MacPhee Centre for Creative Learning teaches youth responsible consumerism
Posted Nov 17, 2018 07:50:00 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
In downtown Dartmouth, tucked inside a heritage building on Queen Street, there's a place for youth, and youth only to pursue art and creativity.
That place is the MacPhee Centre for Creative Learning. It's a not-for-profit learning centre for youth ages 12-19 to come and learn various forms of art and creative expression, from painting to acting, music and photography.
“All of them are there to connect their passion and their purpose through hobbies and interests that they don't necessarily have other means to explore,” said Adam Sigrist, program manager for the centre.
On November 21, the centre is hosting a “repair cafe” in partnership with the Clean Nova Scotia Foundation where youth will learn how to fix household items and furniture.
“They'll be fixing some of the old things in our centre but they're also provided an opportunity to bring some of their own stuff in and learn how to fix their bike or maybe their laptop,” said Sigrist in an interview with News 95.7's Matt Brand.
“Maybe the learning experience for them is at the end of the day, this thing is broken too far past repair, but either way they've learned something about potentially not buying new things.”
The event will help promote Clean Nova Scotia's message of trying to fix something before throwing it away and buying something new. It hopes the initiative will help keep unnecessary items out of landfills, and reduce the amount of plastics in landfills and the ocean.
This isn't the first “repair cafe” Clean Nova Scotia has put on, although it is the first one geared toward youth, explained Sigrist.
“They're trying to make sure that we're really getting the most out of the life cycle of our things and our stuff rather than falling into that consumer trap of buying new things over and over again,” he said.
Sigrist says with the 90 youth registered for the program this term, there is a lot of wear and tear on furniture, most of which has been donated throughout the years.
The small team that runs the centre often don't have time to make small repairs, and are hoping the youth will not only help them fill this gap, but also gain a sense of ownership over the space.
Let's Sprout, a grassroots initiative that encourages youth to address social and environmental justice issues, will also be at the event. They will be running a community art project, making a land acknowledgement mosaic to be installed in the centre.
Registration for the winter term at MacPhee Centre opens on December 13. It runs from January 7 to March 8, and will offer programs in painting, musical theatre, drawing, and a rock and record program where youth learn how to record their own music. The forms are accessible online.
