This week is the European Week for Waste Reduction, where people across Europe are encouraged to draw awareness to sustainable resource and waste management. It is therefore the perfect opportunity to once again highlight a few organisations that are tackling unnecessary waste in the event and sport industries. A few weeks ago, for Recycling Week, we had the pleasure of conducting a Q&A series with these organisations – here is how it went!
Darren Evans, Founder, Pair Ups
Firstly, we spoke to Darren Evans, Founder of Pair Ups. Pair Ups provides puncture repair kits for running trainers in an effort to extend their lifecycle and reduce waste.
- What is Pair Ups all about?
- At Pair Ups we provide puncture repair kits for running trainers to enable runners to repair small rips and tears in the trainer upper, extending the life of their favourite trainers.
- What inspired you to start Pair Ups?
- 3 years ago Dan Lawson (Ultra Runner and co-founder of Rerun Clothing) showed me how to repair a pair of my Inov8 trainers that had ripped on the upper. I got an extra 300 miles out of them. I thought it would be good to create a repair kit for runners to repair their own trainers and give tips on how to care and repair trainers.
- How can someone get involved?
- Visit the PairUps website for more information or come and visit us at the National Running Show in January next year.
- What are your pet peeves in the running industry?
- Kit over production – “The most sustainable kit is the one we already own”. The recent single-use Adidas trainer is a perfect example of how bad this is getting. Race Organisers creating unnecessary waste e.g. free t-shirts, plastic bottled water at aid stations and accepting fossil fuel sponsors. Fossil Fuels have no place in any sport!
Gavin Fernie-Jones, Founder & President, Re-Action
Next, we spoke to Gavin Fernie-Jones, Founder & President of Re-Action. Re-Action is focused on promoting the circular economy in outdoor sports.
- What is Re-Action all about?
- Re-Action is a global not-for-profit network that promotes the circular economy in the outdoor sports industry. Our members include sports retailers, clubs, and not-for-profits who aim to engage and educate their communities on saving resources, reducing waste, and cutting carbon emissions. In doing so, the Re-Action network is making snow sports, cycling, running, climbing, surfing, sailing and getting outdoors in the right kit more affordable and accessible.
- What inspired you to start Re-Action?
- I’ve lived and worked in the outdoor industry since I was 10, when my parents moved to the Peak District to run an outdoor activity center. For 15 years I have owned two ski shops in the French Alps, during which time the impacts of climate change have become more noticeable. A ski resort is a place with a lot of excess and this made me start to think critically about my role in society. Having spent 32 years in the outdoor industry, I realised that I could use my wealth of skills and understanding to play a role in constructing a new future.
- How can someone get involved?
- Great question. Well if you’re an organisation then join the collective! It’s free to be a member and you’ll become part of a community that is sharing ideas and driving change at a global scale. Each organisation just needs to adhere to our manifesto, which is on Instagram. If you’re an individual then hold fire. We’re in the process of building a carbon literacy course as well as a report filled with info on how you can join community action!
- What is your biggest pet peeve in the outdoors industry?
- The dreaded race tees. We’re currently trialling a project with Preloved Sports, who rescue sports gear from landfill and often end up with race finisher tees. While we’d like to encourage all races to drop the tees, we still need to deal with the garments that exist. The trial involves rebranding these garments with new logos and is part of a wider re-branding scheme we plan to offer. Using a new social media platform called Curv, where you can follow movements, we’re building a service where people can send in their own clothing for us to add a movement’s logo.
Tony Piedade, Campaign CEO, JogOn
Our third Q&A was with Tony Piedade, Campaign CEO of JogOn. JogOn prevents perfectly good running shoes from going into landfill and instead gives them to people who need them – helping the environment and communities.
- What is JogOn all about?
- JogOn has a very simple purpose, to divert perfectly good (but used) running shoes, to those that need them and to prevent “end of life” shoes from going into landfill where they could take up to 1,000 years to degrade.
- What inspired you to start JogOn?
- I read an article in the Guardian that said that it could take up to 1,000 years to degrade a pair of running shoes. That is a scary statistic! When I did some research to see what services were out there to try and tackle this I could not find one that was both national and had an easy process… So I created one.
- How can someone get involved?
- The best way is to visit our website and socials and help spread the word. We need everyone in the UK to know what we are here and ready to help. If you have any unwanted shoes at home, box them up and send them to us. Anyone in the UK can send us up to 35 pairs of running shoes ( max 15kg) for a set fee of £2 – that is half a penny per shoe!
- What is your pet peeve in the running industry?
- The thing that frustrates me the most are ”sample shoes” where retailers are provided with 1 shoe, so they can touch and feel the product. These are perfectly good shoes that can be used by someone, but instead we often end up with boxes of shoes, of different sizes and never have a matching pair. That is such a waste. I have developed the technology to pair them up, but that would require brands to divert them all to us
Chantall Kerr-Sheppard, Director, Event Cycle
Our final Q&A was with Chantall Kerr-Sheppard, Director of Event Cycle. Event Cycle help to give event-related items a new lease of life post-event, by giving it to schools, charities and community organisations who need them.
- What is Event Cycle all about?
- Providing event organisers with sustainable solutions that have a social impact too!
- What was the inspiration behind Event Cycle?
- During the pandemic, we recognised that with events on hold and agencies and suppliers closing down, there was a risk of valuable event-related items going to waste. So we created a solution matching leftover assets with charities, community groups, social enterprises and schools and we built from there. Now we work with agencies to reduce waste and integrate donations into the event planning process itself.
- How can someone get involved?
- Event organisers can email us to organise a meeting and charities can sign up via the button on our website.
- What is your pet peeve in the events industry?
- Short-term thinking – think about sustainability and social value from the start and you’ll likely save time and money too, all whilst having a positive impact!
Overall, these organisations serve as great examples of the impact we can make in reducing unnecessary waste and how this can return to benefit communities. As we celebrate the European Week of Waste Reduction, let us continue to learn from and support those who are making a difference.
