Way back in 2005, Mister Jalopy proposed an Owner’s Bill of Rights, a maker’s memorandum requesting repairability for the products around us. It became a manifesto for the maker community, a modus operandi for open sourcers and forward-thinking manufacturers.

I’m not the most capable maker – maybe only a tinkerer. But if something breaks I jump at the chance to take it apart, see how it works and try my best to repair it (what’s the worst that can happen?). If the repair is a success, I’ve saved the world from having to produce another widget.

Repairability equals sustainability. That’s what I like about this manifesto. And that’s why I’ve illustrated it.

Update: The illustrated Maker’s Bill of Rights appears in volume 20, the current issue of Make: Magazine. In stores now!

Wind Turbine Cutaway

French company Nheolis manufactures a range of beautiful, compact, efficient and sculptural wind turbines. What I like about sustainable design is the constant innovation–the ongoing reassessment of the problem and development of new and unconventional solutions.

This cutaway illustration reveals the typical inner workings of a wind turbine: drive shaft, gearbox, brake and generator.