The
DIY ethic (
do it yourself ethic) refers to the ethic of being
self-reliant and doing things yourself as opposed to paying others to do it. The term can indicate "doing" anything from home improvements and repairs to healthcare, from publication to electronics.
DIY questions the supposed uniqueness of the expert's skills, and promotes the ability of the ordinary person to learn to do more than he or she thought was possible.
The DIY ethic is loosely tied to punk ideology and anticonsumerism, in as much as it amounts to a rejection of the idea that one must always purchase the things that one wants or needs from others.
The DIY punk ethic can also extend to how any group or individual applies DIY political stances to daily life—especially how they avoid contributing to institutions they see as exploitative. These efforts include converting cars to run on biodiesel or vegetable oil, learning bicycle repair, sewing/repairing/modifying clothing, starting gardens, dumpster diving, etc. DIY is sometimes simply a way of finding ad hoc solutions to problems that are otherwise usually solved with wealth or corporate support. Often though DIY involves a more sustained learning experience which seeks to replace the means for producing goods and services traditionally sought in a money economy to a more permanent extent. Thus DIY is in a broad sense an economic model. Skill sharing is a central aspect of DIY culture and practice. An example of the DIY spirit that began with Punk Rock late in the 1970s can be seen in the work of Punk Rock impresario David Ferguson. David Ferguson's CD Presents was a DIY concert production, recording studio and record label network. Vast numbers of Punk Rock bands got their starts performing at his concerts, recording in his studio and releasing their albums through his record label.
