Sustainable(ish)

In this weeks episode, I'm chatting to Flora Blathwayt, who is the founder of Washed Up Cards. What started as a way to get outside during lockdown, has become this amazing social enterprise, working with the likes of Chelsea Football Club, and Adidas, as well as with schools and community groups, bringing people together to do something positive, and creating brilliant, thought provoking cards out of the rubbish collected.
We talk about that journey from a lockdown litter pick to where she is now. I ask all the obvious questions about washing and drying the litter, and the weirdest finds, but we also talk about imposter syndrome, overwhelm and burnout, as well as the power of bringing people together to do something, and the hope that that can bring.

USEFUL LINKS:
Washed Up Cards
- Website
- Beach Cleans
- Card Making Workshops
- Cards
- Instagram
- Facebook
- TikTok
- Linked In
NotPla
Rubies in the Rubble
SUSTAINABLE(ISH) STUFF:
Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse – join us for November
Workshops and Talks
Let me know your thoughts – leave a comment wherever you get your podcasts, I’d love to see them, or drop me an email on jen@sustainableish.co.uk.
Thank you so much for listening!

Consumption, or overconsumption, is a recurring theme here on the podcast, and I would suggest that we could get a long way towards a more sustainable society if we, collectively, found ways to rein that in.
Did you know?
22 million furniture items a year are thrown away each year in the UK, which equates to 60,000 pieces of furniture every single day
3.83 million items of clothing a day are thrown away
And 22 billion pairs of shoes every year  
 In a world of ever faster consumption, how do we slow down and re-connect with our stuff again? Seeing the value not only in the items, whether that clothes, or furniture, or tech, but also in the work and resources that went into making them, and valuing it enough to keep it in use for as long as possible. Which is where repair comes in.

Todays guests are Gem and Ally from We Are Repairs, who are on a mission to normalise repair, to make it as easy as buying new, and to help us all to slow down our consumption, not only to help avoid waste, but to support local independent repair businesses, and build the skills needed for a truly circular economy.
USEFUL LINKS:
We Are Repairs
- Website
- Instagram
- Facebook
Petition: Urge the government to support the UK’s repair industry
Ally – Restoration Hut
Gem – Embrace Bespoke
Find a Repair Café near you
Ep 127 - Greater Manchester’s Renew Hub

SUSTAINABLE(ISH) STUFF
Sustainable(ish) Carbon Literacy courses
Carbon Literacy Refresher course
Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse – join us for November
Let me know your thoughts – leave a comment wherever you get your podcasts, I’d love to see them, or drop me an email on jen@sustainableish.co.uk.
Thank you so much for listening!

This week I'm chatting to sustainability podcasting royalty! Dave Powell was co-host of the popular Sustainababble podcast from 2015-2022, publishing a whopping 274 episodes, and is now the host of Your Brain on Climate, a podcast all about climate change and psychology.

I’m kind of fascinated by the psychology and behavioural science behind climate action, or not climate action, and wanted to get Dave on to learn from him, what he’s learned from his eminent and very knowledgeable guests over the years. And of course, to pepper him with questions about some of the sometimes slightly bewildering terminology that can be batted around, like 'pleuralistic ignorance', 'cognitive dissonance' and 'bystander effect'. And how these apply to climate-y stuff.

USEFUL LINKS:
Dave Powell
- On Linked In
Sustainababble
Your Brain on Climate
- On Instagram
Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance by Robert Pirsig
Your Brain on Climate episodes mentioned:
- Bystander effect with Gerdien de Vries
Sustainababble episodes mentioned:
- 98 – The Man from Shell
- 238 – Katharine Hayhoe meets Sustainababble
Sustainable(ish) podcast episodes mentioned:
- Climate Citizens (and how to be a good one) with Becky Willis
- Climate anxiety with Linda Aspey
- Climate Comedy with Stuart Goldsmith
Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
The 89% study: Globally representative evidence on the actual and perceived support for climate action
Climate Outreach
SUSTAINABLE(ISH) STUFF
Sustainable(ish) Carbon Literacy courses
Carbon Literacy Refresher course
Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse – waiting list for November
Let me know your thoughts – leave a comment wherever you get your podcasts I’d love to see them, or drop me an email on jen@sustainableish.co.uk.
Thank you so much for listening.

I thought I knew a bit about sustainable fashion but this chat, and the book behind it all, Charity Shop World by Tansy Hoskins, blew me away.
There’s been quite a bit in the press in recent weeks and months about the impact of Vinted on both overall consumption levels of fast fashion, and on charity shops, but it turns out, that’s just scratching the surface. Listen to hear about the link between charity shops and austerity, the fashion industry and imperialism,  how many YEARS of human labour it takes to make one years worth of clothes, how we’re all being expertly manipulated by social media algorithms, and how, as with most (all?) things, it all comes down to industries who have a single goal, of making billionaires even richer.

USEFUL LINKS:
Tansy Hoskins
- Website
- Instagram
- Facebook
- Linked In
Tansy’s books:
- Stitched Up
- Footwork
- The Anti-Capitalist Book of Fashion
- Charity Shop World
To Die For by Lucy Siegle
Our clothes ending up in the Atacama Desert
Your brain on fast fashion with Lucy Siegle (podcast episode of Your Brain on Climate)
Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams
Extraction Fashion – War on Want
Labour Behind the Label
War on Want
Fashion Revolution
The True Cost Movie
Not Buying It magazine (Substack)
SUSTAINABLE(ISH) STUFF:
Sustainable(ish) Carbon Literacy courses
Carbon Literacy Refresher course
Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse – waiting list for November

Let me know your thoughts – leave a comment wherever you get your podcasts I’d love to see them, or drop me an email on jen@sustainableish.co.uk.
Thank you so much for listening.

Today’s guest on the podcast is Damian Hall, ultra-marathon runner, co-founder of The Green Runners, and author of We Can't Run Away from This.
If you’re not a runner, don’t turn off! This episode is still for you – I think there are some great takeaways about we can bring sustainability into conversations for the things that we love doing. This example just happens to be running, but will apply to other sports, as well as, I don’t know, singing, or dancing, or even book clubs.

USEFUL LINKS:
Damian Hall
- Website
- Instagram
- Book: We Can’t Run Away from This
The Green Runners
- Website
- Instagram
- Facebook
- BlueSky
Preloved Sports CIC
Rome to Rio
Lakeland Trails
Pair Ups trainer repair
Jog On Trainer recycling
Trees Not Tees
Better Medals – wildflower plantable medals
SUSTAINABLE(ISH STUFF:
Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse – waiting list for November
Carbon Literacy Refresher course
Thank you so much for listening - do get in touch with any questions, comments, or requests/ideas for future guests. Email on jen@sustainableish.co.uk or leave a comment wherever you get your podcasts!