The Big Toy Swap - with Charlotte Mason-Curl

In the UK we buy 37 million toys a year! And 80% of them end up in landfill, incinerators, or the oceans.In this episode I'm welcoming Charlotte Mason-Curl, founder of No Crap Parties back to the podcast. In a bid to try and keep some of these toys in use for longer, Charlotte is running The Big Toy Swap this November and has a goal of 50 Toy Swaps happening all around the country. We dive into the nitty gritty and hopefully answer all your questions about hosting a toy swap and make it feel super do-able! And if you’re like me and have older kids, or maybe don’t have any kids at all, that doesn’t let you off the hook–we talk about ways to hook up with schools or brownie or scout groups, to run a Toy Swap in your local community.AND we’ve got the first ever podcast giveaway!I’ve got two ‘rescue’ copies of Charlotte’s book Elf Chloe’s Surprise to give away. To enter, either come and find me on Instagram (@Sustainableish) and comment 'Elf Chloes Surprise' on the post, or leave a comment that includes the phrase 'Elf Chloe's Surprise' wherever you get your podcasts.USEFUL LINKS:No Crap Parties- Website- Instagram- FacebookBig Toy Swap- Find a Toy SwapElf Chloe's Surprise - website (where you can get a fragile copy) or AmazonCrowdfunder - Planet Friendly Party Resource for schools: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/planet-friendly-present-packConnect with Charlotte:- Instagram- Linked In- See Charlotte at TedX Worthing (20% Off tickets with TedXSpeakerMate) Episode 187 - No Crap Parties with Charlotte Mason CurlEpisode 193 - The Power of Swapping with Sam Drury ShoreLoved BeforeSUSTAINABLE(ISH) STUFFJoin the Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse for October!Sustainable(ish) Carbon Literacy coursesSustainable(ish) Carbon Literacy refresher coursesThanks so much for listening!

In this episode I'm chatting to Polly Turton, Head of Climate Action and Public Health Shade the UK, an organisation who have a vision and a mission of "zero deaths from overheating and a UK where everyone can live, work and thrive in hot weather."We dive into:- How hot was this summer? - What about 1976?- Is the new 'normal' (or abnormal)- The health impacts of heat on different groups within our societies- Why heat is a climate justice issue, and 'cooling poverty' is now a growing concern for summer months- Shouldn't we just install air con?- Changes that are needed to help our towns and cities adapt to a warming climate- Changes we can look to make in our own homes, from DIY measures, to more permanent retrofitUSEFUL LINKS:Shade the UK- Website- Instagram- Linked In- Overheating adaptation guidesPolly Turton on Linked InAndy Love (Shade the UK founder) on Linked InSummer 2026 hottest on record for the UK – Met OfficeSummer 1976 – 2026 – Met OfficeCooling Roadmap for LondonHeat mortality monitoring report 2022Excess deaths May and June 2026Let me know your thoughts on this one - drop me an email on [email protected], or leave a comment wherever you're listening to this. Please do share this episode with anyone you think would be interested or would find it useful, and leave a rating and a review on your podcast platform of choice.Thanks for listening!

This episode is a solo episode from me, all about bins! Specifically my bins and how we only put out bin out once every 9-12 months.It’s Zero Waste Week this week, so whilst I would very much not consider us a ‘zero waste’ household, I wanted to share some tips to help us all be ‘zero-waste(ish)’, ie produce less waste, rather that’s recycling or waste destinted for landfill or incineration. USEFUL LINKS:Zero Waste WeekSimpler Recycling: household recycling in EnglandPodcast ep – The Big Plastic Count with Daniel WebbWholly ShrinkTerracycle zero waste boxGreen JohannaGreen ConeLocal Council discountsLoop Frome – Frome food waste recycling schemeGeneration Soil – Bristol food waste recycling schemeKeep Britain Tidy Waste HierarchyFind a Repair CaféBuyerarchy of Needs – Sarah Lazarovic Come and join me on the Sustainable(ish) Talking Climate Carbon Literacy course! If you enjoyed this episode, please do subscribe or follow if you aren’t already, share it on your socials, and leave a comment, rating, or review wherever you get your podcasts.Thanks so much for listening!

In this episode we take a dive into climate anxiety, and I’m chatting to Linda Aspey who amongst many other roles is Director of Psychology at the People’s Emergency Briefing and a board member of the Climate Psychology Alliance. We explore:- what is climate anxiety?-why do some people have it and some don’t?- why for some people it tips into something that starts to disturb their ability to do the things they want and need to- some of the things that can help. Linda mentions some sources of support in the episode, and I’ve linked to them below - if you’re really struggling with your mental health, then please do reach out for support. You’re not on your own. There is support out there, lots of which can be accessed at very low or no cost. USEFUL LINKSLinda Aspey- Website- Linked InNational Emergency Briefing- Host a screening - register to host and you'll get a resource pack with links to facilitator workshopsClimate Psychology Alliance- Website - Climate Café Listening circles- CPA therapeutic supportA Barrister for the Earth by Monica Feria-TintaSolastalgiaAdrian Lambert on SubstackTurn the Tide on Climate Anxiety by Megan Kennedy-Woodard and Patrick Kennedy-WilliamsRelated Sustainable(ish) podcast episodes:How to be more activist with Clover HoganTurn the tide on climate anxiety with Megan Kennedy Woodard Sustainable(ish) Carbon Literacy TrainingFollow Sustainable(ish) on Instagram. Email jen on [email protected]

This week I’m joined by Dan Tipney, a former airline pilot who co-founded Safe Landing, a community of aviation workers and enthusiasts, working together to figure out what it might look like to have a world where aviation flourishes, in harmony with nature.This episode isn’t an episode in flight shaming anyone, and absolutely doesn’t have the intention of making anyone feel bad about the choices they’re making. We obviously talk about the impact of flying, because coming to terms with the cold hard facts around that is a key part of Dan’s story. But this episode is more about the power of story-telling and conversations, about how two things can be true at the same time, and about how learning to recognise that and sit with the discomfort that it can bring, could help us all to have better climate conversations.USEFUL LINKS: Dan Tipney on Linked In Safe Landing-              Website-              Linked In-              InstagramCharlie Cotton’s post on Linked In about flight efficiencies vs flight numbersJon Richardon and The Futurenauts – The Future of Life After OilLarger UsClimate FreskEpisode 189 – Climate Fresk (and friends) with Ash GoddardCharlie GardnerAyana Elizbeth Johnson – Climate Venn Diagram Do come and join us in the Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse for September!And please do leave a rating and a review wherever you get your podcasts 🌟

This week I’m joined by Dan Edelstyn, artist and documentary film maker whose latest film Power Station with his partner Hilary Powell, documents their attempts to turn the street where they live in Walthamstow in London, into a power station, by putting solar on the roofs of the houses.USEFUL LINKS:Dan on Linked InPower Station- Website- Watch the film- (Free) membership community – including access to a How-to Guide- Instagram- Facebook- You TubeDan and Hilary’s previous films:- Bank Job- How to Re-establish a Vodka EmpireAnn PettiforYou Tube video of guy dancing on his own at a festival and starting a dance party!Episode 188 – Money Money Money with Lisa Stanley MannWe the Hated – film about Just Stop Oil protestorsPOP Energy – supporting communities to install solar SUSTAINABLE(ISH) STUFF YOU MIGHT LIKE!Come and join the Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse!Join the Sustainable(ish) Carbon Literacy Course in SeptemberThanks for listening!Please do leave a rating and a review wherever you get your podcasts, and get in touch on [email protected]

There are 60 million tonnes of e-waste generated every year globally – that's around the same as the weight of nearly 6,000 Eiffel Towers! And E-waste is the fastest growing waste stream globally, with the UK as the second biggest e-waste producer in the world.Team Repair are on a mission to change that through education and repair kits to help us all feel a bit more confident having a go at mending our broken electronics. Tune in to to hear from co-founder Anaïs Engelmann about some of the wider issues around e-waste, how Team Repair got started, and the great work they're doing with kids, schools, and their new mobile phone repair kit for grown ups.USEFUL LINKS:Team Repair- Website- Instagram- Facebook- You Tube- TikTok- Kits for kids- For schools- Mobile phone repair kit UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)Right to RepairRestart Project- Repair and Reuse Declaration- International Repair Day – 17th OctoberiFixItRepair Cafes- Find a Repair Café near youFollow Sustainable(ish) on Instagram, and do get in touch with Jen on [email protected] with feedback, questions, or guest suggestions.Come on the September Carbon Literacy course!More details and how to book here.Join the waiting list for the Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse - doors opening for September very soon!

This weeks episode is a solo episode for me - a little bit about our holiday in Switzerland, which isn't really about our holiday in Switzerland. It's more about the logistics of a flight free holiday to Europe from somebody who finds organizing and travel arrangements really quite stressful!USEFUL LINKS:·       Episode 042 - Flight Free 2020 with Anna Hughes·       Episode 139 - European Rail Adventures with Georgina Wilson-Powell·       Episode 142 - Can a travel editor travel flight-free? With Helen Coffey·       Zero Altitude by Helen Coffey·       Byway·       Man in Seat 61·       Flight Free UK- Take the flight-free challenge·       Interail & Eurail Travellers FB group·       Interail website·       Bonjour RATP·       Giki flight calculator·       Eurostar carbon footprint·       Paris – Geneva carbon footprintLet me know your thoughts on this episode! If you've been thinking about European train travel but it's all felt a bit overwhelming, has this been helpful? If you're a seasoned train traveller across Europe, please do share your own top tips and resources. Leave a comment wherever you get your podcasts!Thanks for listening 🙌 

Could secondhand fashion be a lever for positive change within the wider fashion industry? And what might that look like?Join us as this weeks guest Gemma Metheringham shares her journey from Creative Director at Karen Millen, to PhD student exploring these big questions. Gemma shares her journey on her instagram account, @the_elephant_in_my_wardrobe, where she does a brilliant job of bringing people along with her, encouraging us all to ask more questions of our own choices, but also of the brands and businesses we're choosing to give our money to. LINKS TO STUFF WE TALK ABOUT:@the_elephant_in_mywardrobeThe Day the World Stops Shopping by J.B. MackinnonEp 124 - The Day the world stops shopping with JB Mackinnon Human Touch Earth Overshoot DayHot or Cool Institute – Resizing the fashion industryEp 205 - Sustainable Style with Becky BarnesReLondon – London’s fashion footprintOnly 10-20% of donated clothes are sold on through charity shopsPatrick Grant – LessRob HopkinsWWF Living Planet ReportHow the dawn chorus has changed over the last 50 yearsThe Little Loop Ep 96 - Kids clothes - why buy when you can rent? With Charlotte Morley from The Little LoopWhat are your thoughts on that one? I’d love to know! Drop me an email on jen@sustainable(ish).co.uk, or leave a comment wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for listening!

The idea of 'activism' can be off putting and perhaps a little daunting for many of us. If that's you, then do listen in to my chat with Charlotte Howell, one of the co-Directors of Parents for Future, a growing group of parents navigating the climate crisis together, campaigning on national and local issues to secure a safer, fairer world for children everywhere.I’ve been following Charlotte for ages on social media, and I wanted to get her on the podcast to share more about Parents for Future and the work that they’re doing, because I think it’s such a brilliant way for us all (because despite the name, it’s not just for parents) to engage in ‘activism’ in a way that works for us. It’s a really inclusive way to dip your toes in and join together with other people, all working towards the same goal of a safe future for our kids and kids all around the world. USEFUL LINKS:Parents For Future-              Website-              Instagram-              Facebook-              You Tube – you can find the comedy sketches on here (and on socials)-              Join the communityCharlotte Howell on Linked InUN 2018 report on climate – Global Warming of 1.5CReading Uni/Met Office/Parents for Future event – forecast for 2056 Related episodes:Money money money with Lisa Stanley-Mann Everyday influencers with Sam HamptonHosting a People’s Emergency Briefing 7 acts to save the world with Hugh Montgomery Do let me know if you’re already a member, or if you’re now going to give them a follow, or join up! I love to hear from you. Drop me an email on [email protected], or leave a comment wherever you get your socials.