Rediscovering New Ideas
Leading The Change
On 22 July, the Judges visited the Rediscovery Centre in Ballymun in Dublin. The Rediscovery Centre is about leading change from waste to resource through Reuse, Redesign, Research and Education. Their goals are to:
- Prevent waste going to landfill
- Provide employment and training
- Inspire sustainable living
How The Rediscovery Centre Came About
The original idea for the Rediscovery Centre came from the community consultation process for the regeneration in Ballymun. One of the key ideas arising from the consultation process was to develop a recycling centre in the area that could create jobs and training opportunities locally, for example by housing workshops that reused or recycled materials on site. From this idea the Rediscovery Centre concept was developed.
The Good China!
The judges were given a warm welcome from Operations Manager, Roger Warburton who joked:
We were delighted to throw the kettle on and whip out the good china for the judges!
They heard how jobs have been created from the very beginning. There are currently twenty employees working at the Rediscovery Centre. This is a mix of:
- Full time staff
- Part time staff
- Community employment workers
- TUS workers
Wide Variety Of Workshops On Offer
- Employing people who have been long-term unemployed through Community Employment and offering the chance for people to re-skill and undertake personal development training.
- Teaching practical workplace skills in furniture restoration, upholstery, woodwork, fashion design, sewing skills, IT/Computer skills, reuse and recycling skills and more.
- Running public courses and workshops for a variety of skill levels in furniture restoration and fashion skills.
- Running primary and secondary level educational workshops.
- Working with third level research institutions on research projects, and in providing internships and structured work placement.
Judges left assured that the ever growing community of Ballymun had a bright future.
For more information about the Rediscovery Centre, visit the Rediscovery Centre website or check out the Rediscovery Centre Facebook.
