina Chakori from the Brisbane Resource Library in Australia, who will converse about device libraries and financial degrowth.
Glasgow Instrument Library is primarily based at 26 Civic Street, in the vicinity of Cowcaddens, and is open Wednesday from 5pm-7pm and Saturday 10am-1pm.
You can come across out additional about Glasgow Tool Library at www.glasgowtoollibrary.com