Hello. This is 6 Minute
English from BBC
Learning English. I'm Rob.
And I'm Sam.
So, how are you
today, Sam?
Don't ask, Rob!
Today's been a
nightmare! This morning
I ripped my jeans and
later my computer stopped
working! Then, when I tried
taking it to a repair shop,
my car wouldn't start!
Oh no, that's terrible!
And the really bad news
is that in today's consumer
culture, when something
breaks we usually throw
it away and buy a new
one, instead of
trying to repair it.
In this programme, we'll
learn all about repairing
broken things by asking
what would happen if
we stopped junking and
got better at fixing.
The world generates
over two billion tonnes
of rubbish every year.
So we're visiting
companies in Sweden
making it easier to
mend things when
they break instead of
replacing them - whether
that's clothes, bikes or
washing machines.
And my quiz question is
about one of those
companies - Fixi, a repair
service that collects broken
bikes from your door
and brings them
back fixed. The
company was started
by Rafi Mohammad, a
student of Industrial
Innovation at the
University of Stockholm.
But what was the
inspiration behind
Rafi's idea? Was it:
a) he wanted to impress
his girlfriend?, b) he was
sick of breathing in the
city's car fumes?, or
c) he was late for his
lecture because of
a flat tyre?
I'll say a) he
wanted to impress
his girlfriend.
OK, Sam, we'll find out
about Rafi and his love life
later on. But whatever the
inspiration behind it, Rafi's
idea was a success - Fixi
took more than six
hundred orders in
its first six months.
Rafi's isn't the only
Swedish company
helping people fix
things instead of
buying new. Denim
company, Nudie Jeans,
was started with a
focus on ethics
and sustainability.
At 150 dollars a pair,
Nudie jeans aren't
cheap but they do
promise free repairs for
life, from ripped knees
to torn pockets.
BBC World Service
programme, People
Fixing the World, asked
students Felix and
Fabia Morgen, why they
bought the jeans,
despite the high price tag.
It's just been a given
that when your jeans
break, you throw them
away, so when I heard
that you can repair
them easily without
any cost then it was
a bit of a no-brainer for me.
I really liked the way they
looked, so for me it's
worth it to buy more
expensive but stuff
that I really like.
Felix says that
throwing out old
jeans is a given -
something that is
just assumed to happen.
For him, buying Nudie jeans
is a no-brainer - a
decision that's
very easy to make.
And Fabia agrees.
She doesn't mind
paying more for stuff
she really likes. Here,
'stuff' is an informal
way to say personal
objects and possessions.
Even though they're good
at recycling, people in
wealthy Sweden still
buy lots of new stuff
and they have a big
carbon footprint
for a country of
just 10 million.
But it's interesting that
all the innovators behind
these companies say
that in their grandparents'
day, it was normal to
repair, fix and mend
broken stuff.
Jessika Richter is a
researcher at Lund
University. She thinks
repairing is an endangered
activity that we used
to do more of, both
individually and as a society.
Here she is talking to
BBC World Service's,
People Fixing the World
programme, about the
need to get back in
touch with older
ways of doing things:
It really is a peer effect
and a culture that we're
trying to foster here -
changing a culture of
consumption. The more
people that are repairing
and the more people that
are choosing to buy repair
services or more repairable
products, the more we will
see this going mainstream -
and it used to be
mainstream, so that's
what makes me positive too,
that it is in some ways
a return to what we used
to be able as a society
to do more of.
Stories about Sweden's
repair shops spread
between friends and
Jessika thinks this
creates a peer effect -
the positive or negative
influence friends have on
the way you behave.
She hopes this will foster - or
encourage to grow - a new
culture of sustainable
consumption -
so that fixing broken stuff
will be mainstream, or be
considered normal, once again.
Yes, that's a big part of
the problem - repairing
was something we all
used to do, but seem
to have forgotten.
Hopefully, we'll all be
inspired to start fixing
things again, or at least
pay someone else to!
And speaking of inspiration,
what was the answer
to your quiz question, Rob?
Ah yes, I asked about the
inspiration behind Rafi
Mohammad's company, Fixi.
I think he started the bike
repair service to a) impress
his girlfriend. Was I right?
Ah Sam, that's very romantic -
but the correct answer was
c) he was late for his lecture
because of a flat tyre.
Well, I'm sure if he had
a broken heart, he'd
be able to mend it.
Indeed. Well, in this
programme, we've been
hearing about repairing
broken stuff - things, or
personal possessions.
That people would fix
something broken used
to be a given - assumed
to be true or certain
to happen.
Repairing things used
to be a no-brainer -
the obvious choice.
A peer effect is influence
of peers and friends on
someone's behaviour.
Some Swedish companies
are trying to foster - or
encourage the development
of - a new culture of consumption.
So that once again, fixing
things is mainstream -
accepted as normal
or common practice.
Well, that's all from us.
Bye for now!
Bye bye!