Welcome to Canberra’s Library of Things
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Canberra is welcoming its very own place for misfit items that you never use and never want to throw away.
Aiming to reduce waste within the local community, Community Toolbox Canberra is opening later this year to provide a resource-conscious space for a shared pool of equipment.
Inspired by the Brisbane Tool Library that opened in 2017, the library will allow people to have equitable access to tools and equipment they need for any projects, whether it’s a drill, a pasta machine or even a guitar.
Founder Kathy Ehmann says that the opportunities the Community Toolbox Canberra presents is only limited by its space and the need within the community.
“We have a dressmaker’s dummy, we have some hand tools, we have a cat carrier, we have a mitre saw, we have a really big range of things and we’ve only just started collecting the stock,” she says.
“There’s a need in the community for people to have access to tools and equipment and not have to go out and buy them, store them or maintain them. So, it’s just meeting a need.”
Aiming to open later this month, the Community Toolbox initiative has several advantages. Kathy says along with the ‘obvious’ environmental advantages, it also brings people together to support those in need.
“The soundbite that comes up all the time is that most drills are used for 17 minutes and then they go into a cabinet or a shed and they sit there until someone has a clean out and it goes into landfill,” Kathy explains.
“There’s also the social and societal benefits, so people coming together, they’re sharing a resource and it’s also skills being shared. There’s also financial benefits of course, because the cost of some of these things is significant.”
Kathy has always had an interest in sustainability, and the Community Toolbox is her way of getting the community involved after spending 15 years exploring the different ways people can help the planet.
“There’s individual action which is important, there’s government action which is important but there’s also the missing middle, the community action, which is really important,” she says.
As more eco-friendly marketplaces and spaces open around the Capital for misfit items that are never used, Kathy believes that all of the platforms can work together to help build a better future.
“All of these things and street libraries, street pantries and the mutual aid groups that are coming up, particularly when we’re going deep into lockdown…I think all of these things work together, there’s no competition, we all have the same goal and there’s space for all of us.”
While the Community Toolbox will remain closed until lockdown is lifted in the ACT, Kathy says the future of the initiative is bright.
“Part of our future plan is to get more into skill sharing, so we’ll be looking at workshops and setting up a repair cafe…more of the things that make up a community hub,”she says.
“The community is at its best when it’s sharing.”
For more information visit communitytoolboxcbr.org.
FEATURE IMAGE: L-R Tom Spratt, Suzanne Richardson, Rebecca Trethurga, Kathy Ehmann.
