Griffith University Repair Cafe

Project Description

We have developed a Repair Cafe initiative within our Griffith University.
Griffith Uni has 5 campuses and we are offering Repair Cafes (with over 153 staff and students and community members who have signed up to volunteer).
The aim of the project is to promote and elevate the role that repair can play in reducing waste, saving money and providing a venue for social inclusion as well the sharing of repair skills and knowledge in our move to a circular economy in Australia.

Project Personnel and Beneficiaries

Our team of 5 staff Prof Leanne Wiseman, Assoc Prof Kanchana Kariywasam; Dr Liz Shaw and Clare Poppi are the team leaders of this Repair Cafe initiative and we have now over 153 staff and student and community members as volunteers who have joined this repair cafe initiative. We have provided repair services to hundreds of staff and students across our 5 campuses. We have also shared our knowledge with other staff and students at other Universities here in Australia as well as overseas as part of the international repair cafe movement.

Outcomes to Date

We have saved hundreds of kilos of broken appliances, items, eletronics and goods from going into landfill since we have been operating our Repair Cafe since 2023.

We have spoken at conferences about our Repair Cafe initiative
(eg at the 3rd UK Repair Cafe Conference in Farnham in June 2024 as well as the Community Repair Events run by the Australian Repair Network.

Leanne has presented at a number of national and international waste conference about the important role that Repair play in waste prevention. UNSDG 12 plays an important role in achieving a circular economy.