Creative Circular Cities - Promoting circular transition at local level by involving the Culture & Creative Sectors and Industries

CCC

Repair & Upcycling Festival in Kiel: A Vibrant Celebration of Circular Economy

31 May 2025

Technical details

On Saturday 10th of May, our Kiel project partners — Anscharcampus, Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung and Zero Waste Kiel e.V. — hosted an inspiring and energetic Repair & Upcycling Festival, drawing over 750 visitors who came together to embrace sustainable practices and advance the ethos of the circular economy.

A Day of Creativity, Community, and Circularity

Under a spirit of collaboration and resilience, the festival featured a diverse array of interactive workshops designed to empower individuals to repair, reuse, and reimagine everyday objects. Attendees learned hands-on skills—from basic bike repairing to transforming discarded electronic devices into jewelry—bringing new life to cherished—or even forgotten—items.

These workshops not only cultivated practical knowledge but also reinforced a fundamental tenet of the circular economy: extending the lifespan of products through creative, thoughtful use, and preventing items from becoming waste.

Principles in Practice: Circular Economy at the Core

The festival was designed around several key principles of a circular economy:

Prevention of waste by repairing items instead of discarding them.
Resource efficiency and longevity through reuse and creative repurposing.
Community-based knowledge sharing, where skills and ideas are exchanged freely.
Promoting behavioral change, guiding participants toward more sustainable consumption patterns.

By embedding these values into a fun and engaging public event, the Repair & Upcycling Festival showed how sustainability and creativity can go hand in hand.

A Strong Response from the Community

The turnout of over 750 participants exceeded expectations and highlighted the growing local enthusiasm for sustainable initiatives. Visitors ranged from families and students to local makers and sustainability advocates—creating a vibrant mix of backgrounds and skill sets.

The lively atmosphere, filled with upbeat energy and meaningful encounters, underscored the event’s success in uniting people around a shared vision: a cleaner Kiel and a more conscious way of consuming.