Wednesday, 15 July 2026
14.00 – 15.00 CET | Online
The European Crafts Alliance and Global Innovation Gathering (GIG) will host the next make-a-thek Community Call. Led by ECA Programmes Manager Rachel Kelly, the session will provide an open space to exchange ideas and explore how craft and maker culture contribute to community building, resilience, and social inclusion.
The gathering will look at how creative initiatives act as hubs for civic engagement and collaborative production. Specifically, the session will examine how craft-oriented communities operate through the lenses of three vital elements: People, Place, and Resources.
The Programme
The session will feature speakers from three grassroots initiatives across Europe. They will share their different approaches to self-organisation and sustainable making:
- People: Habibi.Works (Greece)
Located near Ioannina, this intercultural makerspace brings together refugees, asylum seekers, local residents, and international volunteers. By providing open access to workshops for woodworking, metalwork, sewing, and digital fabrication, the initiative treats individuals as makers and knowledge holders, fostering social inclusion through collective production. More>> - Place: La Table Ronde de l’Architecture (France)
This initiative unites artisans, architects, and enthusiasts to study and preserve traditional and vernacular architecture. They are currently building a training school that invites individuals from all over the world to contribute, volunteer, and share knowledge through hands-on action. More>> - Resources: Sodas 2123 (Lithuania)
Situated in a repurposed school building in central Vilnius, this self-governed cultural centre hosts over 60 studios and workshops. Rooted in the concept of the cultural commons, residents share skills and co-produce work. The project focuses heavily on adaptive reuse, DIY construction, and circular design principles. More>>
Join us on for the MAT Community Call via ZOOM. Register here>>
Explore previous MAT Community Calls>>
About make-a-thek
make-a-thek is an EU-funded project that brings modular, easy-to-replicate makerspaces into public libraries. These spaces focus on fashion and crafts, offering open access to innovative and circular approaches to making and design. The project connects nine partners across Europe, including the European Crafts Alliance.
