Maker Faire Teaches and Inspires

The explosive growth of the maker movement is due, in part, to people’s desire to share experiences. Cleveland Public Library has started to leverage this trend by forming communities of learning that encourage people to share their knowledge and experience. Although the concept of communities of learning is still fairly new, there are initial signs that the public is embracing it.

One prime example of how the concept worked successfully was the creation of the Cleveland Mini Maker Faire. The premier event, which was hosted in the spring, attracted nearly 2,000 people, including 52 “makers.” The family-friendly event was designed to celebrate the arts, crafts, engineering, music, science, technology and the DIY mindset. Highly interactive, the event allowed for local people of various skill levels to share their knowledge and projects with others. Visitors had the opportunity to meet the various inventors and learn how to use different tools while also attending lectures.

The event had strong appeal for people of all ages, and successfully attracted more families to the Main Library than any other event in recent Library history. Based on the strong turnout and positive feedback, the event has already been scheduled to be repeated in 2014 and, with additional funding, will be expanded.