26 September 2019
Pressure is mounting for organisations to announce how they will respond to the ‘plastics’ issue. Many of our clients are looking to reduce their plastics consumption and find new solutions that benefit the environment. But where should they start? Senior Consultant, George Cole, explores the materiality assessment as a potential approach.
Read more23 September 2019
The negative impact of fast fashion is an issue that is close to my heart. I worry about it a lot… In fact, I even wrote a poem about it! We have a warped relationship with textiles. In the UK, we consume more new clothing than any other European country, send 11 million garments to landfill every week and many of us feel embarrassed to be seen in the same outfit multiple times!
Read more17 September 2019
David Lerpiniere, Head of Waste, Resources and Development at Resource Futures, says it’s no surprise there are growing numbers of sufferers from “environmental despair”. He says it’s time we look beyond UK shores. The Amazon is burning. Our rivers are polluted. The oceans littered with our plastics. It’s no surprise that there are growing numbers …
Continue reading “It’s time to think global”
Read more4 September 2019
As a specialist consultant in resources and waste, we are called upon to help with everything from minimising construction waste to reducing plastic packaging footprints. We’re also a committed team (some may say geeks!) who take waste pretty seriously and do our utmost to #reduce #reuse #recycle wherever we can. Here are a few ideas and resources to help you on your way this #ZeroWasteWeek.
Read more1 July 2019
This briefing paper for Tearfund was co-authored by Resource Futures. Through case studies from Africa and Asia it demonstrates how we can effectively respond to challenges of waste management and scale up approaches that are already delivering results.
Read more18 June 2019
As the dust settles on the Government’s announcement to ban plastic drinking straws, cotton buds and drink stirrers and moves on to consider further market restrictions for plastic plates, cutlery and polystyrene containers, Principal Consultant, Bernie Thomas considers the journey that has led us here.
Read more5 June 2019
As I emerged from my taxi into the bustling city of Hyderabad, I felt an immediate assault to the senses… As time progressed, I was forced to reflect on how the UK ‘does waste’ compared to India. While we obsess with technical solutions (waste to energy, recycling innovation), India excels at a behavioural and cultural level.
Read more16 May 2019
At a time when non-biodegradable waste such as plastic is making headlines on a daily basis, the immense volume of food waste is often overlooked. In Bristol we’re active at a local level, chairing the Bristol Food Waste Action Group as part of the city’s bid to increase its accreditation as a Sustainable Food City.
Read more9 May 2019
Emma Burlow, Head of Circular Economy at Resource Futures, accepts that there is (or was) a default consumer position towards convenience, but if you ask today’s consumer what they want, they appear to be saying, at great volume, “less plastic” and are challenging retailers more than ever on over-packaging.
Read more20 March 2019
Bernie Thomas, principal consultant at Resource Futures, says “solutions aren’t perfect” when it comes to packaging recycling. He says in a knee-jerk quest to solve one problem, we risk developing practices which themselves have unintended consequences…
Read more5 March 2019
Kate Chambers, Consultant at Resource Futures, shares her thoughts on why she feels proud of Scotland, and why the country is uniquely placed to challenge the issues of marine litter and climate change. Last week, attending Marine Scotland’s first International Marine Conference in Glasgow, there was a lot to feel proud of.
Read more6 February 2019
Information on currently available guidance on Household Waste Recycling Centres.
Read more5 February 2019
A report for Defra to assess the economic, environmental and social impacts of a potential ban on plastic balloon sticks, plastic plates and plastic cutlery.
Read more18 January 2019
Archana Pisharody, Consultant at Resource Futures shares her thoughts on a recent business breakfast in Bristol hosted by the Future Economy Network, where presentations provided a positive outlook on the way forward to many of the unresolved challenges in the waste industry.
Read more16 January 2019
Phillip Ward considers how a circular economy needs goods which are designed to last longer and are capable of being fixed – and probably upgraded – when they go wrong or improvements become available. But as with recycling, it’s not enough to wish for the outcome without addressing the systems needed to make it achievable in practice – and those systems need to address the whole repair environment, including its economics, if they are going to work.
Read more19 December 2018
Before parting with our hard-earned money, many of us think hard about the quality and price of the product or service we want to buy. But increasingly, we want to know who made it and where? What’s the supply chain story? What resources and materials were used? We want a guarantee that our purchase is not having a negative social and environmental impact. Kate Chambers, Consultant at Resource Futures, explains that this is where the B Corp movement, which recognises there is a better way to do business, comes in.
Read moreWhen planning your event, we can help you understand and manage resources, measure and monitor your waste and find the best ways to communicate with your customers. Our experience in sustainable events includes everything from helping our network of 70 groups in Oxfordshire with sustainability focused events, to training for groups as part of Bristol …
Continue reading “Sustainable Events workshops in Scotland”
Read more17 December 2018
Allan Sandilands, Principal Consultant at Resource Futures, shares his thoughts on how a growing network of Innovation Champions are helping the Construction industry in Scotland to reduce its environmental impact by tackling some of the challenges they face, head on.
Read more14 December 2018
With Christmas fast approaching, and residual waste collections rearranged over the festive season, many parents are facing the challenge of how to deal with the waste produced by their children’s ‘disposable’ nappies. Kirstie Clarke, Real Nappy Outreach Worker in Gloucestershire, considers what options there are when there is no room at the bin.
Read more15 November 2018
The Circular Economy Hotspot 2018 may have opened on a ‘dreich’ (Scots word for grey and wet weather!) Halloween morning in Glasgow, but the weather didn’t dampen anyone’s spirits. From a line-up of diverse and excellent speakers, we’ve selected a few highlights under the themes of leadership, collaboration and systems for people and planet.
Read more25 October 2018
Our Head of Waste, Resources and Development, David Lerpiniere, joins Dr. Veronica Di Bella from CDC Group’s Environmental and Social Responsibility team to explore current challenges, opportunities and best practice on plastic waste management from a private sector perspective.
Read more18 October 2018
Sarah Hargreaves, Communications Consultant at Resource Futures, says changes to services are often greeted with firm public resistance particularly where there is a lack of effective engagement to support and explain the changes. Here, she asks what’s the best way to encourage behaviour change across diverse communities?
Read more21 September 2018
In a sector where it is often said that there is ‘bad data and worse data’, the release of the World Bank’s data digest on global waste management – What A Waste 2.0 – is a much-needed resource to help us understand what is happening around the world. David Lerpiniere reflects on this new report and its potential impact in the global waste sector.
Read more10 September 2018
On behalf of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Resource Futures conducted a detailed review of global recycled plastics markets. This included evaluating trends, challenges, key issues and policy interventions.
Read more9 September 2018
In response to increasing public and waste sector attention around issues relating to waste plastics, Resource Futures was commissioned by the Resourcing the Future partnership to develop a framework to assist products manufacturers, the waste management sector and policy-makers with making decisions around waste plastics.
Read more8 September 2018
A new report by Resource Futures for WRAP Cymru and the Welsh government sets out a road map for a transformative shift in the way Wales deals with waste, through increasing re-use, and what this could mean for the environment and economy.
Read more7 September 2018
The Resource Community Impacts Tool (ResourceCIT) is our easy-to-use online tool which permits community groups and funders who enable sustainable development activities an estimate of the effects they are having on reducing waste, carbon, energy use and in making cost savings for individuals and the community.
Read more6 September 2018
Since 2015, Resource Futures has undertaken the role of directly supporting edoc’s users and managing the process of regular updates to the system on behalf of the four UK devolved administrations. We work closely with the edoc Management Board and its Technical Advisory Group, as well as supervising edoc’s specialist IT contractor.
Read more7 August 2018
I’d like to think that my job is a bit like the job of a detective or CSI – collecting data (evidence) on resource efficiency. Robust evidence will help to build a case. In the current cash-strapped world, it’s all about building a good business case to justify making changes or investments. But how do you construct your investigation so that you get the information you need while not blowing the budget? And is the upfront investment even worth it?
Read more19 July 2018
Imagine a world where the only resources we have to make new stuff are recycled materials. All the DVD players, toys, domestic appliances, cars and construction products would have to be made of so-called ‘secondary materials’, materials that have had a former life, as opposed to primary materials that come directly from mineral resource or fossil fuels. What effect would this have? David Lerpiniere, Principal Consultant at Resource Futures shared his thoughts with Greenhouse PR.
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