Repair PDX is celebrating their 10th anniversary and planning for the future. This local, grassroots organization hosts Repair Cafés, and has led the repair movement in Portland. 

Repair Cafés are free events that bring volunteers who like to fix things together with people who have items that need fixing. 

Lauren Gross started Repair PDX based on her experience with Repair Cafés in the Netherlands. She continues to be at the helm of the repair movement, along with many volunteer fixers.

Reflecting on 10 years, Lauren shared her thoughts on the future: “I'd say my vision for the future is the same as our mission: Spread repair culture. It's senseless that we extract things from the ground, use them for a few minutes, and then bury them in the ground again. It's imperative that we make things that will last, and that we take care of those things for as long as possible. That vision extends to seeing that repair and reuse is everywhere and deeply ingrained in our culture.” 

Regional repair events are popping up all the time, including monthly events in Portland and weekly drop-in hours at Repair PDX headquarters at ADX. The drop-in options allow interaction with experienced fixers so anyone can learn about small appliance repair.

Find out more about Repair PDX and the list of local events.

Volunteer fixer Brit with Repair PDX founder Lauren at a recent Repair Cafe.

Repair is in the air

There are shifts in the air locally and nationally, with recent Earth Day promotion and ongoing Right to Repair legislation efforts expanding awareness and enthusiasm for repair throughout the country.

In Oregon, Senate Bill 542 Right to Repair is currently part of Oregon’s Legislative Session. The bill is in the Rules Committee, awaiting amendments, and a possible vote in the Senate. To learn more about the bill, listen to the OPB Think Out Loud segment with Oregon Senator Janeen Sollman, D-Hillsboro, a sponsor of the bill. A similar bill was part of the 2021 session.

At a national level, repair was recently highlighted in a New York Times Wirecutter article and the Los Angeles Times. The Today Show has featured repair twice: once with a live Repair Café and a second about the Northeast Seattle Tool Library.

The Today Show segments highlight core virtues of the community repair movement like thrift, the environment, community building, and skill sharing.

This year also marks the 20th anniversary for iFixit. This open-source online resource has a mission to teach everyone to fix everything.