30 December 2019
“This is the fight of our lives” says Ovais Sarmand, Dep Exec Secretary, UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. “Every single person needs to make this a priority in the way they operate in the world.” It’s clear that there are early signs that we are starting to wake up to the threat of climate …
Continue reading “Construction and the fight of our lives”
Read more20 December 2019
A scoping report from WRAP sharing existing evidence on the extent of microfibre shedding from UK clothing over the life cycle.
Read more18 December 2019
Christmas is not known as the most sustainable of times, being more commonly associated with excess – in terms of food, waste and consumerism. So is a sustainable Christmas actually possible? We’ve been making small changes at home over the past few years and this year it definitely feels like there’s been a positive shift …
Continue reading “Is a sustainable Christmas possible?!”
Read more17 December 2019
Our teams help local authorities and businesses across the UK to find out what items and materials they are disposing of. These representative waste composition analysis studies provide not just insight into the materials that make up our waste, but also insight into the average volume of waste per house or per premises, which sheds …
Continue reading “5 ways to extract value from your waste data”
Read more4 December 2019
From plastic-free living to Greta Thunberg and growing your own veg, the team at Resource Futures have compiled their favourite books on all things eco this Christmas. Whether you have an aspiring business owner, an enthusiastic young dreamer or know someone who simply wants to do their bit, this Christmas book guide offers hints and …
Continue reading “25 books to gift the greenies in your life”
Read more3 December 2019
This week, Resource Futures has handed over the care of the CAG Oxfordshire Project to the local project itself. We’ve been working with the team over the past two years to consult with the network and set up the project as a new entity, a Community Benefit Society, so that it can take forward the …
Continue reading “The power of community action at a local level”
Read more5 November 2019
Archana Pisharody, Consultant at Resource Futures gives an update on what has been happening in the world of WEEE and what is on the horizon for 2020.
Read moreResource Futures led the primary data gathering fieldwork for WRAP’s 2019 Retail Survey. We surveyed a range of own-brand and branded food products to identify and record data which influence the amount of avoidable food waste in the home.
Read more14 October 2019
As Environmenstrual Week kicks off for 2019, Kate Chambers explores the issues around #plasticfreeperiods from consumer choice to flushing behaviours, marine litter and the rise of reusables.
Read more9 October 2019
The arrival of the artificial grass pitch was a major leap forward for sports enthusiasts active in colder, wetter climes, used to scrabbling around on muddy pitches. Fast forward forty or so years and we now have third generation artificial turf pitches that have overcome the ‘performance problems’ associated with early solutions. But at what cost?
Read more1 October 2019
Resource Futures was commissioned by Defra to undertake a preliminary assessment of the impacts of a ban on expanded polystyrene.
Read more26 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.
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