Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe on Repair and Reuse
Last year in Akwesasne, the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe’s Solid Waste Program diverted 1176.4 lbs. of reused items from the trash during reuse/fix events. The most reused item was clothing. The most commonly repaired item was lamps. We recognize the SRMT community made this reuse event a reality. People in Tribal lands are familiar with the reuse concept.
Kwiss & Tiio, the SRMT environmental cartoon characters explain how back in the day people would rely on reusing items, making items last through the times. 2022 wasn’t the exception, and we started the STOP & SWAP event where people donated unwanted used items and others took what they found valuable for free. Mostly books, lamps, and clothing.
Another 2022 outcome was the very first FIX-IT
CAFÉ. People brought broken items so the repair coaches could fix them for free. A few lamps were fixed and they also did small soldering repairs. Thanks to Les Benedict the 2nd from the Akwesasne community…