Sustainable(ish)

In this episode we’re talking money, and how we can make our money a bit greener.I’m chatting to Dan Sherrard-Smith, who is the founder and CEO of MotherTree – a platform that helps us all to get better informed about the impact of our money when it’s in our current accounts, savings, and pensions, and even when it comes to things like mortgages, insurance and broadband too.We’ve got a few episodes in the archive diving into money, and I’ve linked to them below if you want to go back and have a listen, so I felt like I was pretty on top of all things green money, but I hadn’t even considered things like insurance, and had firmly put ‘mortgage’ into the 'too hard' box! It was a real eye opener to chat to Dan about what they’re doing at MotherTree to help individuals, but also the work that they’re doing with businesses to not only help them to make their business accounts and investments greener, but to help them help their employees too.Do go and check out the website , there’s so much on there, including a money carbon calculator where you can fill in a few details and get an idea of the carbon impact of your financial choices!Also, I was listening back to this episode to edit it, and realised that we spent at least the first fifteen minutes talking about talking about climate change, rather than money stuff. I hope you find it as interesting as I did, hearing about how Dan went about setting up MotherTree and the hugely important role that having climacte conversations played in that. As well as all of the juicy money stuff, I would love one of the takeaways from this episode to be us all trying to be a bit braver and have a few more climate conversations – there's a super helpful video here that I use during Carbon Literacy training – let me know if it’s helpful!Dan Sherrard-Smith - CEO and founder of MotherTree GOOD NEWS!In the new Good News section after the main interview, I share some of the good climate news happening (because there is some, I promise!). Here's this weeks pick:Stockholm to ban petrol and diesel cars from centre from 2025 (The Guardian)  Hull approves a 'right to grow' scheme  (Positive News)  In The Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse we had a thread sharing the joy that comes with so many of the changes we make to our lives to live more sustainably. Ruth said “The more I live out my values, the better I feel about myself." And went on to talk about the buzz she gets from cycling, the warm glow from spending money at ethical businesses, and the 'free pass' she feels she has when buying secondhand clothes.And Julia said "I love hanging the washing out on a sunny day, finding a book I wanted to read in the library or second hand, having chats with the lovely ladies in the farm shop, knowing that I'm making things a little bit better just buy shopping in a small local shop" LISTEN... USEFUL LINKS:MotherTree- Website- Facebook- Twitter/X- Linked In- Climate Challenge- Money Carbon Calculator- Bank League Table- Green Living Service- Business serviceDan Sherrard-Smith on Linked InLook After My BillsTalking About Climate Change - Video[015] - Money as a Force for Good with Triodos - podcast [013] - Be Good and Do Good with Your Money - podcast[091] - Make My Pension Matter with Make My Money Matter - podcast EcosiaUK government pension tracing serviceNaturesave Carbon Literacy trainingThe Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse What were your takeaways from this episode? Any lightbulb moments? What are you going to go out and DO as a result of this episode? What are your moments of joy that living more sustainably brings?Do share in a comment below! […]

This week’s episode starts with a confession!This episode was recorded a whole year ago, it was edited, intros were put onto it, it was all ready to go, and I somehow failed miserably to hit publish! I genuinely even thought I had published it until I had an e-mail from Heather earlier on this year asking when I thought it might be published. And I'm so glad she did, otherwise this brilliant interview would never have seen the light of day!I'm chatting to Gavin Fernie-Jones and Heather Davies, founders of Re-Action, a social enterprise with the aim of keeping outdoor kit in action for longer.We hear about the inspiration behind the organisation, some of the brilliant stuff that they're doing, not only to keep kit in use for longer, but to gently challenge mindsets around consumption, re-use and repair, and to create alternative business models for retail that incorporate the circular economy.There's so much to take away from this episode, from big picture stuff like how our economy is set up to require us to consume more and more, through to the really practical stuff that we can do to reduce our own impact with regard to keeping our own stuff in use for longer. Let me know your thoughts!Are you going to be checking out the Re-Action website to see if there are any collective members near you? Are you an outdoor sports enthusiast who is now going to contact race organisers to ask them what they’re doing to reduce the impact of their event? Do let me know! Heather and Gavin surrounded by just some of the clothes they're helping to re-home! GOOD NEWS!In the new Good News section after the main interview, I share some of the good climate news happening (because there is some, I promise!). Here's this weeks pick:Sport England tells its sports: funding will depend on fighting the climate crisis (The Guardian)  Ocean 'superheroes' given a new home  (Positive News)  Fran in The Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse shared a brilliant sounding fundraiser that the school one her of children attends are trying out. It's a 'Pre-loved Christmas Decorations Pop-up' where people are invited to donate any Christmas decorations that they no longer want or need, to be sold at a pop up stall at the school's Christmas fair. I LOVE this idea and it seems very 'replicable', so definitely worth a mention to your kids school if you've got school aged kids, or maybe even as a workplace initiative.  LISTEN... USEFUL LINKS:Re-action - Website- Members- 10,000 repairs- Instagram- Linked InOne Tree at at TimeTrees for the FuturePatagonia Worn WearWhy giving clothes to charity is causing more harm than good - Re-action blog postHow fast fashion choices in the UK are causing an environmental catastrophe in Ghana - ITV NewsGavin on the Circular Economy PodcastRepair What your Wear [079] - Repair What you Wear (podcast)Sheffield Clothing Repair Earth RunsRe-action at Outside in the Peak DistrictTentshareRight to repair movement[028] - Buy Me Once with Tara ButtonFrance passes law that will apply 'carbon labels' to garments[158] - Engaging young people with slow fashionGreen Changemakers Challenge[156] - Harnessing the power of football with Rich HolmesKitsquadPreloved Sports Carbon Literacy trainingThe Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse What were your takeaways from this episode? Any lightbulb moments? What are you going to go out and DO as a result of this episode? And what's your good climate news?Do share in a comment below! […]

Following on from last week's episode looking into some of the basics of climate science with Dr Adam Levy, this week I'm chatting to another climate scientist, Dr Ella Gilbert, and this time we're diving into the murky world of climate denial!Here's some of the misinformation that Ella addresses for us, using actual science:Climate scientists cherry pick the data and make it all upGlobal temperature stations are now located in next to airports and in built up regions which is why recorded temperatures are hotter How come it felt relatively colder in the UK this summer?The wildfires that happened globally over the summer were started by arsonistsIn the 1970's scientists were predicting an ice ageClimate scientists are part of a global conspiracyWhat about the Roman or Medieval Warm Periods and the Little Ice Age?30 years ago we were told to panic about the hole in the ozone layer - that was all the rage for a season or two, now we're told to panic about global warmingTemperature records began at the end of the Little Ice Age so of course temperatures have increasedThere are no temperature measurements from thousands of years ago, so you're just making that data upMore carbon dioxide is better for plantsWhat about China? No point us doing anything when China are such big emittersDr Ella GilbertImage credit: Joel Pett GOOD NEWS!In the new Good News section after the main interview, I share some of the good climate news happening (because there is some, I promise!). Here's this weeks pick:The BBC Green Sport's Awards announced their winners (BBC)  Ban on single use plastic cutlery comes into force in England (BBC) Kate and Libby in The Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse both shared great examples of 'ripples':- Kate said "I met up with a lovely friend last night who is a huge fan of fast fashion and fast homewares, and she said that some of my social posts about “you don’t need to buy storage containers, you can reuse what you’ve got” has properly stopped her from buying loads of those kinds of things"- Libby shared "I just noticed that a few years ago, I was the only one on the street walking my kids to school. Now, there are normally 4 other families also walking their kids to school who used to drive every day. One of them commented a while back that she saw us walking and thought she should too." LISTEN... USEFUL LINKS:Dr Ella Gilbert- Website- You Tube- Instagram- Twitter (X?!)- Linked InBritish Antarctic SurveyEpisode 128 - Turn the tide on climate anxietyTurn the Tide on Climate Anxiety (book)Episode 166 - Climate science 101 with Dr Adam LevyJames Hansen's testimony to US Congress in 1988Carbon Brief - How do climate models work?Carbon Brief - How well have climate models projected global warming?Ella's video with Climate AdamKatharine HayhoeProfessor Mark Maslin on TwitterElla's Guardian article on the UK's 1976 heatwaveWarming StripesEurope warming faster than the rest of the worldPositive News websiteGood News NetworkEpisode 156 - Harnessing the power of footballCarbon Literacy trainingThe Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse What were your takeaways from this episode? Any lightbulb moments? What are you going to go out and DO as a result of this episode? And what's your good climate news?Do share in a comment below! […]

It's only taken 165 episodes, but I decided that it was about time we did a climate change back to basics type episode, going over the basic science of climate change. Talking about climate change is one of the most important things we can do (check out the brilliant Katharine Hayhoe for a great TED talk around this!) but many of us hold back due to a lack of confidence in our climate knowledge. So I plucked up the courage to ask one of my very favourite climate communicators, Dr Adam Levy, aka Climate Adam (check out his amazing You Tube channel here) to take us right back to basics, answering questions like ‘what is climate change?’ and ‘what are greenhouse gases?’ amongst others. I’m hugely aware it might be teaching some of you to suck eggs, but I really hope it’s helpful! GOOD NEWS!In the new Good News section after the main interview, I share some of the good climate news happening (because there is some, I promise!). Here's this weeks pick:A green energy boom in keeping 1.5C in sightManchester 'abuzz' about public transportBoth of these stories were taken from Positive News - What went right this week - this link has both of the good news stories mentioned if you want to read in more detail!Vanessa from the Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse didn't think she'd achieved much, but when she thought about it she had:Helped a friend make foraged dried flower decorations for her wedding; lent her car to her sister-in-law to borrow for a week after she changed jobs and had to give back her company car; watched The True Cost movie; and saved some broken solar lights her in-laws were going to put in the general waste and dropped them at the recycling point in B&Q instead.  LISTEN... CHECK OUT...Climate Adam- Website- You Tube- Instagram- Facebook- Twitter (X?!)- What happens if we stop emitting?- Too late to  stop climate change? (the punching in the face video..!)Katharine Hayhoe's TED Talk - The most important thing you can do to fight climate change: talk about itCarbon Literacy trainingPositive News - What went right this week - this link has both of the good news stories mentioned if you want to read in more detail!The Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse What were your takeaways from this episode? Any lightbulb moments? What are you going to go out and DO as a result of this episode? And what's your good climate news?Do share in a comment below! […]

After a *slightly* longer (9 months..!) than intended break, the podcast is back!No guest today - just a short solo episode to say hello, apologise for my absence and let you know to stand by your beds ready for some new episodes with some fabulous guests!GOOD NEWS!There's also a new Good News section, sharing some of the good climate news happening (because there is some, I promise!). Here's this weeks pick:The state of California in the USA is suing Big OilReliance on fossil fuels at an all-time low in EuropeHelen from The Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse persuaded her kid's school to go with a plastic-free and reusable alternative to a balloon arch to welcome pupils back to school for the new academic year. And it looks amazing! LISTEN... CHECK OUT...Talking Climate - The Sustainable(ish) accredited Carbon Literacy courseCarbon Literacy for the Veterinary ProfessionCorporate talks and workshopsThe Sustainable(ish) Facebook groupThe Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse Are you excited the podcast is back?Who would you love to hear from when it comes to podcast guests? […]

Most of us limit our interactions with our local authority to whingeing about our bin collections and paying our council tax BUT did you know that they have a whole lot of carbon emissions within their influence and therefore a whole lot of potential for a positive planetary impact?But how do we know what our council are doing? And if their plans are any good? And how they compare to the county next door, or at the other end of the country?This is where today’s guest comes in!I’m chatting to Annie Pickering from Climate Emergency UK, a not for profit who are supporting local authorities to achieve faster emissions reductions. Last year they assessed the climate action plans of all the local authroties in the UK and ranked them in a set of council climate plan scorecards – I use these regularly in my Carbon Literacy training and also in my talks when I’m talking about spheres of influence and the role we can play as citizens – these scorecards are a great ‘hook’ to get in touch with your local authority and start a conversation about climate action.This year they’re going a step further and are assessing and ranking local authorities on their actual climate actions, rather than their plans, and this is where we come in!Not only can we use these tools (the current one now and the new one when it’s available in Autumn of 2023) to engage with our councils around climate action, but if anyone has been looking for climate volunteering opportunities that they can do from the comfort of their homes, then this could be the one for you! Climate Emergency UK are looking to recruit a small army of volunteers to help them to assess the CA plans of all the local authorities in the UK – a somewhat mammoth undertaking! They’ll provide full training for you and it looks like a brilliant opportunity to get involved in something that really is having a meaningful impact – you’ll hear in our chat about some of the impact that the plan scorecards have already had, so it’s exciting to think about what the action scorecards will achieve!I’ve already signed up – if you’re interested, here's the link.Enjoy!PS. If you’ve enjoyed the podcast this year, please do give me a Christmas pressie of a rating and review whether you get your podcasts – it really does help the podcast to grown and reach more people!   LISTEN... CHECK OUT...Climate Emergency UK- Website- Facebook-Instagram- TwitterCouncil Climate Scorecards- New methodology for assessing actions- Register your interest in volunteering to help assess council's actionsTalking Climate - The Sustainable(ish) accredited Carbon Literacy courseThe Sustainable(ish) Facebook groupThe Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse Let me know your thoughts on this one!And if you enjoyed this episode, please do leave a review and/or comment wherever you get your podcasts!  […]

In this episode we take a deep dive into the carbon footprint of Christmas.Which feels a bit weird right?Christmas is a time to let go a little, and not be so hung up on the consequences of our actions (hence the number of mince pies I may have already eaten..). I feel a bit guilty for flagging up the fact that our Christmas excesses still have an impact.But unfortunately we can't bury our heads in the sand. And fortunately, there are LOTS of things we can do to tweak our Christmas' to make them a bit more sustainable(ish), without having to give up all the bits we love and enjoy.However, I think we can all relate to the fact that creating change, at any time of year, can be hard. And making different choices at Christmas can feel nigh on impossible. So it's important to think about what's in your control (do some of these things!) and what isn't (try and let these go..).Tune in to hear more about the carbon footprint of Christmas, and how to reduce your stress levels (hopefully!) by figuring out what are the things you might be able to change, and what are the things that other people are in control of, where you just have to go with the flow. LISTEN... CHECK OUT...How Bad are Bananas? The Carbon Footprint of Everything by Mike Berners-Lee[159] - Carbon Literacy with Phil Korbel[071] - A beginners guide to carbon footprints with Jo Hand at Giki ZeroChristmassy podcast episodes:- [125] - Sustainable(ish) Christmas confessions!- [084] - The carbon footprint of Christmas and what we can do about it with Terra Neutra- [081] - Making a start on a sustainable(ish) Christmas- [052] - Conscious gift giving with Buy Me Once- [029] - The end of toybox clutter with Whirli- [019] - 12 not so fun festive factsChristmassy blog posts:- 12 not so fun festive facts- The beginners guide to a crap-free Christmas- 12 easy ideas for a Sustainable(ish) Christmas- How we (just about) survived Christmas buying nothing new (and how you can too)- Sustainable(ish) options for nativity costumes- Mincemeat cupcakes with marzipan buttercream- The (festive) waste hierarchy- 12 gifts for kids that aren't stuff- Plastic-free(ish) stocking fillers- Books for super-hero kids who want to save the world- Books for super-hero grown ups who want to save the world- 10 last minute tips for an eco-friendly Christmas- Eco-friendly and plastic-free crackers- Confessions of a knackered mums eco(ish) Christmas- What is the carbon footprint of Christmas?- The carbon footprint of Christmas and 12 ways to reduce itCrap-free Christmas courseTalking Climate - The Sustainable(ish) accredited Carbon Literacy courseThe Sustainable(ish) Facebook groupThe Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse Let me know your thoughts on this one!And if you enjoyed this episode, please do leave a review and/or comment wherever you get your podcasts!  INTRODUCING THE CRAP-FREE CHRISTMAS COURSE!Packed with hints, tips, ideas and links for a Christmas with less waste and less impact on the planet, one imperfect step at a time!This is an online self-paced course, meaning you can dip in and out at your own pace and pick and choose what you want to focus on. MORE INFO […]

COP 27...What happened?What didn't happen?And why?For those of us in the UK, COP26 in Glasgow last year felt like a BIG deal - it was everywhere in the media while it was running, and schools, businesses and organisations were all keen to get involved.This year's COP (COP27) has felt very different. And I found myself struggling to follow what was going on, and getting a handle on any outcomes.I'm so delighted that the brilliant Laura Young was able to make some time to come back on and chat to us all about it. Laura was at COP26 last year, and did a brilliant Beginner's Guide to COP26 episode for us, followed up by a debrief afterwards. And it was fabulous to chat to her about what happened at COP27. SO MUCH to take away from this episode - I feel so much more informed after chatting to Laura, I hope you do too!And of course, I LOVED Laura's call to action at the end - to make our voices heard not just about the stuff we DON'T want to be happening in our local area (eg fracking) but super importantly to make our voices heard around the stuff we DO want to see happening (eg cycle lanes, onshore wind etc).What positive stuff has happened near you? Or is in the pipeline? Who can you contact to let them know that they have your support?Enjoy this episode! LISTEN... CHECK OUT...Laura Young- Website-Instagram- Twitter[118] - A beginners guide to COP26[122] - COP26 - What happened and what now?COP 27 You TubeCrap-free Christmas courseTalking Climate - The Sustainable(ish) accredited Carbon Literacy courseThe Sustainable(ish) Facebook groupThe Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse Let me know your thoughts on this one!And if you enjoyed this episode, please do leave a review and/or comment wherever you get your podcasts!  […]

You might not want to hear this but...Christmas is coming!We’re about to enter silly season for consumption with Black Friday and then the Christmas shopping, so what better time to take a pause and think about the impact of what we’re buying, and how we might be able to make our money do good stuff at the same time as buying good pressies.I’m chatting to Sian Conway-Wood who is the founder of ethical business platform Ethical Hour and managing partner at 181st Street – a communications company. Earlier this moth, Sian launched Shop Ethical Instead – a campaign to encourage us to use our Christmas budget to buy gifts from small, ethical independent brands. Now, as some of you will now, I’m coming to the end of Nothing New in 22 – a year buying gnothing new, 10 years on from the first one that was the star of my own sustainability journey. I’m pretty sold on the message that one of the most powerful things we can do as individuals is to consume less – so I did gently challenge Sian on how she feels about marketing more stuff to us, that we might not really need.It was a brilliant chat – and I totally sign up to Sian’s mantra of buy less buy better – so if you are on the look-our for some thoughtfully seclted presents for the loved ones in your life, do check out the Shop Ethical Instead gift guides.And on that note, if you’re looking to do Christmas with a bit less waste, impact on the planet and money this year, then I’ve pulled together the Crap-Christmas Course – a self-paced course with sixteen modules covering everything from plastic-free stocking fillers, through to sustainable(ish) drinks choices for the Big Day. There's more info right here.Do let me know what you think of this episode and if you'll be checking out some of the wonderful brands Sian mentions.Enjoy! LISTEN... CHECK OUT...Ethical Hour- Website-Instagram- TwitterShop Ethical Instead- All the gift guidesSian's book: Buy Better, Consume Less[152] - My 10 year 'greeniversary'Nothing New in '22[051] - I don't buy it - with Global Action PlanCrap-free Christmas courseTalking Climate - The Sustainable(ish) accredited Carbon Literacy courseThe Sustainable(ish) Facebook groupThe Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse Let me know your thoughts on this one!And if you enjoyed this episode, please do leave a review and/or comment wherever you get your podcasts!  […]

Wouldn’t it be great if everything we bought had a label on it telling us what it’s carbon footprint it? Then we would be able to make informed choices about the things we were buying and the impact they had.Today I’m chatting to Charlie Cotton from ecollective about exactly that – what is a carbon footprint, how is it worked out, how feasible my grand carbon footprint labelling dreams are, and if some companies are already doing it.Would love to hear your thoughts on this one – is this something that you would find useful to help you make decisions? How viable do you think it is/ LISTEN... CHECK OUT...ecollective- Website-Instagram- Twitter- Linked In[071] - A beginners guide to Carbon Footprints with Jo Hand at GikiGiki ZeroWWF carbon footprint calculator[091] - Make my pension matterCarbon footprint labelling of the food at COP26 (apologies for linking to The Sun!)Wahaca's carbon footprinting on their menuBristol venue adds carbon footprint to it's menuOatly carbon footprinting infoExploreAdventure Tours - carbon labellingSME Climate HubUK government greenhouse gas reporting: conversion factors 2021Investors in the Environment - lots of help for SMEs looking to become more sustainableCOP27 Ride The Change - give me your carbon here!Talking Climate - The Sustainable(ish) accredited Carbon Literacy courseThe Sustainable(ish) Facebook group Let me know your thoughts on this one!And if you enjoyed this episode, please do leave a review and/or comment wherever you get your podcasts!  […]