This summer, the Fixing the Future team members, Mike Stead, Matt Pilling, Paul Coulton and Violet Owen, and researcher Sejal Changede went to the Bluedot Festival in Cheshire. There they engaged the public in a range of exciting activities designed to challenge their perceptions about repair and foster public curiosity about repair practices. Bluedot is a science, technology and music festival held at Jodrell Bank in Cheshire. Bluedot is committed to fostering a love of science and technology, but also has a deep commitment to sustainability and sustainable practices.
The Fixing the Future team were joined by Tom Macpherson-Pope from the Making Rooms (plus other fantastic team member) and Fran Pilling from the Future Mundane project, Lancaster University, which was also supported by Matt Pilling, Paul Coulton and Dante Coulton. The making rooms team offered an exciting array of modern manufacturing techniques to explore, such as 3D printing and laser cutting.
Amongst one of the most popular activities offered by the FtF team was badge making. This activity is designed to teach basic soldering and circuitry skills, helping to demystify essential repair processes. This was enjoyed by children and adults alike, and many were people surprised that they were able to complete the activity and produce a working circuit.
As well as practical skills building these activities also help to open up a space for dialogue between the team and the public. Another activity we ran was the Right to Repair bingo. This asks participants to place stickers in the left column indicating devices they own and then place a sticker in the left column if they think the right to repair legislation covers that product. This was a really interesting activity to highlight variations in knowledge regarding repair, as well as highlighting the prevalence of these devices in our homes.
As well as lots of visitors at Bluedot, there was lots (and lots) of rain! The Future Mundane team had to be towed out by a tractor…
…and I don’t think my boots will ever be the same again! However, it was a fantastic opportunity to engage with the public about repair and spark curiosity and interest in repair practices.
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