The Green Makerspace

The holidays are upon us, and that means the potential for increased waste. Whether you are celebrating the  winter solstice ,  Christmas , Hanukkah , Kwanzaa , or any other holiday falling in and around December, you may find yourself tossing out much more trash as compared to any other time of year. This could come from eating more food, doing more shopping, wrapping more presents, buying decorations, or increasing your traveling.  Photography of Green Pine Tree  [Photograph], by I Iriser, 2017, Pexels ( https://www.pexels.com/photo/photography-of-green-pine-tree-943898 ).  CC0 1.0 . Holiday Waste: As an interesting research-based side note, I spent an inordinate amount of time tracking down an often repeated claim that we (in the U.S.) produce 25% more trash between Thanksgiving and New Years. Sites like ABC News , Architectural Digest ,  Earth911 , Fox News , and WBUR Boston have all recently referred to this statistic, which some claim comes from the ...

Today I want to talk about green engineering. This goes beyond the the basic day-to-day activities that we've discussed so far, like upcycling ,  reducing, reusing, recycling, or repairing . This involves developing an increased awareness and interest in large scale projects designed to have a greater impact on the planet. I'm talking about renewable energy, folks!  Wind turbine [Photograph], by U. Jelting, 2016., Wikimedia Commons ( https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wind_Turbine_(184178167).jpeg ). CC0 1.0. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines green engineering as  "the design, commercialization, and use of processes and products that minimize pollution, promote sustainability, and protect human health without sacrificing economic viability and efficiency" (2023). This involves the development of processes and products that integrate environmental impact assessments, conserve and improve natural ecosystems, minimize the depletion of natural r...

Welcome to the third post of the blog dedicated to green(er) makerspaces! Today I want to talk about upcycling. Upcycling is when you create " something new from discarded materials by repairing, refurbishing, or repurposing them ." When upcycling, you are essentially adding value to a reused or repaired item's compositional elements (Lebby, 2021). Consider it a form of that second famous "R" (Reduce, Reuse , and Recycle), "Reuse!"  Upcycling Projects and Crafts: Encourage the practice of upcycling in your makerspace by providing crafts and materials which once had other uses. These could be plastic, aluminum, or glass containers. They can be pieces of old clothing and other fabric-based objects. You can even upcycle waste from industrial production  (Back et al, 2015)!  Where to find stuff to reuse: Freecycle.org  - A website dedicated to helping people find and give away free stuff, with the intention of keeping usable items out of landfills.  Facebo...

A big component of this blog is to highlight the ways in which materials can be reused and recycled. These are important concepts in educating your users about sustainability! After all, those two R words take up two-thirds of that common adage: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!  (Moondance, 2021)  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency  (EPA) says that one of the most effective way to reduce waste, and therefore greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change, is to not create it in the first place. Reusing and reducing are one way to accomplish this. By maintaining and repairing products, you are reducing the rate at which replacements need to be made and preventing waste ( EPA, 2023 ).  This leads me to a discussion about what I might say is the fourth R: Repair.  Mending Libraries, Fix-It Clinics, and Repair C afés : One way to encourage reuse and recycling through your makerspace is to host a repair  café  or fix-it clinic. These events bring p...

Introduction: It's the first post!  For the most part, this blog operates under the assumption that the reader has already established plans for a makerspace, has one started, or is at least familiar with the concept! There are certainly many websites and blogs dedicated to helping you begin adding a makerspace to your library. Two excellent starting points include the  Ultimate Makerspace Guide for Schools and Libraries  from Makerspaces.com and the  How to Start a Makerspace Guide  from Demco. These guides are a great jumping off point to get your makerspace off the ground.  In addition to the above guides, here are a few tips: Acquiring Supplies: Upcycling projects are an excellent way to use up old materials and objects and give them new life! What could be greener than recycling? When it comes to preparing for upcycling projects that require consumables such as paper towel rolls, empty water bottles, fabric scraps, etc., I recommend turning to your use...