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Circular Economy Podcast Episode 60 – Turning off the tap

Episode 60 Turning off the tap

Every 10th episode, Catherine Weetman looks back at recent conversations and round up some of the insights we’ve heard:
The theme for this episode is turning off the tap. What do I mean by that? One of my favourite metaphors for the linear economy – our system of taking materials, making stuff, using it and then throwing it away. We’re pushing lots of resources in at one end of the pipe – but it gushes out at the end, and there are leaks all the way along the pipe with pollution going into the atmosphere, air, water and soil.

And all of that, of course, is undermining our ability to thrive on this planet.

So what can we do? We’ve got to radically rethink business as usual, to turn off that flow of resources and waste. We need to be regenerative instead of destructive and wasteful.

We need a different approach, so we have products with a life of their own, not just serving a single user. We need objects designed for reuse and resale once someone no longer needs them, or objects available in multi user systems with customers sharing or renting when needed.

In this episode, we unpack this to understand how it works, and why it helps to separate the benefits of products and services from their cost to the global commons.

Circular Economy Podcast Episode 52 Elizabeth Knight – Repair Revolution

Episode 52 Elizabeth Knight – Repair Revolution

Elizabeth Knight is an author, sustainability activist and founder of New York’s first Repair Café, and is the co-author (with John Wackman) of Repair Revolution: How Fixers Are Transforming Our Throwaway Culture.
In the book, John and Elizabeth explore repairing in the broadest sense of the word. They focus on the community repair experience, the wisdom of repair, the sustainable aspects of repairing, the adventure of opening a device and seeing what’s inside, the right to repair that is gaining attention worldwide – and much more!
We hear how repair cafes can bridge across social divides, and how they help people of all ages and backgrounds build new connections and develop their social confidence levels. We find out that you don’t need to be a repair geek, and hear about the wide range of volunteer roles available. Elizabeth explains what visible mending is, tells us inspiring stories about the rewards of being involved in a Repair Café, and how you can find one, or start your own.

Circular Economy Podcast Episode 41 Sandra Goldmark - Fixup and Fixation

Episode 41 Sandra Goldmark – Fixup and Fixation

“Have good stuff, not too much, mostly reclaimed, care for it, pass it on”.
Catherine Weetman talks to Sandra Goldmark in the United States. Sandra is a designer, teacher, and entrepreneur whose work focuses on circular economy solutions to overconsumption and climate change. She is the author of Fixation: How to Have Stuff without Breaking the Planet, published in October 2020. Sandra is also an Associate Professor of Professional Practice in Theatre and Director of Sustainability and Climate Action at Barnard College.
In 2013, Sandra founded Fixup (formerly Pop Up Repair) and began operating short term repair shops, and educational repair and reuse events, around New York City. We talk about Fixup, and Sandra’s new book, Fixation:

Catherine Weetman's webinar on the circular economy for Economia Circular Brasil

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

Circular Economy Podcast Episode 27 - Chris Hellawell Edinburgh Tool Library

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.

Circular insights #20

Podcast: Baukjen sustainable fashion | Blog: Fashion: from fast and forgettable to slow and sustainable – why purpose-driven brands are choosing circular strategies | Recommerce not recycling | Thriving post-pandemic |

responsible circular economy

Responsibility builds reputations

The café is an important part of the ‘social glue’ in many countries, especially those where alcohol is illegal or frowned upon. People gather to discuss the gossip – families, friends, celebrity and political happenings are discussed and even argued over, around a shared table. They may enjoy a shared experience, too, perhaps by smoking cigarettes, or in many cultures, using a hookah.
We explore some of the downsides to hookah smoking, for cafés and their customers, and find out how sustainable, circular and responsible approaches can create a better solution, helping café owners strengthen their reputations.

Circular Economy Podcast Episode 22 Bassam Huneidi The Argeileh Project

Episode 22 Bassam Huneidi – The Argeileh Project

We talk to entrepreneur and designer Bassam Huneidi, about his Argeileh Project. Bassam is a circular economy designer and strategist, and a graduate of the Royal College of Art and Imperial College London. We hear how Bassam plans to disrupt one of the biggest traditions in the Arab world with a zero waste alternative that is better for the environment, cheaper for suppliers and better for public health, while providing the same experience for the user.
The Argeileh Project (or TAP for short) is a subscription based service that argeileh cafes sign up to. In return, Bassam’s team take the café’s current stock of argeilehs and melt them down into TAP vapes. These vapes are designed on cradle to cradle principles, so they are easy to maintain, easy to upgrade and in the case where neither is possible, infinitely recyclable.

Circular Economy Podcast Episode 20 How to be a problem hunter

Episode 20 – How to be a problem-hunter

In this episode, we focus on the ‘how’ of making your business circular, looking at the different ways people were getting to grips with the problem they wanted to solve. We also get an update on the new subscription model for ApparelXchange, and get some ‘bonus’ circular economy examples from David Greenfield (aka Dr Resources of the Circular Economy Club London).
How do we find a linear problem that needs a circular economy solution? Bec Evans, author of How to Have a Happy Hustle: the complete guide to making your ideas happen” suggests starting with what’s bugging you, and become ‘avid problem collectors’. We look at how our guests in the last series hunted down their linear problems and got clear on what the customer needed – the ‘job to be done’ in ‘Lean’ terms.