Circular Insights #24
Build Back Better
A Circular Economy Handbook! |Odyssey Innovations: kayaks with purpose |Oceans & climate | Unilever doubling down on sustainability | Future-fit taxes | Reviving shoes
recycling
Episode 39 – Rob Thompson of Odyssey Innovation
Rob Thompson, of Odyssey Innovation in the UK, is an Multi-award winning Innovator, a Marine Conservationist, and a Social Entrepreneur. Rob started Odyssey Innovation to find a way to create value out of beach litter and marine plastics, and is now recycling those plastics into kayaks and other useful products. Rob also supports the Paddle for Plastic campaign.
Episode 36 – Dan Dicker of Circular&Co
In this episode, Catherine talks to Dan Dicker,the Founder and CEO of Circular&Co, the new brand name for ashortwalk Ltd and rCUP®.
Dan began his career as a product designer at Dyson, but had a strong desire to live and work a short walk from the sea. So, back in 2003, Dan founded a pioneering Circular Design practice ‘ashortwalk’. Now Circular&Co invent solutions that keep our materials and finite resources in use for as long as possible, whilst preventing them from ever reaching landfill or our oceans.
As well as their range of award-winning products available across 38 countries, they advise, develop, and deliver circular solutions for global brands worldwide, reinventing today’s waste into tomorrow’s Circular products.
We discuss Dan’s design approach, and how Dan believes that businesses going circular have everything to gain financially, as well as environmentally.
Episode 30 – What have we learned?
We review the last 9 episodes, exploring key themes & summarising what we’ve learned. Plus, we hear from Geoff van Sonsbeeck, on womenswear brand Baukjen’s packaging approach.
The wonders of online communication mean we’ve been to the United States, Jordan, Uganda, Canada and Ghana in the last nine episodes. We’ve talked to a start-up looking for funding, two social enterprises, two charities, a community cooperative, and several businesses that have been growing for 15-20 years.
If we look at the circular economy strategies of these organisations: five are helping to ‘Close the Loop and Regenerate’, two are ‘Slowing the Flow’ of materials through more durable, circular designs, and two are ‘Intensifying the Flow’ through sharing services.
We’ll also look at how these different organisations are creating value for different groups – for their customers, suppliers, employees, communities – and for our planet.
Webinar for Economia Circular Brasil
The circular economy is the #1 tool for profitable, resilient and sustainable businesses – in this webinar for Economia Circular Brasil, Catherine Weetman explains the benefits for business, and discusses the barriers: why aren’t we all doing this, now?
Part one
• What’s wrong with business as usual?
• A quick introduction to the circular economy
• Circular economy strategies – what can we do, and why is it better?
• Who is already going circular? A range of examples, from different industry sectors
• Q&A on the circular economy and business benefits
Part two
• Why aren’t we doing this already? Barriers and how to overcome them.
• Q&A on barriers
Episode 27 Chris Hellawell – Edinburgh Tool Library
Chris Hellawell is founder and director of Edinburgh Tool Library, which works like a lending library, sharing tools rather than books.
Chris is passionate about the concept of sharing as a way to tackle the climate crisis, and also as a way to save money, and to build social connections in communities. By sharing, everyone is richer.
The Edinburgh Tool Library started out as a set of shelves in a spare room. Now it’s a city-wide organisation with multiple sites, including a tool maintenance depot, two wood workshops, a library and a police box. The Library runs classes, youth programming, skills development for disadvantaged groups, and a volunteer programme transforming community spaces throughout the city.
Fashion: from fast and forgettable to slow and sustainable – why purpose-driven brands like Baukjen and Isabella Oliver are choosing circular strategies
Will fast fashion survive the coronavirus lockdown? Big brands are cancelling orders and treating their suppliers as disposable. The time is right for slow, sustainable and circular fashion. We go behind the scenes to look at how the Baukjen and Isabella Oliver brands take a different approach, with beautiful, timeless designs and ethical, more sustainable production. We examine the brands’ circular and partnership approaches through the lens of Permaculture.
Transforming plastic waste into social value
Across Africa, and much of the world, end-of-use plastic is not collected for proper recycling. Instead, it is burnt; ends up in drains, sewers, fields and rivers; or in unprotected landfill, allowing toxins and microplastics to leak out. This is one of the hidden costs of our modern ‘linear’ economy – take, make and waste. Four entrepreneurs are turning that plastic waste into value – creating jobs for both disadvantaged and skilled people, improving local environments, and helping people find a purpose. We dig into their business models and hear their top tips for circular startups
Circular insights #18
Eco Brixs | lessons from social entrepreneurs in Africa | 30 under 30 | Don’t try to fix the problem
Episode 23 Andy Bownds – Eco Brixs
EcoBrixs Mission is “To create green, environmentally friendly, sustainable solutions to lift people out of abject poverty in Uganda”, and it does that by giving trash – waste plastic – a value. That means anyone in the community can recycle.
Eco Brixs started out in 2017. Frustrated with the lack of waste management systems in Masaka, Andy Bownds and his team started collecting plastic in his back garden, and after collecting 2 tonnes, decided to start a simple plastic collection facility called ‘Masaka Recycling Initiative’.
They went further, creating a circular economy solution to recycle plastic which would help support the local communities and economy. They developed an innovative plastic-sand composite paver which has been proven to be stronger, lighter and more durable than concrete. Fast-forward to 2019, and Masaka Recycling Initiative has now evolved into ‘Eco Brixs’, one of the largest recycling facilities outside of Kampala.