Repair Café
English translation. This entry was submitted in Dutch. It was translated by AI and checked against the original by a second pass. The Dutch text below is the contributor’s own, and it is the authoritative version. If you spot a translation that misses the point, please say so in the General space.
Repair Café is a freely accessible repair event where handy people help less handy neighbours repair broken items. That's useful, because it means we throw less away and need to buy fewer new things. But it's also fun: neighbours meet each other, chat while repairing, and come to see each other - and the items on the table - differently. Everyone is welcome at the Repair Café: young and old, poor and rich... You're also welcome without a broken item, just to look or to have a pleasant morning.
What it sets out to do
Repair Café wants to preserve and spread repair knowledge, and promote social cohesion by bringing neighbours into contact with each other at fun and educational repair events.
Who it reaches
Repair Cafés can by now be found at around 4000 locations in more than 50 countries
Who runs it
The concept is spread by Stichting Repair Café International (Repair Café International Foundation), which distributes a digital starter kit that local groups of volunteers worldwide can use to start their own Repair Café.
What seems to make it work
Repair Café has a very low threshold. There's always something to do, something to talk about. You can simply walk in, with or without a broken item. Conversations arise naturally out of the repairs: what have you got there, how did you come by it, why do you want to keep it, what's the problem?
What gets in the way
Repair Café pretty much always works locally. There are still a few people with repair knowledge everywhere, and everywhere there are people with broken things. It is precisely the fact that the formula works everywhere, but the concept [is] such a worldwide success. [unclear in the original]
How it is funded
Stichting Repair Café International is funded from various sources: subsidies, sponsorship contributions and donations from companies and individuals.
Moving it somewhere else
See above - it is already running worldwide and is a success everywhere.
Read the original in Dutch
Repair Café is een gratis toegankelijke repareerbijeenkomst waar handige mensen minder handige buurtgenoten helpen met het repareren van kapotte spullen. Dat is nuttig, want daardoor gooien we minder weg en hoeven we minder nieuwe spullen te kopen. Maar het is ook leuk: buurtgenoten ontmoeten elkaar, maken tijdens het repareren een praatje en gaan op een andere manier kijken naar elkaar – en naar de spullen op tafel. In het Repair Café is iedereen welkom: jong-oud, arm-rijk… Je bent óók welkom zonder kapot voorwerp, gewoon om te kijken of een gezellige ochtend te hebben.
What it sets out to do
Repair Café wil reparatiekennis behouden en verspreiden, en de sociale cohesie bevorderen door buurtgenoten met elkaar in contact te brengen op leuke en leerzame repareerbijeenkomsten.
Who it reaches
Repair Cafés zijn intussen vindbaar op ca. 4000 locaties in ruim 50 landen
Who runs it
Het concept wordt verspreid door Stichting Repair Café International, die een digitaal startpakket verspreidt waarmee lokale groepen vrijwilligers wereldwijd hun eigen Repair Café kunnen starten.
What seems to make it work
Repair Café is heel laagdrempelig. Er is altijd iets te doen, iets om over te praten. Je kunt er gewoon binnenlopen, met of zonder kapot voorwerp. Gesprekken ontstaan vanzelf, naar aanleiding van de reparaties: wat heb je daar bij je, hoe kom je eraan, waarom wil je het houden, wat is het probleem?
What gets in the way
Repair Café werkt lokaal eigenlijk altijd. Er zijn overal nog wel een paar mensen met reparatiekennis, en overal zijn mensen met kapotte spullen. Juist het feit dat de formule overal werkt, maar het concept wereldwijd zo'n succes.
How it is funded
Stichting Repair Café International wordt gefinancierd uit verschillende bronnen: subsidies, sponsorbijdragen en donaties van bedrijven en particulieren.
Moving it somewhere else
Zie boven – het loopt al wereldwijd en is overal een succes.
The record
- Lead organisation
- Het concept wordt verspreid door Stichting Repair Café International, die een digitaal startpakket verspreidt waarmee lokale groepen vrijwilligers wereldwijd hun
- Target populations
- General population
- Countries
- Netherlands
- Evaluation status
- Not yet evaluated
- Peer reviewed
- No
- Publication
- https://repaircafe.org
- Contributed by
- Martine Postma, directeur Stichting Repair Café International
These details are reported by the member who registered the intervention.
Where this entry comes from
This description was submitted to the LONELY-EU mapping of what is being done about loneliness across Europe. It is published in the language it was written in, and reproduced as it was given to us. The contributor gave permission to be named. Recorded aim: prevention and support.
If this entry is yours and something in it is wrong, or you would like it taken down, write to the Ties moderation team quoting its reference. Consent given to the mapping can be withdrawn at any time.
Cite this entry
Martine Postma, directeur Stichting Repair Café International (2026). Repair Café. LONELY-EU Intervention Registry, entry LEU-047. https://buddyboss.silc-exchange.com/interventions/repair-cafe/
Reference LEU-047 is permanent. If the entry is corrected later, the reference stays the same.
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