39 Ways to Save the Planet

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Tom Heap and Dr Tamsin Edwards uncover fresh ways to save the planet from climate change.

BBC Radio Four, in partnership with the Royal Geographical Society, presents 39 ideas to relieve the stress that climate change is exerting on the planet.

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39 Ways to Save the Planet: Buy Less Stuff

Buy Less Stuff

BBC Radio 4 - 39 Ways to Save the Planet, Buy Less Stuff

Can we consume less by sharing more, finding new homes for old stuff and using it smartly?

We're using up our resources. How much carbon can we save by designing better, keeping things in use and using what we have more intensively. Tom Heap hears how change is coming.

From clothes to cars and buildings, all our new 'stuff' takes energy and resources to produce. If we want to cut down the use of high carbon materials like steel and cement then we need a new attitude.  We need to think about sharing more and valuing what we have, we need products that are designed to last longer. 

Tom Heap meets Aisling Byrne from clothing app NUW. Concerned about the impact of fast-fashion on the environment, she found that lecturing friends who loved fashion didn't change their minds or behaviour, so she's designed a clothes-sharing app for people to put unwanted clothes into new hands and get the excitement of something 'new' in return. It can stop the demand for brand new products at the top end and avoid landfill at the other end. Professor Julian Allwood of Cambridge University expands on how much our desire for bigger and better is impacting on resources and how behaviour change needs to come sooner rather than later. 

Producer: Anne-Marie Bullock
Researcher: Sarah Goodman

Produced in association with the Royal Geographical Society. Special thanks for this episode to Dr Mike Tennant of Imperial College London, Dr Sonali Diddi of Colorado State University, Professor Jana Hawley of the University of North Texas and Professor Sandy Black of the London College of Fashion.

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

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