Sedona Tools Empowering People (STEP) is your community tool lending library, located at Sedona Public Library. We’re celebrating! Our six-month anniversary was August 29, and we’ve loaned out 134 tools. Stop by on Wednesday afternoons, 2-6 p.m., this month and help us celebrate. You can learn about our inventory, meet our volunteers, and you might win a STEP door prize!
Since opening in April, our community of volunteers and patrons has grown. STEP now has 87 patrons, and the tool inventory has also grown. We now have 416 items available for check out.
STEP functions like a regular library except instead of lending books, STEP lends tools for short-term projects. STEP operates on the principles and practices of resource-use reduction—sharing, conviviality, solidarity, and mutual aid. STEP is a fun way to “dare to repair” or to take on a cooking or sewing project! Learn more about all that we do, our volunteer opportunities, and take our survey when you visit our website at www.STEP.MyTurn.com.
STEP was developed by a Northern Arizona Climate Action Alliance (NAZCCA) team and is staffed completely by volunteers. Tool lending reflects NAZCCA’s commitment to climate justice, grass roots activism, and local community engagement.
The project supports the City of Sedona’s Climate Action Plan by increasing community resilience and reducing greenhouse gases. Tool lending decreases the need for every person to purchase tools for individual projects. When people move or downsize, many usable tools end up in a landfill after little use or prolonged storage, while new residents may have limited storage space or only use a tool they’ve purchased for a single project.
When people purchase new tools, the tools and the packaging and shipping can contribute to carbon emissions. It’s sad to see usable tools discarded as landfill waste when they could be put to further use.
STEP offers a path to sustainable consumption—the use of products and services in ways that minimize impacts on the environment. STEP volunteers help community members reduce waste and energy and increase person to person relationships.
STEP is in the tradition of tool lending libraries in North America which began in the 1940s and has expanded since the 1970s. Now in the 2020s, more than 50 tool libraries are in operation. You can also find them in London and Edinburgh. Many are associated with and started by a public library.
Many tool libraries offer classes and workshops, and they are coupled with workshop spaces or makerspaces. STEP aspires to provide workshops in the future. The group has plans to add “how to” videos to its website and develop tool kits for specific projects. Much is dependent on building our volunteer force, so please join us!
Membership to STEP is free and only requires registering. The tools have all been donated by community members. We accept donations of tools, and donations of cash are tax deductible. (Make checks payable to STEP).
Hint: Borrow the canning pot and get some free jars while supplies last!
STEP is sponsored by Northern Arizona Climate Change Alliance (NAZCCA) and the Sedona Public Library and is a recipient of grant funding from the City of Sedona Small Grants Program. For more information visit nazcca.org/tool-library or register at STEP.MyTurn.com.
As published by Red Rock News
Library News Column for September 20, 2024, by Guest Columnist, Peggy Chaikin, STEP Lead Volunteer