Repurposing

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Plastic bottles (with LED lights) repurposed as a chandelier during Ramadan in the Muslim Quarter, Jerusalem Plastic Bottles and LED Lights repurposed as a chandelier during Ramadan in Muslim Quarter, Jerusalem 2011.jpg
Plastic bottles (with LED lights) repurposed as a chandelier during Ramadan in the Muslim Quarter, Jerusalem
St William's College (York) facade. The curved wood protrusions are probably repurposed ship frames. YorkStWilliamsCollege1.jpg
St William's College (York) facade. The curved wood protrusions are probably repurposed ship frames.
African music instrument made from a food can African music instrument made from a can 01.jpg
African music instrument made from a food can

Repurposing is the process by which an object with one use value is transformed or redeployed as an object with an alternative use value.

Contents

Description

Repurposing is as old as human civilization, with many contemporary scholars investigating how different societies re-appropriate the artifacts of older cultures in new and creative ways. [1] More recently, repurposing has been celebrated by 21st century hobbyists and arts-and-crafts organizations such as Instructables and other Maker culture communities as a means of creatively responding to the ecological and economic crises of the 21st century. Recent scholarship has attempted to relate these activities to American left- and right-libertarianism. [2] [3]

Repurposing is the use of a tool being re-channeled into being another tool, usually for a purpose unintended by the original tool-maker. Typically, repurposing is done using items usually considered to be junk, garbage, or obsolete. A good example of this would be the Earthship style of house, that uses tires as insulating walls and bottles as glass walls. Reuse is not limited to repeated uses for the same purpose. Examples of repurposing include using tires as boat fenders and steel drums or plastic drums as feeding troughs and/or composting bins. Incinerator and power plant exhaust stack fly-ash is used extensively as an additive to concrete, providing increased strength. This type of reuse can sometimes make use of items which are no longer usable for their original purposes, for example using worn-out clothes as rags. [4]

Examples

External videos
Nuvola apps kaboodle.svg REUSE! Because You Can't Recycle the Planet (Official Full Documentary), Alex Eaves
German military helmets converted into a chamber pot and a strainer after World War II. Exhibits in the Resistance Museum, Amsterdam. German Stahlhelm Army helmets reused after the occupation of the Netherlands during WW2, enamelled as chamber pot and strainer. Resistance Museum (Verzetsmuseum) Amsterdam.jpg
German military helmets converted into a chamber pot and a strainer after World War II. Exhibits in the Resistance Museum, Amsterdam.
Skis repurposed as a bench Skis repurposed as a bench.jpg
Skis repurposed as a bench

Art

Automobiles

Electronics

As a tactic for manufacturing goods

Manufacturing of recycled goods

Drugs

Real property

Scrap and household materials

See also

References

  1. "Medieval Recycling". Harvard Gazette. 12 April 2010. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  2. Malewitz, R. (2014) "The Practice of Misuse". Stanford University Press. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  3. "Throwaways: Work Culture and Consumer Education". Stanford University Press. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  4. "100 Ways to Repurpose and Reuse Broken Household Items". DIY & Crafts. 3 May 2014. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
  5. Hammar, Richard R. "What Church Leaders Should Know About Church Vans". Enrichment Journal. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  6. "How to make your own". Deaddrops.com. 10 June 2013. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
  7. Stoneagegamer's article on the Everdrive
  8. Article title [ usurped ] US Drive Right: The Nation's Largest Seller Of Used Factory Right Hand Drive Vehicles For Postal Carriers
  9. "Debunking the Myths of Recycled Paper". IT Recycle. Retrieved 4 February 2007.
  10. Sleigh, Sara H.; Barton, Cheryl L. (23 August 2012). "Repurposing Strategies for Therapeutics". Pharmaceutical Medicine. 24 (3): 151–159. doi:10.1007/BF03256811. S2CID   25267555.
  11. Ashburn, TT; Thor, KB (August 2004). "Drug repositioning: identifying and developing new uses for existing drugs". Nature Reviews. Drug Discovery. 3 (8): 673–83. doi:10.1038/nrd1468. PMID   15286734. S2CID   205475073.
  12. Institute of Medicine (2014). Drug Repurposing and Repositioning: Workshop Summary. National Academies Press. ISBN   9780309302043.
  13. Upcycling,Recycling,Repurpose,&REUSE- furniture & household items to random ish
  14. "Unique Repurposing Ideas". Sunshine Skips. 17 August 2016. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  15. Homebnc (3 June 2022). "45+ Artistic and Practical Repurposed Old Door Ideas". Homebnc. Retrieved 3 October 2022.