Community education and environment reuse center “Baterkáreň” is a registered social enterprise (as of April 2020) that focuses on “reuse” i.e. on applying circular economy principles into everyday life by providing simple solutions to handle (and prevent) “waste”.
As the first reuse center in Slovakia, we provide our community with our own knowledge, a wide variety of projects, tools and resources in order to keep as many unused items in circulation as possible.
We recognize that in order to make changes, the mindsets (and behavior) of people need to be changed first. Even though it is the hardest change of all, we are willing to motivate and inspire people to help them.
We focus on sustainability, community, active citizenship, volunteering, i.e. we focus on engaging the community directly with our projects and activities to allow them to directly experience (and to adapt to) the change. By organizing regular swapping events, operating a library of things, operating The Shared Workshop and owning a ( online and offline) reuse center, operating package-free drugstore and hosting talks and workshops on sustainable life and waste management, we try to motivate the community to rethink their consumer behavior, and provide experiences and ideas to the community in order to ease them into “accept the change”.
In our reuse center we collect:
clothing, books, toys, small electronic appliances, decorations, plants, household items (we do not accept furniture, big appliances, nor waste).
Moreover, we have developed the first Slovak web app called “Swapka”; a tool that calculates CO2e of selected (returned, shared, swapped, repaired, etc.) items. Since 2019 we have saved more than 200 tons of CO2e. We also published our own 3 ebooks on sustainability.
We are the first reuse center in Slovakia in active cooperation with schools, businesses and municipalities, with a great media coverage. The exceptionality of the project makes it interesting and attractive for the public.
We are the first generation to feel the impact of climate change, but also the last generation to do something about it. 
Every small step is important, but so is the need to urge our representatives and contribute to systemic change. We basically decided to be an active and constructive part of the solution. We took our climate grief or even anger and changed it to work for the people.
For us, this starts with fostering active citizenship in our volunteers. Furthermore, we provide the community with practical tools in order to support its members in changing their consumer behavior through our reuse center, workshops (sustainability, self-sufficiency), swaps and projects (the repair shop, the library of things). The tools and skills help the community to live more sustainably, having more respect for the environment. We educate the public so they understand the consequences of their actions and learn how to minimize the impact.
Our reuse center is the first of its kind in Slovakia. Being pioneers is a great honor and responsibility, and it is important to improve and nurture the project as it grows. Our center promotes sustainability, sharing, cooperation, support, education and raising awareness in both social and environmental fields. Based on the principles of circular economy the project helps to save natural and financial resources and lessen waste.
Moreover, the community members see our center as a place where they can help others and support a good cause. The center provides them with space, tools and environment to help and to share.
The target groups are members of the community we are part of, including various age and social groups. We provide service both as a collecting point for unwanted items and as a store where people can get second-hand items for a symbolic price. Moreover, by letting them donate their items we promote ideas of belonging, service to others and equality.
Providing the community with means and products for more sustainable life, we are making circular economy principles more concrete and approachable. We believe that people respond better to ready-to-use solutions that are accessible and rather easy. As a social enterprise we focus mostly on “social circular economy”, as there is no “economy” without “people”.
We aim to support members of our community and to help those in need.
For us, this concerns both people and the environment. Together with the members of the community, we lessen our carbon footprint, usage of virgin materials and landfill overflow. We reuse and recycle a great number of items on a daily basis, and by doing this we apply the principles of circular economy in everyday life. Our goal is to motivate and inspire the members of the community to lead a more sustainable life through our events and work. Apart from educating the community, we aim to train volunteers and provide them with important life experience, and to train them to serve the community.
Our center cares for each and every member of its community and is very diverse in its nature. Volunteering helps high school and college students to learn valuable skills and lessons, and the importance of kindness and support. In addition, it provides an opportunity to volunteer in a hip and modern environment and thus, makes the experience more interesting and attractive for young people.
Providing clothing for children and toys we strive to support young families and help them navigate financially demanding periods of their lives. Moreover, we cooperate with and support organizations that help families, seniors and individuals in need (e.g. abused women with children).
We strive to create an environment that is inviting and non-judgemental, our events are open to all age groups and affordable to all members of the community. No questions asked.
As a social enterprise we aim to provide work to people of vulnerable and disadvantaged groups, such as mothers, students and refugees.
As a social enterprise we are bound to fulfill specific measurable goals in following areas (and we successfully fulfill them) :
- Protection of the environment and health
- Education and promotion of healthy lifestyle
- Promotion and cultivation of cultural and spiritual values
- Humanitarian aid and social support
To wrap it up a bit, Baterkáreň consists of:
- an online and offline reuse center
- an event venue: The Shared Workshop, program full of events (swapping events) and workshops (DIY, upcycling, sewing etc.) material collections and Repair Cafés
- a package-free drugstore
- The Library of Things
Every month, we are able to:
*return to circulation at least 1500 items (books, toys, clothes, etc.)
*organize collections and donate various items to those in need (refugees, families, organizations, initiatives). Being a valuable part of the community is very important for us.
*the reuse center makes various items more affordable to all social groups (social benefits of the project are crucial to us).
*organize numerous swapping events and workshops on a daily basis (create, return, upcycle) so we share or swap.
Every year we return approx. 10 tons of textile thanks to these events
* unreturned clothes are provided to our partner Ekocharita – for further processing
supporting document – presentation about baterkaren
Do you have more questions?
Contact us via ahoj@baterkaren.sk