The LDE CfS Talks are organized every second Wednesday. In this edition, Ilaha Abasli and Joram Groen talk about Valuing Labour in Repair - Circular Just Transitions in Rotterdam. Take a look at the recording at the bottom of this page.
Short summary
Our research examined repair work in Rotterdam's circular economy transition by centering the voices and experiences of repairers themselves. Through fieldwork in two contrasting neighbourhoods - gentrified Stadsdriehoek and lower-income Tussendijken - we developed a Fair Repair Practice Framework with three pillars: Fair Product Cycle, Fair Work, and Fair Repair Culture. The study reveals that repair serves crucial community functions beyond environmental benefits, but repairers face significant challenges including rising spare parts costs, declining craft education, and lack of policy recognition. Our findings highlight tensions between innovation-focused "new-age" repair businesses and traditional craft-based practices, demonstrating that just circular transitions require supporting diverse repair identities and valuing existing repair knowledge alongside new innovations.
Core Questions Addressed:
- How do repairers envision a just transition in the repair sector, and what technical, institutional, social, and economic aspects are needed?
- What does a Fair Repair Practice framework look like that truly values labor in the repair sector?
Important Takeaways:
- Repair is more than environmental sustainability it serves as community infrastructure and social anchor, particularly in diverse urban neighborhoods
- Policy must recognize repair's diversity and its value as a professional work- supporting both traditional craft-based practices and innovative business models, not just trendy repair cafés. Current circular economy policies miss the mark - they often overlook professional repairers while emphasizing individual consumer self-repair, potentially undermining existing community repair ecosystems
- Fair transitions require three pillars: accessible product cycles (spare parts, legislation), viable work conditions (education, fair pricing), and inclusive repair culture (community values, diverse identities)
The LDE CfS Talks
Every two weeks, the LDE CfS hosts Talks, a series of online webinars where experts from academia, research institutes, businesses, and government come together to share knowledge and best practices for shaping a more sustainable and just society. The topics covered range from technical to social, including resource use & circularity, green energy, healthy environments, and social & economic transitions. The talks are organized on Wednesday morning from 10:00 to 11:00, and are online (Microsoft Teams).