Our A-gain Guide is a digital platform, designed to guide the user through the best options to locally repair, reuse and recycle their unwanted clothes in Berlin, aiming to strengthen the local circular economy.
In the second phase of the project, we are expanding the platform to include a Reuse Impact Calculator and a Price Calculator for repair services. The goal is to enhance knowledge about and the use of clothing repair, reuse, and recycling in Berlin.
FUNDER
Senat MVKU, Senat WEB, Postcode Lotterie
PARTNERS
LoopLook, Büro Bum Bum, Cecilia Palmer, New Standard Studio
DATE
ongoing
The challenge
In cities, mountains of second-hand clothes and textiles are collected and thrown away by consumers and companies in such high quantities that neither charities nor recyclers are currently able to efficiently manage these volumes efficiently. These amounts are predicted to increase by a further 60% by 2030.
A change towards a circular system for textiles in cities is urgently needed and can only be achieved through the involvement of all relevant stakeholders and the active participation of consumers.
Our approach
With the creation of the A-gain Guide, we enable a mainstream audience to access relevant information about the recycling process of their clothes.
By bringing consumers to the platform in a practical way, a rethinking of fashion consumption can be transferred from the sustainability niche to the broader society.
At the same time, the platform aims to fuel the potential to generate new synergies in the city, such as the design of new infrastructures through the cooperation of visible public and private actors in the system.
The outcomes
The platform consists of four main elements:
– a digital map with a filter system of local contact points and service providers (textile repair, collection and recycling businesses).
– the “Guide”, an intelligent and dynamic questionnaire, providing the user with personalised options for prolonging the life of their clothes. Further, a reuse-impact-calculator is part of the Guide. The calculator helps users to understand where and how they can achieve the most savings, particularly through the solution options offered by the A-Gain Guide.
– a Repair-Price Calculator to inform Berliners about the costs for a repair service and explain the necessary steps involved, thereby increasing the visibility and appreciation for local repair and repurpose services.
– and a Knowledge page that provides users with background information on circular solutions for their clothing, as well as downloadable e-books with practical DIY tips.
The website and its elements are open-source, allowing the A-Guide to be easily expanded to other interested cities. Our team would also be happy to support here.
Data generated from the A-Gain Guide will be used for the further developments of a textile circular economy.
The project is an essential cornerstone on the way to a more efficient local recycling industry, a visible network of actors and a greater sense of responsibility on the part of Berlin’s citizens.
Further steps
The website and its elements are continually optimized as an open-source platform, allowing the A-Guide to be easily expanded to other interested cities. Due to the significant interest in our platform, Circular Berlin will replicate the project with various partners over the coming years, thereby scaling the project’s impact
The data generated from the use of the tools serves as a basis for studies that we use to further develop a textile circular economy in Berlin.
