We're headed back to the Cincinnati Museum Center for their Earth Day celebration on April 25th! Catch our members from 1pm to 4pm in the STEM Lab teaching how to solder, sew, and spread some greenery with seed bombs. The most environmentally friendly option is repairing what you already have, come learn the skills to repair with us!
When people think about sustainability, they often think about recycling, renewable energy, or reducing waste. Those are all important, but there is another practical, often overlooked approach to living more sustainably: sharing resources. At Claremont MakerSpace, we believe one of the greenest tools is a shared tool. The idea is simple. Instead of every household purchasing tools and equipment that may only be used occasionally, a makerspace provides shared access to those resources in one community location. Whether it is woodworking equipment, sewing machines, digital fabrication tools, or precision machining equipment, shared access helps reduce unnecessary consumption while opening the door to creativity, learning, and innovation. Many tools require significant materials and energy to manufacture. They also take up space, require maintenance, and often sit unused for long periods. In fact, many specialty tools are used only a handful of times by the average owner. When dozens or even hundreds of people can access one shared set of well-maintained tools, it reduces the demand for duplicate purchases and helps make more efficient use of existing resources. That is sustainability in action. This model reflects a larger idea often called “access over ownership.” In a traditional consumer model, ownership is the goal. If you need something, you buy it. But the shared economy offers another path: access to what you need, when you need it, without everyone needing to own everything individually. Libraries have operated this way for generations. Makerspaces bring that same principle to tools, equipment, and practical skills. There is also an environmental value in the work that happens within community workshops themselves. Makerspaces support a culture of repair, reuse, and thoughtful making. Instead of discarding a broken item, members can learn to fix it. Instead of buying new, they can make something durable, modify an existing object, or repurpose materials into something useful. These practices help reduce waste and extend the life of everyday goods. We are very interested and often asked about offering repair cafe events and would love for someone with the expertise and know how to help us offer that. Please reach out to cortney@twinstatemakerspaces.org if you are interested! Community workshops also encourage innovation around sustainability. People use makerspaces to prototype energy-saving projects, create products from reclaimed materials, and develop practical solutions to local challenges. In many cases, the act of making becomes a way to solve environmental problems. At Claremont MakerSpace, this commitment to sustainability is reflected not only in shared resources, but in how we operate. Our solar panels help offset the building’s energy cost, supporting a model where renewable energy and shared access work hand in hand. It is one more way we are working to align making with environmental responsibility. In addition, our classes and events support a sustainable community. We offer workshops on building interior storm windows to improve energy efficiency, classes on building your own rain barrels, and our yard sale events help ensure that we are giving old items new life in new homes. Coming up, we are offering a class for turning glass bottles into something new, you can register here: https://claremontmakerspace.org/events/#!event/2026/5/23/turn-a-bottle-into-a-glass and this week we turned recycled paper into beads. Sustainability is not only about using less. It is about using resources wisely. It is about designing systems that reduce waste, encourage stewardship, and create value through collaboration. A shared tool may seem like a small idea, but it points to something much bigger: a different way of thinking about consumption altogether. Sometimes the greenest choice is not buying another tool. It is sharing one.