Episodes
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As Dr. Manasa Mantravadi, pediatrician and founder of the reusable foodware company Ahimsa®, points out—schools need data to make decisions. The Conscious Cafeteria Report, produced by Upstream and Ahimsa, is the latest evidence-based study projecting the environmental and financial impact of switching to reuse in K-12 schools, while robustly making the case for transitioning away from single-use foodware to protect children's health. Upstream’s Macy Zander sits down with Dr. Mantravadi and Data Science Specialist Madhavi Trikha to break down the findings of the report as well as challenges and opportunities inherent in switching to reuse for schools. Spoiler alert: across geographies, demographics, and school set-ups—reuse wins, every time.
Resources:
The Conscious Cafeteria Reportahimsaschools.com ReThink Disposable Case Study: Palo Alto School DistrictCenter for Environmental Health (CEH)StopWaste Plastic Free RestaurantsReuse for Onsite Dining LibraryReuse Solutions Network (RSN) -
Innovation in healthcare is no easy feat, as we learn in this conversation with Russell Gong, Co-founder and President of Cabinet Health. The fast-growing B-Corp on a mission to eliminate single-use plastic in medicine is starting by confronting the challenge of billions of disposable plastic pill bottles used annually in this country, with first-in-class models for reusable and refillable bottles. Russ and Brooking talk shop about the challenges, opportunities, metrics and more for getting plastic out of medicine.
Resources:
cabinethealth.com -
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Plastic Free MKE (Milwaukee) leaders Leah Holloway of Milwaukee Riverkeeper and Meenal Atre of the Urban Ecology Center share the story of this city-level coalition’s success in reducing plastic pollution in a state that doesn’t allow for policies banning “auxiliary containers” (e.g. plastic packaging). From loophole-focused policy wins to a Lake Friendly dining program, the insights from our guests are a great primer for anyone interested in starting a reuse coalition in their community.
Resources:
Plastic-Free MKEEpisode 171: Bans on BansThe ReusiesJoin or start a community coalition -
The Conservative States & Provinces group—a subgroup of the Reuse Solutions Network— brings together advocates from areas where it is harder to pass policy so they can share and troubleshoot ways to advance reuse despite the obstacles. And one major barrier folks living in conservative states often face is preemption, aka “bans on bans.” If a town wants to pass a Skip the Stuff ordinance, for instance, a state with certain pre-emption laws could override it. This is a reality that impacts many living in more conservative jurisdictions and directly hinders the ability to pass local policy on plastics and packaging.
This discussion from a recent meeting of the Conservative States & Provinces subgroup covers preemption more broadly and its implications for reuse policy; how it looks in different states; strategies for challenging it; and lessons learned from experienced panelists: Randy Moorman of Eco-Cycle in Colorado, Emma Haydocy of Surfrider in Florida, and Jeremy Drake of MT Plastic Free Missoula in Montana.
Resources:
Reuse Solutions NetworkEco-cycleSurfrider FloridaMT Plastic Free MissoulaUpstream’s Policy TrackerReuse Coalitions & Groups -
Host Brooking Gatewood sits down with Jessica Gonzalez, founder of Happen Ventures, to talk about their creative reuse business logistics services that solve waste problems, support communities, and creates a new climate-conscious business niche in the circular economy. From redistributing truckloads of unused PPE headed for the trash to connecting amputees to single shoes from display windows, learn about some scrappy match-making between excess product and unexpected markets that has diverted over 80,000 tons of usable products from landfill to date.
Resources:
Happen Ventures Tax Savings Calculator -
Hear the inspiring story of Maryland Department of Aging’s Durable Medical Equipment (DME) Reuse Program, one of the winners of the 2024 Reusies Community of the Year Award. Program director Ian Edwards sits down with host Brooking Gatewood to share their recipe for success in reusing wheelchairs, walkers, hospital beds and more in Maryland—and how other states can follow suit to improve lives while saving money, carbon, and landfill waste.
Resources:
aging.maryland.govthereusies.org -
Post Landfill Action Network (PLAN) has been cooking up some serious systemic change strategies for college campus reuse programs. As a follow up to last Fall’s episode 140, we check in with Atlas Program staff Lisa Smart plus students Abby White and Katin Kendrana to talk about the latest developments in this long-term strategic initiative to transform reuse in campus dining across the country.
Resources:
PLAN's Atlas ProgramReusable To-Go ManualReusable To-Go ROI Calculation Course infoEpisode 140: A higher education in reuseThe Reusies -
When Leslie Bateman left New York City, she was shocked to discover how hard it was to find shoe repair in her new town. A new business, Coblrshop, was born when she met business operations maven Emily Watts, and together they set out to modernize how cobblers and customers connect. Join us for a candid chat about the challenges and joys of building the leather repair start-up that, less than two years into operations, impressed our Reusies Judges enough to land the win for Most Innovative Company in Fashion & Apparel at The Reusies 2024.
Resources:
https://www.coblrshop.com/https://getcoblr.com/www.thereusies.org -
Christiana Dujardin, who works within the Materials & Circular Economy Platform at Systemiq, served as lead analyst on a 2023 Ellen MacArthur Foundation report all about returnable reusable packaging and its economic and environmental impact compared to single-use, called Unlocking A Reuse Revolution - Scaling Returnable Packaging. She sits down with guest host, Upstream’s Policy Director Sydney Harris, to share key insights from the report on how we might design a returnable packaging system that can compete economically, environmentally and experientially with single-use.
Resources:
Unlocking a Reuse Revolution - paper overview and downloadReuse Solutions Network meeting summaryJoin the Reuse Solutions NetworkSystemiq -
How are reuse, climate change, and environmental justice related? In intricate and myriad ways, it turns out—which guests Holly Kaufman of the Plastics & Climate Project, circular economy expert Rich Grousset, and Jo Banner of the Descendants Project explore in depth in this recording of the summer Reuse Solutions Network (RSN) meeting.
Resources:
Sign up for the RSNThe Plastics and Climate ProjectThe Circularity Gap ProjectEllen MacArthur Foundation, Butterfly Diagram: Visualizing the Circular EconomyThe Descendants ProjectPlastics: The costs to society, the environment, and the economyThe Minderoo-Monaco Commission on Plastics and Human Health -
Learn about the growth and evolution of a small community group that is a force for change in Upstate New York—taking on issues from artificial turf to BYO campaigns, to Skip the Stuff legislation. It is this latter action that spurred Yayoi Koizumi, founder of Zero Waste Ithaca and co-founder of BYO-US Reduces, to contact Upstream for help in making the case for Skip the Stuff. Leveraging our powerful software tool, Chart-Reuse, we were able to crunch the numbers to create localized data and show that, for example, $32000 could be saved in waste hauling and 350 tons of trash prevented from landfills if foodservice businesses refrained from handing out unnecessary single-use utensils, napkins, straws, etc. Yayoi and guest host Cerise Bridges discuss the power of good data in influencing businesses and legislators—plus insights into the ongoing barriers and challenges in making change.
Resources:
Zero Waste IthacaCampaign against artificial turf at Cornell BYO-US ReducesChart-ReuseZero Waste ChefSkip the Stuff campaign materialsEpisode 160: From cafeteria to community: students launch reuseChart-Reuse Case Studies -
Upstream CEO Crystal Dreisbach sits down with host Brooking Gatewood to talk about her first year on the job, about Upstream’s strategic vision refresh, and some exciting new tools and model projects in the works to help build infrastructure and normalize reuse in the years to come.
Resources:
Upstream’s Strategic VisionPutting Reuse into Practice The National Park Foundation ProjectThe ReX PrizePodcast: The Reuse Playbook for StadiumsPodcast: Upstream CEOs pass the baton -
Host Brooking Gatewood sits down with Manuela Zoninsein, the CEO & Founder of Kadeya, winner of the Most Innovative Company in the Food and Beverage category for the 2024 Reusies. Learn the secret to Kadeya’s 99% bottle return rate, and how their patented closed-loop beverage system can eliminate single-use bottles forever while saving GHGs, eliminating threats from microplastics and unstable supply chains, and increasing worker hydration.
Resources:
www.thereusies.orgwww.kadeya.comwww.plasticfreejuly.org -
Upstream was recently at GreenBiz’s Circularity 24 conference in Chicago, where as part of The Reusies, we organized a special panel discussion on the “secret sauce” to scaling circular systems. Bringing together thought leaders from multiple corners of the reuse and circular economy movement, Upstream’s CEO Crystal Dreisbach engaged panelists in a rich discussion about the key ingredients to make reuse an irresistible dish. Tune into this recording to learn from Caroline Vanderlip, Founder & CEO at Re:Dish; Elizabeth Balkan, Director of ReLoop North America; Jennie Romer, Deputy Assistant Administrator for Pollution Prevention at the US EPA; and Nicole Cerroni, VP of Sustainability at L’Oreal.
Resources:
Watch the video recording of the panelRe:DishReLoopL’OrealThe Reusies -
When you hear the expression “the kids are alright,” it’s referring to Sophie Horvath and Joshua Swift-Rawal, students at Berkeley High School in California. The friends noticed that a lot of their favorite restaurants were using single-use products, despite new reuse laws in their city, and they decided to do something about it. They started a project to launch a reusable container pilot at their school, with a vision of expanding city-wide. Sophie and Josh share how they navigated working with city and school officials to make the case for reuse, lessons they learned, and inspiring insights to help others bring reuse to their schools and communities.
Resources:
About the Reusable Container Pilot ProgramMore about the Berkeley Disposable Foodware PolicyEpisode 113: Introducing Chart-Reuse -
Stadiums are high-leverage anchor venues for developing reuse ecosystems in metro areas. With around 350 million fans attending sports and other large-venue events each year in the US—and using approximately 3 billion single-use items—the social and business cases for shifting to reuse are becoming increasingly clear. The Green Sports Alliance has worked with key venues and implementation partners to create the new Reuse Playbook, launching in June 2024—to share best practices, key considerations, inspiration, and lessons learned for anyone looking to make reuse happen at scale in their cities. Listen in to learn more from Michael Kraus of Green Sports Alliance, Brittany Saulsbury of the Portland Trail Blazers, and Jocelyn Quarrell of Bold Reuse.
Resources:
Green Sports Alliance PlaybooksPortland Trail Blazers/Rip City ReuseBold ReuseEpisode 156: Reuse RockstarsEpisode 81: Reuse for the Win! Reducing Waste in SportsIndisposable Live: Reuse Wins at Events -
Join us as we navigate the ins and outs of the negotiations for a global plastic pollution treaty with Jamala Djinn, Policy Advisor for Break Free From Plastic, and Rachel Radvany, Environmental Health Campaigner for the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL). These stalwart strategists have been involved in all four of the “INC” (Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee) meetings since 2021, including the most recent in Canada. They sit down with host Brooking Gatewood to talk about the challenges and possibilities in the treaty process—and how we can all make a difference in this historic effort.
Resources:
CIEL: Plastic Global Law & PolicyBFFP: Key demands for INC-4 delegatesUpstream: 5 takeaways from the draft plastics treatyINC-4 -
With a background and passion for youth mentorship and career development, Bryan Lewis leads GreenBiz.org’s Emerging Leaders program, which aims to elevate, cultivate and support the next generation of BIPOC leaders in the climate community. The Emerging Leaders will be featured at Circularity 24 in Chicago, where Bryan will also be emceeing the fourth annual reuse awards, The Reusies. In this special episode, guest host, Upstream’s Chief Marketing Officer Vanessa Tiongson, sits down with Bryan to talk about the importance of empowering the next generation of diverse leaders, the need for more underrepresented young professionals to connect with leaders in the sustainability industry, and the necessity of a just transition to a sustainable future.
Resources:
Greenbiz.org: Emerging Leaders ProgramThe Reusies at CircularityBryan Lewis’ Keynote Talk at GreenBiz 24 (video)Q&A with Bryan Lewis and Kristy Drutman at The 2023 Reusies (video)Climate Justice Alliance - Just Transition -
From Hollywood sets to festival stages, this conversation with Dianna Cohen and Annie Rothschild Farman of Plastic Pollution Coalition is filled with inspiring examples of how all-star and up-and-coming artists, event planners, and activists are working together to change culture and reduce plastic pollution and waste at events. A great listen for touring musicians, festival goers, and beyond.
Resources:
BYOBottle.orgMusic Sustainability AlliancePPC Webinar SeriesIndependence from Plastic: A ‘Micro’ Plastic-Free Film ContestEpisode 15: Force of Nature -
The Town of Banff, located in Canada’s first National Park and UNESCO World Heritage Site, receives over 4 million visitors each year and has no landfills or recycling facilities—presenting both unique opportunities and challenges to achieving the Town’s goal of moving toward zero waste. In 2023, they passed a pioneering Single-Use Item Reduction Strategy & Bylaw (for which they won a Community of the Year award at The Reusies) requiring reusables for on-site dining as well as a strategy focused on reduction and reuse tailored to their unique tourism-based context. Learn from Environmental Coordinator Carla Bitz about the grassroots efforts that led to passage of this law, how it’s going, and what others can learn from Banff’s example. Plus, check out the Reuse for Onsite Dining Library linked in the resources that we hope will help other advocates pass similar laws in their community!
Resources:
Town of Banff Zero Waste Action PlanReuse for Onsite Dining Library Policy Brief: What does it take for municipalities to require reusables for on-site dining?The ReusiesBerkeley’s Foodware Reduction Law - Show more
