Why relinquish if you can repair? That’s the shared philosophy of undergraduate students Molly McGee and Eva Mills, who collaborated on UC Santa Barbara’s first fix-it fairs, community events where anyone can get free access to tools and expert help making minor repairs to items like clothing, jewelry, musical instruments, bikes and skateboards.
McGee (a fourth-year environmental studies major) and Mills (a third-year environmental studies and sociology double major) met in UCSB’s Environmental Leadership Incubator program (ELI). The program provides guidance and resources for students to implement projects that create positive environmental change.
They were aligned from the beginning. “We both wanted to focus on waste reduction and community-building through reuse and sharing,” McGee explains. Inspired by repair cafes in Europe, they launched their vision for a series of events that encouraged collaboration and community-building in Isla Vista. They held three successful fairs over this academic year.
The events are staffed by volunteer mechanics and makers, who not only help community members fix their items but also teach them how to do minor repairs themselves. Attendees also have access to machinery and tools — like sewing machines — that they might not personally own (or need to own). This is all part of their concept. “Everyone doesn’t need to have all of the specific repair items you might need to do a project,” says McGee, ever mindful of reducing waste. “They just need to have access to them occasionally.”
In just their first three fairs, McGee and Mills managed to engage nearly 50 volunteers in fixing 56 pieces of clothing, 18 pieces of jewelry, 50 bikes, five skateboards and one out of-commission turntable. “It’s honestly been awesome,” says McGee. “It has exceeded our expectations, especially the number of volunteers we have been able to get. It’s been amazing to see the overwhelming amount of people that want to participate and want to come back again. Seeing their excitement about it is really special.”
It’s not just the reduction of waste that excites them but the chance to make connections with like-minded friends and neighbors, as well. “It’s an opportunity for people to interact and learn more about repair, but also an opportunity to meet people,” explains Mills. “At UCSB, we have such an incredible college community of engaged students who love to participate in things.”
McGee and Mills have their sights set on making the fix-it fair a permanent event, and they’re focusing on how to integrate it into other student programming at UCSB. They have also been contacted by the Santa Barbara Public Library and the City of Goleta about starting their own fix-it fairs.
“This has been an amazing way to bring together the Isla Vista community, but it could also work in almost any community,” Mills says. McGee chimes in: “It’s been awesome to see these other communities inspired by what we have done. Our motto is, ‘The more the merrier.’”
