The second part of my conversation with circular economy pioneer Sophie Thomas is now available. In this episode Sophie and I discuss the complexities of implementing circularity and creating circular products. Sophie also tells us about her exciting new venture studio, etsaW Ventures, which is dedicated to finding, funding and developing innovation in the circular economy and sustainable business, with a particular focus on creating new materials.
My overall takeaway from the conversation with Sophie is just how hard implementing circularity is. It is really hard. There are numerous complexities and system challenges, especially for everyday, mass produced items such as crisp packets. However, there are a lot of exciting developments in this space, including legislation which will force companies to think differently about the responsibilities they have when they make products. Businesses will need the same focus on the recovery chain as they have had on the supply chain for many years. These chains need to become one and inform strategy, thinking and perhaps most importantly, intent from a product’s or service’s conception.
Business leaders, designers, strategists and innovators in all their guises can exert influence through challenging briefs, rethinking the criteria that defines a great product and to strive for more than just sustainable business. In Sophie’s words that close out this episode the goal is for regenerative design – ” We don’t make good. We don’t make less bad. We make better. That’s where we need to get to.”
Thanks for listening.
Episode Links:
Sophie Thomas on Linkedin
Sophie Thomas on Twitter
Thomas Matthews consultancy
Useful Simple Trust
etsaW Ventures
Lee Sankey
Founder, Door
October 2022
