A few months ago, during a meeting not related with Let’s Bike Month, a representative from the Conseil des écoles catholiques du Centre-Est (CECCE; the local French Catholic school board) mentioned in an offhand comment that it would be great to find more ways to connect bikes that are no longer used with people who need them. The lack of access to affordable bikes has meant that some events planned by schools within that board (such as students cycling to a field trip location instead of renting a bus) have had to be cancelled or changed so that no student is excluded.

This comment led to at least two wonderful stories about re-use and how we can all help connect people with bikes, so we wanted to share!

1. This spring, students from the CECCE rescued 11 bikes from the side of the road. Seven of them were in decent enough shape, and the students worked together to repair them for use at the board’s Centre agro-educatif near Navan. Students learned valuable maintenance skills, as well as the importance of giving new life to things which may have otherwise ended up in the landfill!
2. EnviroCentre connected the Ottawa Tool Library with Helping with Bikes for a one-time bike donation drive. The Tool Library’s regular repair café will be taking place at Zibi on June 20th, and Helping with Bikes will be set up outside the venue, welcoming bike donations for a good cause! You can read more about Helping with Bikes in the profile we wrote about them last year.

These are just two examples of people and organizations in Ottawa who are helping connect people who need a bike with a bike that needs a new owner. Before relegating a bike that no longer serves your needs to the trash heap, please consider finding it a new home.