Croatia’s First Library of Things Opens in Pula This October

The news in Croatian

1. posuditi
   uzeti nešto privremeno na korištenje uz obvezu vraćanja ↩︎
2. alat  (m.)
   predmet ili skupni naziv za predmete koji se koriste za obavljanje ručnih radova ili popravaka ↩︎
3. oprema  (f.)
   skup predmeta i pomagala potrebnih za određenu aktivnost ili svrhu ↩︎
4. članstvo  (n.)
   status osobe koja pripada nekoj organizaciji, klubu ili udruzi ↩︎
5. udruga  (f.)
   organizacija osnovana radi ostvarivanja zajedničkih ciljeva njezinih članova ↩︎
6. usisavač  (m.)
   električni uređaj koji usisavanjem uklanja prašinu i nečistoću s podova i površina ↩︎

Translation

Text comprehension

Question 1: Where is Croatia’s first Library of Things located?

Question 2: Which item did research show citizens most want to borrow?

Vocabulary

Croatian	English
posuditi	to borrow
alat  (m.)	tool
oprema  (f.)	equipment
članstvo  (n.)	membership
udruga  (f.)	association
usisavač  (m.)	vacuum cleaner

Read the full story

Croatia’s first ever Library of Things is set to open in mid-October at the Rojc Community Centre in Pula. Rather than borrowing books, members of the public will be able to borrow tools, household appliances, and outdoor equipment.

The project has been developed by Zelena Istra, an association that already runs a well-known repair workshop called Radiona Re-Geppetto at the same venue, which has been operating since 2021. The Library of Things concept has been common in many European cities for some time, but this will be the first of its kind in Croatia.

Nina Brnić from Zelena Istra illustrated the thinking behind the project with a striking example: the average household drill is used for just around fifteen minutes per year, yet it sits in a cupboard for the rest of the time, despite the considerable resources consumed in its production.

The idea took shape over nearly three years. It began at an environmental event in Umag, where Zelena Istra members met representatives of the Slovenian company ZEOS, specialists in reducing electronic waste. The project later received a visit from Jošt Derlink, founder of the Ljubljana-based Library REČI, whose model has been running successfully in Slovenia for a decade. Funding came through the Erasmus+ programme, with mentoring support from the Slovenian partners.

To understand what residents actually wanted to borrow, Zelena Istra carried out a survey of 300 citizens. The most sought-after items included small household appliances, repair tools, and gardening and camping equipment. The single most popular item was a deep-cleaning vacuum cleaner, followed closely by a steam cleaner, a projector, a roof box for a car, and a pressure washer. Citizens also expressed strong interest in borrowing tents, projection screens, food dehydrators, karaoke sets, and large folding tables.

The library will be open to all citizens with no special membership requirements. According to the survey, most respondents said they would be comfortable with a symbolic annual membership fee of between 10 and 20 euros. A deposit may also be introduced for more expensive items. The library’s main coordinator will be Radiona manager Marko Grbac, and items will be available to borrow during the workshop’s regular opening hours.