International repair day 2025

For the second time in Macedonia, the association ARNO and the Repair Center “Nothing New” marked the International Repair Day, which this year took place on October 18, under the theme “Software Obsolescence.” The topic was particularly relevant, as only a few days before the International Repair Day, Microsoft ended support for Windows 10, leaving more than 400 million computers worldwide without updates and security protection. According to the European initiative Right to Repair Europe, this represents a classic example of “software obsolescence”, when functional devices are discarded due to discontinued software support, leading to a dramatic increase in electronic waste (an additional 700 million kg of e-waste) and unnecessary costs for citizens and institutions.

In this context, ARNO and the Repair Center “Nothing New” invited citizens, teachers, young people, and all interested individuals to join the online workshop “How to Maintain Your Computer – Practical Tips and Tricks,” which was held on October 20 (Monday) at 18:00, online via the ZOOM platform. The workshop was led by Prof. Dr. Boban Joksimoski from the Faculty of Computer Science and Computer Engineering (FINKI). Participants discussed practical guidelines and tools for software maintenance, system optimization, and safe use of older devices.

In addition to the online program, a creative sewing workshop took place at the Repair Center “Nothing New”, led by fashion designer Irina Tosheva, where participants created laptop and tablet sleeves from old textiles. This activity symbolically combined the topics of digital and textile waste, showing that repairs can be both useful and creative.

At the same time, an international coalition of experts in circular economy and digital rights called on Microsoft and European institutions to extend free and automatic support for Windows 10. Organizations worldwide can sign the open letter of support via this link.

“Last year, we marked the Repair Day for the first time by collecting and repairing toys. This year, the focus was on software and digital waste, so we organized an online lecture. We are also joining the calls to the European Commission for mandatory eco-design rules and extended product support of at least 15 years,” said Antonio Danilovski, coordinator of the EICEE project and manager of the Repair Center “Nothing New.”

The International Repair Day is a global initiative that encourages communities to take concrete action against the throwaway culture and the unnecessary purchase of new devices. According to data from the Open Repair Alliance, in 2024 alone, more than 2,000 events were held in 40 countries, where around 190,000 devices were repaired. Through these activities, ARNO continues to develop the repair culture in Macedonia and to create opportunities for learning, knowledge sharing, and active citizen participation in the circular economy.

These activities were implemented as part of the Breath Clean campaign, within a project financed by the German Federal Government through the Climate Dialogue Support under the Regional Climate Partnership with the Western Balkans, commissioned by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (Bundesministerium für wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung (BMZ)) and implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ North Macedonia) GmbH.