Community libraries that lend things promote neighbourhood sharing and reduced consumption
For the past four years a volunteer-run library of things in Sydney has been steadily growing its collection providing locals with a sustainable and budget-friendly way to borrow stuff we only use every-so-often.
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TVTranscript
00:00 The Sydney Library of Things is like the most helpful neighbour you can imagine.
00:07 You need to borrow something?
00:09 Chances are they not only have it, but they can't imagine anything better than lending it to you for a couple of weeks.
00:16 From power tools to kitchen appliances to more unusual things like dehumidifiers.
00:23 Hi. Hey, hello.
00:25 I'm just returning the dehumidifier.
00:28 It's a collection of things you might only need once in a while and don't want to store long term.
00:35 It's just a matter of sharing with other people and I think that's a worthwhile thing to do.
00:42 The project began in 2019 when a group of women on Sydney's North Shore were looking for an organised way to share useful things their neighbours might need.
00:52 A library of things was a relatively new idea. There was one in the UK and still is one in the UK.
00:58 That is quite advanced. But now there are several around Australia.
01:05 This library has about 140 active members and 350 items available to borrow.
01:12 All but two have been donated by members of the public.
01:16 To us that's another good way to uphold good sustainability practices.
01:21 Sustainability is just one of the benefits.
01:24 Against a backdrop of tough economic times, this budget-friendly option is likely to become increasingly appealing to people counting their dollars and cents.
01:34 You can see that people are really conscious about what they are choosing to spend their money on.
01:38 So you can get a one year membership or you can do a six month or even a three month membership.
01:44 And they really think is it worth my while to borrow it and that will save me from having to buy this hatcher.
01:51 This library of things is a local project but it's part of a global movement.
01:58 Initiatives like these are popping up all over the world as a way to combat cost of living pressures and crowded landfills.
02:06 These founders would like to see every local government area inspired to follow suit.
02:12 Because we now have the know-how, we've done the hard yards of starting from how do we do this to now be functioning really well with a whole lot of excellent volunteers.
02:24 Things are going so well in fact that later this month the Lane Cove outfit gets a new addition, a toy library.
02:32 When they come along and see the library of things they go what else do you do and this was just such a natural extension.
02:38 Whether it be toys or tools, this little not-for-profit provides a simple way to save space, money and the environment all at once.
02:48 As the tagline goes, why buy when you can borrow?
02:51 tomorrow.
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