Chris Hellawell is the Director of the Edinburgh Tool LibraryChris has an educational background in environmental science, but began working in the charity sector 20 years ago. In 2014 he found a way to combine his dual passions of environmental and social justice by starting the first tool library in the UK, and since then it has grown to encompass multiple sites across Edinburgh, where carbon heavy DIY equipment is shared and treated as an asset for the whole community to access. From this starting point, other projects have blossomed, driven by the community around the libraries, and now include a cycle kitchen, Repair Cafe Edinburgh, a draught-busting initiative supporting people in fuel poverty, a programme of weekend volunteer builds, and an outreach programme that specifically targets individuals from groups often excluded from the workshop environment and the trades and making industries. Chris believes that sharing gives access, access gives opportunity, and opportunities can change lives. http://www.edinburghtoollibrary.org.ukhttps://www.instagram.com/edinburghtoollibrary/Send us a textExplore more Breaks & Joins podcasts, on the repair of our stuff, ourselves and our communities. Subscribe to make sure you dont miss any!

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“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.

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