Today’s guest is Guido Verbist from The Bower Reuse and Repair Centre, and he is on a mission to make buying second hand normal.

If you watched War on Waste, the recent series on the ABC, you may have met Guido already. He’s the Co-op Manager of The Bower, and he’s been doing a huge amount of work over the past few years to reframe the way we think about second hand stuff, as well as empowering each of us to take control of repairing the things we do own.

Brooke sat down to chat with Guido in the workshop room of The Bower’s new Reuse and Repair Centre in Parramatta, and they got to talking about convenience, the stigma of buying pre-owned things, and the lost art of repair.

The Bower aims to help minimise the amount of stuff going to landfill (and to date have stopped more than 1.3 million kilograms of stuff from ending up in the ground) and they do this by:
reselling unwanted goods to people who need them
fixing items and reselling them to people who need them
testing and tagging unwanted electrical items and reselling to people who need them
teaching people how to repair their own belongings at regular repair cafes and various workshops
working with local councils and encouraging residents to use their services
working with refugee and domestic violence services to help those in need establish a new home

This is an organisation making a huge difference across Sydney, and Guido talks openly and honestly about the benefits and challenges of being at the forefront of the reuse and repair movement in Australia, as well as his advice for people who want to set up similar services in their local community.

Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/191 for the full blog post and links to resources mentioned in today’s episode.

Enjoy!

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If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls.

And thanks so much for listening!

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Today&rsquo;s guest is Guido Verbist from The Bower Reuse and Repair Centre, and he is on a mission to make buying second hand normal.
If you watched War on Waste, the recent series on the ABC, you may have met Guido already. He&rsquo;s the Co-op Manager of The Bower, and he&rsquo;s been doing a huge amount of work over the past few years to reframe the way we think about second hand stuff, as well as empowering each of us to take control of repairing the things we do own.
Brooke sat down to chat with Guido in the workshop room of The Bower&rsquo;s new Reuse and Repair Centre in Parramatta, and they got to talking about convenience, the stigma of buying pre-owned things, and the lost art of repair.
The Bower aims to help minimise the amount of stuff going to landfill (and to date have stopped more than 1.3 million kilograms of stuff from ending up in the ground) and they do this by:
<ul class="ul1">
<li class="li1">reselling unwanted goods to people who need them</li>
<li class="li1">fixing items and reselling them to people who need them</li>
<li class="li1">testing and tagging unwanted electrical items and reselling to people who need them</li>
<li class="li1">teaching people how to repair their own belongings at regular repair cafes and various workshops</li>
<li class="li1">working with local councils and encouraging residents to use their services</li>
<li class="li1">working with refugee and domestic violence services to help those in need establish a new home</li>
</ul>
This is an organisation making a huge difference across Sydney, and Guido talks openly and honestly about the benefits and challenges of being at the forefront of the reuse and repair movement in Australia, as well as his advice for people who want to set up similar services in their local community.
Head over to <a href="http://www.slowyourhome.com/191">http://www.slowyourhome.com/191</a> for the full blog post and links to resources mentioned in today&rsquo;s episode.
Enjoy!
====
If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2">leave a rating or a review in iTunes</a> or <a href="http://www.patreon.com/slow">head over to the Patreon page</a> to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls.
And thanks so much for listening!
====

To strive is human, to saunter divine. Welcome to The Tortoise - a podcast that digs deep into the power of slow. Brooke McAlary (author of "Slow", "Care" and "Destination Simple") is joined by her husband Ben for a monthly deep dive into the realities of trying to live slow in a world that won't stop racing. On the third Thursday of every month, join Brooke and Ben for an unscripted, unedited, always candid and usually fun conversation about slow living and how embracing our inner tortoise can impact every part of life: relationships, work, family, community, tech, health, care, personal growth. If you’re burnt out, overwhelmed, frustrated at the sheer pace of life or just looking for a sign to slow down, this is the podcast (a plodcast!) for you.

To strive is human, to saunter divine. Welcome to The Tortoise - a podcast that digs deep into the power of slow. Brooke McAlary (author of "Slow", "Care" and "Destination Simple") is joined by her husband Ben for a monthly deep dive into the realities of trying to live slow in a world that won't stop racing. On the third Thursday of every month, join Brooke and Ben for an unscripted, unedited, always candid and usually fun conversation about slow living and how embracing our inner tortoise can impact every part of life: relationships, work, family, community, tech, health, care, personal growth. If you’re burnt out, overwhelmed, frustrated at the sheer pace of life or just looking for a sign to slow down, this is the podcast (a plodcast!) for you.

Good conversations on what it really looks like to live a slower life.

The Tortoise with Brooke McAlary

To strive is human, to saunter divine. Welcome to The Tortoise - a podcast that digs deep into the power of slow. Brooke McAlary (author of "Slow", "Care" and "Destination Simple") is joined by her husband Ben for a monthly deep dive into the realities of trying to live slow in a world that won't stop racing. On the third Thursday of every month, join Brooke and Ben for an unscripted, unedited, always candid and usually fun conversation about slow living and how embracing our inner tortoise can impact every part of life: relationships, work, family, community, tech, health, care, personal growth. If you’re burnt out, overwhelmed, frustrated at the sheer pace of life or just looking for a sign to slow down, this is the podcast (a plodcast!) for you.

Brooke chats with Guido Verbist of The Bower Reuse and Repair Centre about making second-hand normal and the different ways we can embrace reuse/repair movement.

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