Seven Initiatives for 2027
"The Scrap Exchange has an ambitious vision to position Durham as a national center for regenerative creativity and future-making while attracting tourism, supporting local businesses, elevating local talent, and strengthening community connections. "
— Mitch Sava, Executive Director
SmashFest
Choose something breakable, buy a $1 ticket and smash your heart out—turning destruction into catharsis, spectacle and fun.
Mongo’s Mobile Makerspace
A retrofitted Type A bus that converts our existing off-site outreach model into a self-contained, highly visible mobile creative-reuse studio.
RAD Prototype @ QueDogs
A little hot dog stand in a sea of asphalt becomes the testing ground for a greener RAD, with gardens, gathering places, play and repurposed shipping containers.
SALVAGE Festival
An exuberant two-day celebration of creative reuse where discarded materials become fashion, art, music, performance and possibility.
Cameron Gallery Artist-in-Residence — A three-month artist laboratory that transforms what we throw away into art while asking us to reconsider what—and why—we consume.
Reuse Arts District
A bold vision to transform 12+ acres in Lakewood into a thriving creative district where art, reuse, nature, commerce and community grow together.
Sweet 33 Maker Hall and Performance Space
A proposed marketplace where makers, artists and creative entrepreneurs can make, sell, gather and experiment under one roof.