Today’s eco snapshot👇🏽
Cash For Trash
Startup of The Week: TAO Climate
5 Brands That Are Tackling The Plastic Crisis
News That Lifted My Spirits This Week
3 Ways I Can Support Your Sustainability Journey
🤑 Cash For Trash
Currys is a top tech retailer in the UK, similar to Best Buy in North America or Croma and Reliance Digital in India.
Currys has a cool program called Cash for Trash, which accepts any old tech you don't need anymore.
In return, you get a discount voucher worth at least £5. It can be spent on any online or in-store purchases.

They either recycle it for free or, if it's still usable, they wipe the data and give it a second life. These refurbished products are then offered to low-income households.
Even if the products aren't working, Currys salvages usable parts like metals and plastics, which are then reused to make new items.
When delivering new products, they can also take back old items for a small fee, ensuring they are recycled, refurbished, or reused.
This initiative significantly reduces e-waste, a growing problem affecting our planet and health.
It also lessens the need to extract raw materials for new products.
Imagine the positive impact if all major tech retailers did the same.
Have you seen similar programs in your area?
Feel free to reply to this email or leave a comment below.
⌛ Time for the quiz of the week
We generate around 40 million tons of electronic waste every year, worldwide. That’s like throwing <X> laptops every second.
Answer at the end of the newsletter. No one (including me) can see your response so feel free to vote 😉
✨ Startup of the week: TAOClimate
This brand is tackling climate change and the housing crisis together by harnessing the power of hemp.
Concrete Consequences…As the global population continues to grow, the demand for housing increases. This leads to a higher need for concrete, which requires more cement. Unfortunately, cement production is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, contributing to about 8% of the total GHG emissions. This exacerbates the climate crisis.
Hemp Haven…TAO Climate has the answer. They're using hempcrete instead of traditional concrete. Hempcrete is an innovative building material made from the woody core of the hemp plant.
Hemp grows quickly, often without pesticides, and acts as a carbon sink- it absorbs and stores carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
So growing hemp reduces atmospheric carbon, and this carbon remains stored even when it is converted into hempcrete blocks.
Using hempcrete also reduces the reliance on concrete, further lowering atmospheric carbon levels.
Eco Blocks…Hempcrete is also biodegradable, so it doesn’t end up in landfills. Instead, it can be composted or reused. TAO Climate converts the CO2 removed by these hempcrete blocks into Hemp Carbon Credits, which individuals and businesses can purchase to reduce their carbon footprint.
✅ 5 Brands That Are Tackling The Plastic Crisis
FabBRICK: Converting textile waste into bricks.
Infinity Box: Replacing single-use food containers with reusable ones.
Matter: Preventing microplastic pollution caused by the clothing industry.
River Cleaning: Intercepting plastic waste in rivers via a series of floating devices.
Shellworks: Sustainable packaging made from a vegan and compostable material.
😹 News That Lifted My Spirits This Week
EU Green Law Approved…The EU has passed the Nature Restoration Law, aiming to rejuvenate 20% of its land and sea by 2030 and all degraded ecosystems by 2050, focusing on carbon-capturing habitats.
Ozone Milestone Achieved...A University of Bristol study shows a notable drop in atmospheric HCFCs, particularly HCFC-22, which has a global warming potential 1910 times that of CO2.
Parks From Plants…Michigan converts old coal plants into havens for nature, wildlife, and solar power.
💁🏼 3 Ways I Can Support Your Sustainability Journey
Do you want to be featured in this newsletter and on LinkedIn, where I write impactful stories (almost) every day? Submit your story
If you’re a planet-friendly brand, I can help you with your blogs, newsletters, case studies, and whitepapers. Here’s some of my recent work
If you would like to chat about anything related to sustainability and climate change, you can book a free 20-minute call (booked for June 2024)
Click that 💚 if this added some value to you.
Enjoy your weekend, and see you next week😊