Making old things last longer - 6 Minute English

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!