Summer is here and for Anke Libeton that means more gardening.
From a hedger to a high pressure hose, she has all the tools she needs.
But she didn’t have to buy the equipment.
She instead borrowed it all from The Sydney Library of Things and then put the equipment on a trolley to conveniently wheel it to her nearby home.
A household library
For subscribers like Libeton, the library membership brings many blessings.
“I’m saving money because I don’t have to buy each item,” she said.
“And I don’t have to store them either. And, there is a maintenance team to look after the tools, so I know they are going to work.”
The Sydney Library of Things branch at Lane Cove. Source: SBS / Spencer Austad
The Library of Things works on a yearly membership model, co-founder Bridget Kennedy said.
“If you’re thinking you might buy your dad a drill or some gardening tools for Christmas, you could buy him a membership to the Library of Things, and you’re literally buying him a whole shed full of tools at the same price.”
Gardening tools are among more than 400 household items available at the library’s Lane Cove branch.
Members can borrow up to five items every two weeks for an annual fee of $85, while there are also six-monthly and quarterly membership options.
Borrowing is done through a click and collect model. People can browse the library’s inventory — including kitchen items, camping gear, and power tools — online to see what is available and reserve items to pick up later.
Co-founder Carol Skyring said the library is ideal for practical but less-often used items.
“High pressure water washers are popular, so are food dehydrators and bread makers,” she said.
“Surprisingly, the paper shredder is also very well used,” she said.
Cutting down Christmas waste
For the founders, reducing waste is a key motivation.
“We are saving a lot of underused items from going to landfill,” Skyring said.
“We are also helping reduce carbon dioxide emissions because every time someone buys something new, there are emissions attached to [its] manufacture and transport.”
Sydney Library of Things member Anke Libeton with co-founders Carol Skyring and Bridget Kennedy. Source: SBS / Spencer Austad
Australians generate more than 12 million tonnes of household waste annually according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
And around Christmas, the problem grows.
In fact, the Australia Institute estimates that $1 billion of unwanted Christmas gifts will end up in landfill this year.
Christmas also means parties, and for those needing supplies, the Library of Things stocks lights, decorations, glassware and gazebos — even a chocolate fountain.
Sid Singhal is a member of the Sydney Library of Things. Source: SBS / Spencer Austad
‘Great for the environment, great for the community’
This Christmas, during a stubborn cost of living crisis, homemade gifts may be a solution.
Rachel May has a borrowed food dehydrator from the library to get her gifts ready — she’s preserving her homegrown blood oranges.
“I only use the dehydrator when the tree is full of fruit because the rest of the time, it would sit around taking up space,” she said.
“This is probably the tenth jar I have made. We’ve handed them out to friends as gifts. They are beautiful in a gin and tonic,” she said holding up the festive-looking bright red discs of citrus rimmed with orange in a tall glass container.
“It’s [the library] great for the environment. It’s great for the community, it’s great for myself and my friends who get some lovely produce.”
Sydney Library of Things member Rachel May with her home-grown blood oranges. Source: SBS / Spencer Austad
Three friends founded The Sydney Library of Things nearly three years ago and the social enterprise now has more than 170 members.
It relies on donated goods. But people can’t just donate anything. Among the stipulations the library has on its website are that the items be clean and in good usable condition and be a well-known brand (for product safety searches and to find a user manual if necessary).
Petrol-powered tools aren’t accepted, nor are electric-powered tools more than five years old.
Staffed by volunteers in a council-owned space, the library has recently opened a third branch in Sydney’s north with another branch, in Randwick in Sydney’s east, to open early next year.
The Lane Cove library has recently added a toy library.
“It’s going gangbusters, dozens of toys are being borrowed every week,” Skyring said.
The Lane Cove Toy Library at the Sydney Library of Things. Source: SBS / Spencer Austad
A growing grassroots movement
Amidst mounting cost of living pressures, the Sydney Library of Things is part of a growing grassroots network — there are an estimated 25 community-born libraries in Australia offering tools, toys and appliances.
The Brunswick Tool Library opened in Melbourne in 2013 and more than 8,000 items are now borrowed every year.
The Mullumbimby Library of Stuff in northern NSW lends around 5,000 items a year.
Kennedy would like to see a Library of Things in every council area.
“Initiatives like these also help to rebuild a community, because a library is about more than just lending items. Volunteers and members often feel like they are part of something bigger than themselves.”
Volunteer Peter Englert agrees.
“I am currently working on the front desk [at Lane Cove]. So, when people come in to borrow or drop off items, I am the first point of contact ” he said.
“As I am partially retired, I feel happy to help people. The library makes a lot of sense to me.”
For Carol Skyring, the Library of Things is part of a push to reduce waste.
“It’s great to see a change of mindset around buying everything. And you can share items from the library with your neighbours,” she said.
The growing membership suggests more people are looking for alternatives to buying things new.
“People like the idea of not owning so much stuff, and having to deal with objects that they ultimately will have to dispose of.”
