Episode #34: Designing plastic free: Why and what does it take?
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Episode #34: Podcast Show Notes
Introduction
Have you ever wondered what the world could look like by turning off the plastic tap?
No, it is not about demonizing plastic, it is about finding what can make his work without undesirable impacts!
And, believe me, Sian Sutherland, the co-founder of A Plastic Planet, has more than one trick up her sleeve to turn that into a very practical and appealing reality.
In this episode, you will find out
why and how businesses and creative designers can shift gears from plastic crisis to alternative solutions;
how campaigns can be no-blame no-shame based, and action-oriented;
and how innovative materials and packaging are a gateway to ignite broader system changes.
The ice on the cake?
Have you already heard about the freshly new PlasticFree platform co-founded by Sian? Actually, I waited to broadcast this episode to be able to refer to it. Now that it is put online, I can tell you that – likewise the passionate dynamic of this interview – you will find there: a mine of information such as
aesthetic and trending materials database,
scalable innovations fitting into regenerative cycles of nature,
existing and inspiring case studies as well as the latest proof points and many optimistic stories,
and, last but not least, collaboration opportunities.
You better have a look at it!
Listed references, examples, and recommendations in the order mentioned in the interview
The film: «The Bleu Planet II», produced by BBC Earth: https://www.bbcearth.com/shows/blue-planet-ii.
The Award-Winning Documentary: «A Plastic Ocean»: https://plasticoceans.org/about-a-plastic-ocean/. Sian mentioned that attending this film screening (with her co-founder Frederica Magnussen and with David Attenborough in the room) was a starting point of her current fight.
One of the most comprehensive and analytically robust studies on ocean plastics = The report «Breaking the Plastic Wave» (July 2020), of The Pew Charitable Trusts and SYSTEMIQ - with thought partners like the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, University of Oxford, University of Leeds, and Common Seas: https://www.pewtrusts.org/-/media/assets/2020/07/breakingtheplasticwave_report.pdf.
The Plastic Health Coalition: https://www.plastichealthcoalition.org/.
The documentaries: «Minimalism: A Documentary About the Important Things» with this powerful sentence Sian quoted: “You can never get enough of what you don’t really want.” (Rick Hanson, Neurologist) and «The Minimalists: Less Is Now» on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/ca/title/81074662.
The burning question came from Sébastien Bregeaud of Notpla in Episode #21: What if seaweed could solve the single-use plastic problem?
The Doughnut Economics by Kate Raworth: https://www.kateraworth.com/doughnut/: it is about thriving within the limits of the planet!
Mover: https://mover.eu/: the first outdoor collection to be genderless and 100% plastic-free.
Natural Fiber Welding (NFW) CEO Luke Haverhals & CTO Aaron Amstutz were named inventors of the year by Intellectual Property Owners Association ( : https://blog.naturalfiberwelding.com/ipoef-inventors-of-the-year-luke-haverhals-aaron-amstutz.
The creative agency Made Thought https://www.madethought.com/work/a-plastic-planet.
As an appealing design for refillable, Dove launched their stainless steel refillable deodorant case: https://www.dove.com/ca/en/deodorants/refillable-deodorant.html.
Club Zero: Returnable packaging for takeaway and delivery across London: https://www.clubzero.co/.
First recommended book: «Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World» by Anand Giridharadas, 2018
Second recommended book: «Regenesis: Feeding the World Without Devouring the Planet» by George Monbiot, 2022
Third recommended book: «The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom» by Don Miguel Ruiz, 1997
Where to find Sian, A Plastic Planet and the PlasticFree platform
The websites:
A Plastic Planet: https://aplasticplanet.com/
PLASTIC FREE, their materials intelligence platform: https://plasticfree.com/.
On social media:
Instagram: @createplasticfree
Twitter: @aplastic_planet
The LinkedIn profile of Sian Sutherland: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sian-sutherland-33485b10/
About Sian Sutherland from A Plastic Planet
Igniting social change, creating brands, campaigns and businesses with soul is Sian’s passion.
Multi-award winner, including Female Marketer of the Year, CEW Achiever Award, Entrepreneur of the Year, and British Inventor of the Year; Sian is a serial entrepreneur with a varied background in advertising, Michelin Star restaurants, film production, and brand creation design agencies.
In 2016 Sian co-founded A Plastic Planet; is a global campaign organization with a single goal - to ignite and inspire the world to turn off the plastic tap. As entrepreneurs, they bring a fresh pro-business solutions-focused approach to environmental issues. A Plastic Planet are highly vocal in the world’s media, working collaboratively with industry, retailers, Governments, legislators and the UN; to accelerate the pace of change at all levels.
Recognizing the knowledge gap between the creative industry and the materials makers of the future, A Plastic Planet – with the collaboration of Made Thought – launched PlasticFree in 2023, the world's first materials and systems solutions platform to help the 160m global creatives design waste out at source.
Podcast music
Special thanks to Joachim Regout who made the jingle. Have a look at his work here.
I am happy to bring a sample of our strong bonds on these sound waves. Since I was a child, he made me discover a wide range of music of all kinds. I am also delighted he is a nature lover and shares the Look4Loops 'out of the box philosophy'. He is an inspiring source of creativity for me.