Sustainable(ish)

Christmas is coming! In fact, it's kind of here as we're currently just two weeks away from 'the Big Day'...There’s a lot to think about Christmas isn’t there? The food, the gifts, the cards, the wrapping paper, the relatives, the stockings – it goes on and on. And while some of us might be giving a little more thought to the waste and plastic mountains that can result at this time of year, how many of us give much thought to the carbon footprint of our Christmas?I have to say that I hadn’t really. I mean, it sounds like the ultimate party pooper buzzkill doesn’t it? To be thinking about the carbon impact of our Christmas. I think we can all guess that it’s pretty bad right? But just how bad? And what can we do about it? And can we get rid of it without getting rid of Christmas?Lots of questions about this which is why it was great to chat to Luke Gaydon, one of the co-founders of Terra Neutra – an organisation that has the aim of creating a carbon positive world that provide guidance, services and tech in support of that vision.I’ve chatted to Luke before about carbon footprints and off-setting more generally during the Sustainable(ish) online festival that happened during lockdown in May this year and I’ll link to that below for anyone who wants to have a watch/listen. Luke is a great guest and I hope that our chat leaves you feeling inspired and informed about some of the things you can do to cut the carbon this Christmas!Enjoy!Useful linksTerra Neutra- Website- Facebook- InstagramTerra Neutra's Christmas offsetFestival session - Carbon footprints and offsetting[071] - A beginners guide to carbon footprints (podcast)How Bad are Bananas: The carbon footprint of everythingThe Knackered Mums Eco ClubSustainable(ish) Facebook groupHad you thought about the carbon footprint of your Christmas?What are you doing to reduce yours?Would you offset?Do let me know in the comments! AVAILABLE ONLINE AND IN ALL GOOD BOOK SHOPS NOW! "Easily the most family friendly way to do your bit"The Sunday Times"Absolutely love this book - should be mandatory reading"Online review […]

This week’s episode is a great chat with Ric Casale from Carbon Copy, an online hub that connects local communities, councils and companies who share the goal of a carbon zero future. Their aim is to help more people in taking local climate action and collectively in building something better.Now, I don’t know about you, but when I hear the words Climate Action, there’s a part of me that starts to shrink. A part of me that associates climate action with getting shouty with a placard, and that associates local climate action with dreary meetings in cold church halls where everyone has a good old whinge but nothing much actually happens. Thankfully this isn’t the case!Climate action will mean different things to different people, and that’s ok. Your climate action might be reducing your plastic, or your meat consumption, or your general consumption, or something else entirely. And local climate action can look different in different places, or even different action in the same place!Local climate action is all about getting together with the people in your local area to take ACTION. And it’s that action that is important. You could set up a Repair Café, of a secondhand school uniform service, or a plastic-free buying group. Or you could get involved with something more technical like a local energy co-operative. It doesn’t really matter what it it – what matters is thinking about your skill set and how you might be able to contribute towards to making something bigger happen.There are so many benefits, as you’ll hear Ric and I discuss in this episode, and coming together with others is a great way not only to amplify your individual actions or take them to the next level, but also to meet others and to know that you’re not alone in your quest to make the world, both globally and locally, a better place.Enjoy.Useful linksCarbon Copy- Website- Facebook- Twitter- Instagram- Find out if your council has declared a climate emergency- Carbon Copy blog - The Audacity of ActionThe Library of ThingsPlanting healthy air in schoolsIncredible EdibleFiltered neighbourhoodsRic's book - Civic Revolution: A citizen's guide[032] - The introverts guide to going on a climate march (podcast)The introverts guide to climate marches (blog post)Repair CafesHow to run a Swish (blog post)Sustainable(ish) Facebook groupSo what is your local action?What skills, resources and time do you have to take action where you live?Do let me know in the comments! AVAILABLE ONLINE AND IN ALL GOOD BOOK SHOPS NOW! "Easily the most family friendly way to do your bit"The Sunday Times"Absolutely love this book - should be mandatory reading"Online review […]

After last week's solo episode, I've got something a little different for you again this week! Because more change and uncertainty is what we all need right now yes..?!!This week’s episode is a live recording done from the virtual podcast stage at Future Fest, an amazing online event from Pebble Magazine that happened at the beginning of November about the solutions and the people who are going to drive the change to net zero.It took me a while to work out what I wanted to talk about, and who I wanted to chat too, but then in an actual (low carbon LED) lightbulb moment, I realised it was you guys.It can be all too easy to feel like the solutions and the people who are going to drive the change to net zero are somehow super human people – those who are setting up amazing circular fashion businesses, or pioneering new technology. It’s very easy to over-look the fact that you and me, ordinary knackered people, juggling ordinary jobs, and kids and laundry and cooking endless meals, that we also play a huge role in creating a different future.So I put a post in the Knackered Mums Eco Clubhouse (my annual membership) asking for volunteers to come and chat with me about their experiences of getting started with Sustainable(ish) changes, their successes and their failures. I wanted it to feel like we were sitting around my kitchen table (albeit via Zoom and with people watching!) with a cuppa and sharing our stories, our challenges, having a laugh, and hopefully inspiring some other people to get started too.Because it’s so important that we recognise that we are part of the solution. That people making changes are ordinary people like us. There’s no secret superhero breed that are secretly wearing special green pants that give them extraordinary powers. There’s just normal people, who’ve dared to care, who are bumbling along like the rest of us, making one change at a time. And that we can learn from each other, and we can inspire each other. And that that matters.Enjoy.Useful linksPebble MagazineFuture FestThe Knackered Mums Eco Club- On Facebook- On Instagram- Details of the Clubhouse (membership)[065] - Periodical with Lauren Derrett from Wear 'em out pads (podcast episode)Kind 2 shampoo barsWho Gives a Crap loo rollUranus Wiper loo rollA beginners guide to switching to a renewable energy provider (blog post)Make your money matter (all about moving your money to ethical providers) (blog post)Good With Money - guide to good pensionsTerracycle toothbrush recycling schemeGeorganics electric toothbrushYaweco - regular toothbrush with removable headSky diamondsA greener life by BGiki ZeroMy Green PodEthical ConsumerSustainable(ish) Facebook groupSo what do you think? Did you enjoy this episode/format?What was your eco-piphany?Do let me know in the comments! AVAILABLE ONLINE AND IN ALL GOOD BOOK SHOPS NOW! "Easily the most family friendly way to do your bit"The Sunday Times"Absolutely love this book - should be mandatory reading"Online review […]

Today I’ve got a solo episode for you – I’d like to try and pretend it was planned, but the reality is obviously that I failed spectacularly to plan ahead enough to have a guest for this week.Sooooooooo, I’m diving right on into the C-word.No, not corona virus. No, not that one, go and wash your moth out.I’m talking Christmas. Of course I am.There will be some of you who are saying "Why the hell are you talking about Christmas, it’s November” and there will be others saying “Well you’re a bit late love, I’m all done and dusted and the tree’s going up this weekend”. So essentially I’ve just realised that this is probably an episode that is going to please no-one but I’m going to plod on because as I said, I haven’t got a guest for you this week. Sorry about that.Right then. Christmas. It can indeed be the most wonderful time of year. Especially if you’re under the age of about twelve, but it can also be hugely stressful, and one of the most wasteful times of the year. Join me as I share some thoughts around how to make a start making Christmas this year a bit more sustainable(ish).Enjoy!Useful linksBlog posts- 12 not so fun festive facts- The beginners guide to a crap-free Christmas- The Festive Waste Hierarchy- Plastic-free(ish) stocking fillers- 12 easy ideas for a Sustainable(ish) Christmas- 12 gifts for kids that aren't 'stuff'- How we (just about) survived Christmas buying nothing new (and how you can too)Podcast episodes- [019] - 12 not so fun festive facts- [052] - Conscious gifting with Buy Me OnceThe Essential Guide to a Crap-free Christmas - e-guideSustainable(ish) Facebook groupHow many have you already done?Which ones can you commit to?Do let me know in the comments! AVAILABLE ONLINE AND IN ALL GOOD BOOK SHOPS NOW! "Easily the most family friendly way to do your bit"The Sunday Times"Absolutely love this book - should be mandatory reading"Online review […]

I am SO excited for this episode! Last month I was aimlessly scrolling through Twitter waiting for the kettle to boil and stumbled across a tweet about a project called Count Us In - which is aiming to get a BILLION people taking climate action!!DID YOU KNOW:Individual lifestyles actually make up more than 65% of the total global carbon pollutionThe world's wealthiest 10% are responsible for just over 50% of global greenhouse gas emissionsYou are part of the world's wealthiest 10% if your salary is above £27k a year. The average salary in the UK is somewhere around £30k.These stats aren't to make you feel guilty, I'm sharing them to empower you and to help you to recognise the enormous power we hold to create change.Count Us In have got the experts to pull together 16 steps that they agree are some of the most impactful things we can do an individuals, and now they want us to pledge to do them! We don't have to do all of them, we might already be doing some of them. But according to their website:"If 1 billion people made changes in how they travel, the energy they use and the food they eat, this could directly reduce carbon pollution by almost 1/5 of the total reduction needed."And the beauty of Count Us In is that they've joined forces with so many of the other existing platforms and campaigns out there to provide one place, one voice, one carbon counter, that brings together all of our climate actions under one umbrella.Today I'm chatting to Angela Terry, founder and CEO of One Home, who is also one of the founding partners of Count Us In, all about the project - how it came about, what it's hoping to achieve, and really importantly, how WE can get involved.Enjoy! Useful linksCount Us In- Website- Facebook- Instagram- TwitterOne HomeCOP 26The Paris AgreementIPCC report 2018Green Homes GrantI've put together a blog post with the 16 Count Us In actions, and Sustainable(ish) resources from the archives to help - you can find it hereSustainable(ish) Facebook groupHow many have you already done?Which ones can you commit to?Do let me know in the comments! AVAILABLE ONLINE AND IN ALL GOOD BOOK SHOPS NOW! "Easily the most family friendly way to do your bit"The Sunday Times"Absolutely love this book - should be mandatory reading"Online review […]

There's an awful lot that's wrong with the world right now. In fact, some would say, there's a lot that feels broken.So how about some inspiration and practical ways you can mend just a teeny tiny bit of the world?Today’s episode is all about mending and repair!DID YOU KNOW..?Keeping clothes in use for just an extra 9 months can reduce their carbon and water footprints by 20-30%80% of discarded textiles are doomed to landfill or incinerationOnly 1% of collected textiles are recycled into new yarns or fibresA study in 2017 found that 60% of us couldn’t sew on a button – one of the most common mendsIn this episode I’m chatting to someone who is on a mission to skew those stats and get us all mending our clothes. Ros Studd is the founder of website Repair What You Wear and is passionate about making mending our clothes accessible, and as easy as possible.Enjoy!Useful linksRepair What You Wear- Website- Facebook- Instagram- You TubeWhat's so wrong with fast fashion? - blog post5 ways to get your fashion fix (without trashing the planet) - blog postSustainable(ish) Fashion - podcast episodeSustainable(ish) Facebook groupDo you mend? What got you started?If you don't, are you tempted to have a go?Let me know in the comments! AVAILABLE ONLINE AND IN ALL GOOD BOOK SHOPS NOW! "Easily the most family friendly way to do your bit"The Sunday Times"Absolutely love this book - should be mandatory reading"Online review […]

Today we’re talking all things plogging!"What is plogging?" I hear you ask... ...Well, it’s picking up litter, while you jog (or walk!) and it’s a very brilliant thing to do indeed. Litter isn't just an eyesore, it's also a real risk to wildlife both on land and in our waterways who might mistake it for food, or get tangled up in it. And if litter makes it out to the ocean, it contributes to beach pollution, and also to the massive 'floating islands' of rubbish that are being discovered. In this episode I’m chatting to Michelle and Dermot, founders of Plogolution, who organise community plogs, and who also work with schools to set up plogging clubs. We chat all about plogging: what it is, how it works, the amazing stuff they’re doing with Plogolution, and importantly, how we can all get involved. Enjoy!Michelle and Dermot from PlogolutionUseful linksPlogolution- Website- Facebook- Instagram- TwitterEpisode 10 - #2minutebeachclean with Martin DoreyMy all new favourite litter picker (because everyone has a favourite litter picker right..?! - It's from Waterhaul and made from recycled fishing nets - how cool is that?!Sustainable(ish) Facebook groupDo you plog? Are you tempted?Let me know in the comments! AVAILABLE ONLINE AND IN ALL GOOD BOOK SHOPS NOW! "Easily the most family friendly way to do your bit"The Sunday Times"Absolutely love this book - should be mandatory reading"Online review […]

If you’ve been listening along for a little while, you might have heard me banging on about food waste in previous episodes – I talk to Ann Storr about meal planning in Episode 66, to Tessa from Olio, the food sharing app, in Episode 47 and to Ivor from CozZo which is a food inventory app in Episode 41.So it’s fair to say I’m a big advocate of taking action to reduce food waste. And that’s because food waste is a Big Deal when it comes to the climate crisis. I’ve shared these stats before but I make no apologies for doing so again:If food waste were a country, it would be the 3rd biggest emitter of global greenhouse gases after the USA and China 50% of food waste occurs in the home. In my home, your home, all of our homes.One of the best ways to reduce is to meal-plan and I refer you again to my chat with the brilliant Ann from the Storr Cupboard in Episode 66, but today I’m chatting all things freezing with Kate from The Full Freezer. I hope Kate doesn’t mind me saying this, but she is a full on freezer geek – I have never known anyone so excited and so knowledgeable about the humble freezer – how to organise, what we can freeze, how to safely defrost food and much much more.So grab a cuppa, or an ice cream (see what I did there) and settle down for some fascinating freezer chat. Enjoy!Image from The Full FreezerUseful linksThe Full Freezer- Website- Facebook- Instagram- Twitter- PinterestEpisode 47 - Fighting food waste - why it's important and how to make it easier with OlioEpisode 66 - Meal Planning Magic with Ann StorrEpisode 41 - Use your phone to fight food waste with CozZoA Beginners Guide to Sustainable Eating (blog post)Three apps to help you fight food waste (blog post)Love Food Hate WasteSustainable(ish) Facebook groupKate's freezer - anyone else having freezer envy..?!!How is your freezer looking?Did you learn anything new about what you can freeze?Let me know in the comments! AVAILABLE ONLINE AND IN ALL GOOD BOOK SHOPS NOW! "Easily the most family friendly way to do your bit"The Sunday Times"Absolutely love this book - should be mandatory reading"Online review […]

Lots of us are becoming increasingly aware of some the many issues for both people and planet that are created by the fast fashion industry. But how many of us think much about the impact of our shoes?DID YOU KNOW?25 BILLION pairs of shoes are made globally each year90% of them will end up in landfill, often within 12 monthsAn average shoe can have 50-60 different components, making it's manufacture complicated and carbon intensiveThe carbon footprint of an average pair of shoes is around 13kg CO2Clearly the shoe industry needs to clean up it's act - but what are the options? How can the shoe industry become more circular? (If you're wondering what the hell the 'circular economy' is, then check out this great page here from the Ellen McArthur Foundation). Listen in to this episode with Emma Foster-Geering, Head of Sustainabilty at Vivobarefoot, as we chat about all things sustainability in shoes, and Emma shares news of ReVivo - a new project from Vivobarefoot which aims to drastically reduce the numbers of pairs of their shoes that end up in landfill. Image from the Ellen McArthur FoundationUseful linksReVivo- Website- InstagramVivobarefoot- Website- Facebook- Instagram- Twitter- Sustain This PodcastBoot Repair CompanySustainable(ish) Fashion podcast episodeTansy Hoskins - Footwork bookSustainable(ish) Facebook groupHave you thought about your carbon 'shoeprint' before?How do you feel about secondhand shoes?Let me know in the comments! AVAILABLE ONLINE AND IN ALL GOOD BOOK SHOPS NOW! "Easily the most family friendly way to do your bit"The Sunday Times"Absolutely love this book - should be mandatory reading"Online review […]

I'm delighted to be working with Organic UK* for a mini-series of podcast episodes to mark Organic September - an annual month long awareness campaign by the Soil Association In collaboration with the Organic Trade Board.Now I’ve been buying organic food for a while now – we get a weekly Riverford veg box, and I seek out organic products in the supermarket whenever I can. But until recording this series I wasn’t really that aware of the huge potential impact that organic systems can have on the climate crisis.Agriculture and food production get a bad rap when it comes to the climate – agriculture is responsible for 9% of all Greenhouse Gas emissions in the UK. Together with related emissions from changing land use and cutting down forests, it accounts for around 30% of greenhouse gas emissions globally. BUT research by the The Soil Association shows that if Europe’s farmland all followed organic principles, agricultural emissions could drop by 40-50% by 2050. That's a massive chunk of carbon saved right there.So how does this work? What is it about organic practices that means they pump out so much less carbon?Well I’m glad you asked! In this episode I’ve got a two parter for you – in the first part I’m chatting to the wonderful Anna de la Vega from The Urban Worm who some of you may remember from episode 38 where she answered all my questions about wormeries. In this episode she’s sharing her knowledge about soil health, why it’s so vital to the planet, why modern agriculture is so bad for it, and how organic systems can help to replenish it.And then in Part 2 I’m chatting to Tim Mead, dairy farmer and owner of Yeo Valley, about how organic and regenerative agriculture works in practice on their farm and what they’ve achieved in terms of reducing their carbon footprint.It’s a fascinating episode, a total eye opener for me – I think I say the words ‘mind blown' at least 57 times…Enjoy!* This is a paid partnership with Organic UK.This episode was edited by Emily Crosby Media Useful linksOrganic UK- Website- Facebook- Instagram- TwitterOrganic SeptemberThe Urban Worm - Website- Facebook- InstagramYeo Valley- Website- Facebook- Instagram- TwitterThe other episodes and blog posts in the Organic mini-series- [072] - The plight of the bumble bee- [073] - Organic 101- A beginners guide to organic- [074] - Eating sustainably- A beginners guide to sustainable eating[038] - Everything you ever wanted to know about wormeries with The Urban WormKiss The Ground - documentary on Netflix about soil - it's fascinating, do have a watch if you can!Elaine Ingham - Soil Food Web"If Europe’s farmland all followed organic principles, agricultural emissions could drop by 40-50% by 2050",The Knepp Estate - Rewilding in West SussexThe Sustainable(ish) Facebook group The Power of One Challenge!As with all things Sustainable(ish), organic doesn't have to be 'all or nothing'. No-one is expecting you to covert to 100% organic, and as Harriet points out in the podcast, you'd struggle even if you wanted to, as there are some products that there aren't organic versions of. But I hope after listening to this episode, and to the others in the Organic September mini-series, you'll be a convert (if you weren't already) to the power that organic farming has to help us to pass on a healthy planet to our kids and grandkids. As consumers we have a lot of power to amplify the impact of organic by making some simple swaps. Next time you're shopping, can you swap one of your regular products for an organic one? Just imagine the surge in demand if everyone who was able to do this, did it!  Had you heard of 'regenerative agriculture'?Is your mind as blown as mine..?!!Let me know in the comments! AVAILABLE ONLINE AND IN ALL GOOD BOOK SHOPS NOW! "Easily the most family friendly way to do your bit"The Sunday Times"Absolutely love this book - should be mandatory reading"Online review […]