Our story
Initially, we explored three issues – transport, energy, waste – and in the end decided that waste looked like the one where we could do something. We got £20k funding from Esmee Fairbairn Foundation to explore ideas and established Zero Waste Leeds, becoming a local partner of #LeedsByExample.
We want to build a movement to:
• Change how we think about “waste” in Leeds;
• Champion and promote all the fantastic things that are already happening;
• Support new ideas to flourish;
• Help people to join up with others to do more.
We are doing this through a number of different ways, with online resources e.g. a zero-waste directory; with offline events, workshops and talks; and in collaboration with social enterprises, community groups, the Council, public sector, businesses...
We are focusing on four key themes to encourage behaviour change:
• Recycling
• Food Waste
• Garden Waste
• Stuff
Some projects we have developed include reusable coffee cups with indie coffee shops; plastic reduction and recycling at events and festivals; supporting plastic-free workplaces by building on the pledges by the Council, Universities and others.
What have you learnt that others will find most useful?
- Many people want to do the right thing – but you need to make it easy (but that’s not easy).
- You need infrastructure AND good marketing.
- There’s real value in talking to others exploring same issues.
- Be ambitious, be impatient, but be pragmatic too.
Measures of success?
Read more: https://www.zerowasteleeds.org.uk/