Design 21: Social Design Network

Programs

Youth Programs

Recycle-A-Bicycle leads seasonal bike rides for kids ages 10-15. Parents and teachers are welcome, too! Our Ride Club includes workshops on basic bike mechanics, "on-the-bike" riding skills, and safe maneuvering in city traffic.

Recycle-A-Bicycle operates bike repair programs in three New York City Public Schools, where students can enroll in a bicycle mechanics elective course, or drop in after school to volunteer and earn a bike with volunteer hours. Our school based programs are not open to the public. We also offer a course on bicycle repair and riding with the Eugene Lang College of the New School.

High school age students from around the city learn about bike repair as a vocational trade through an internship in our DUMBO storefront, and we are a job placement site for the NYC Summer Youth Employment program.

We also have an art program, Cycle Craft, where we use recycled bicycle parts in a variety of creative ways. We also participate in a variety of environmental education and arts programs during the spring/ summer months.

News & Events

Street Beat Weekly Wrap- DUMBO

Street Beat Brooklyn Daily Eagle, January 24, 2008 Link to Original Article

Full Text of Article:

Recycle-A-Bicycle has moved a few blocks to 35 Pearl St. (at Plymouth) where they have more space to continue their mission for training and educating NYC’s youth about recycling, craftsmanship, the environment, energy consumption, urban planning, fitness, physics and the overall positive application of creative thinking and hard work. Started in the Lower East Side almost 15 years ago, they are now a registered 501 C3 organization.

Under the leadership of Lisa Stein, executive director, they have partnered with schools and organizations and actively have classes and internships with middle and high School students. How it works: you have a bike that is not totally rusted out or unsafe and decide to donate it to them. You get a good feeling, and a tax deduction. They get a bike that students will either work to fix up for eventual re-sale, or they will recycle (cannibalize) the parts for further use and waste reduction. For example, two volunteers recently led a workshop for teen-age girls that made jewelry from bicycles! They have two evenings a week for adult volunteer opportunities (yes, they have a Ladies Night), have many youth rides planned for the spring, and have needs for financial support and raising public awareness. Drop by for a visit and keep them in mind to fix a bike, donate a bike, rent or buy a bike.