Sustainable Scotland At Work believes in the Conscious Economy: As citizens, everything we purchase or consume should be a force for good.

That’s why Fiona’s developed a brand new method of podcast sponsorship that makes every download of the show count towards something great and diverts the show’s profits towards worthy causes here in Scotland.

Hear about what’s in store in season 3 of the show, due to be released in Autumn 2021, and how Fiona’s changing things up to seek a season sponsor with a twist.   

Links to all things discussed:

• All the details for this unique donate per listen model  

Follow the show on Instagram and LinkedIn.  

Fiona’s gone out on a limb with this episode folks! 

She’s knocking down Hadrian's Wall and welcoming Yorkshire lad, Dan Pawson onto the show to find out about his business journey growing the sustainable snack brand, Sea Chips. 

Dan talks to Fiona about the unusual circumstances he found himself in which led him to perform the ultimate feat of up-cycling - transforming leftover salmon skins into a high end, nutrient-packed snack. 

Fiona explores the brand's zero waste mentality, finds out how Dan has grown the brand internationally and asks why on earth he opted to politely decline an investment offer from Dragons Den.  

Links to all things discussed:

Sea Chips - Find out more about the sustainable snack brand here.

Grab a box of Sea Chips from Amazon and try this room dividing snack for yourself.

Sea Snax - Share these fishy treats with your pooch with Dan’s dog-friendly version of the salmon skin snack. 

Dan’s podcast recommendations - Dan points us towards 2 chart-topping podcasts. Off Menu The food/comedy podcast with James Acaster and Ed Gamble, and The Joe Rogan Experience big-time comedian Joe Rogan’s podcast. 

Fiona is joined by Martin Macleod, co-founder of the Hebridean Seaweed Company based on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland’s beautiful Outer Hebrides. 

Martin tells Fiona about the versatility and endless uses of seaweed, this lesser known champion of the aquatic world. Martin also takes the time to explain the company’s unique and intriguing method of harvesting seaweed sustainably, likening their process to painting the Forth Road Bridge. Is that every Scotsman’s favourite analogy?!

Another show full of wonder. Settle in to oooh and ahhh. 

Links to all things discussed:

Hebridean Seaweed Company - For more info on the company’s history and unique harvesting processes. 

Ishga - Premium range of handmade, seaweed, skincare products created by the Hebridean Seaweed Company.  

Scottish Natural Heritage - Now called Nature Scot, this is the leading environmental body in Scotland for the regulation of sustainable seaweed harvesting.  

Crown Estate - The seaweed on the coastline of the Isle of Lewis is property of the Crown Estate and they have licensed the Hebridean Seaweed Company to sustainably harvest this seaweed for commercial purposes.   

SEPA - Scottish Environment Protection Agency, these guys play a role in protecting our marine environments and are part of the overall regulation that the Hebridean Seaweed Company needs to comply with. 

Marine Scotland - A directorate of the Scottish Government, here’s a handy link to an explanation of the responsibilities of Marine Scotland. 

The Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS) - Independent, not for profit entity that researches our marine environments to educate and communicate for its improvement. The Hebridean Seaweed Company worked with SAMS to map the seaweed stocks on the Isle of Lewis so they could develop sustainable harvesting thresholds.

In episode 3 of Season 2: Our Oceans, Fiona chats to Andrew Scott the CEO of Orbital Marine Power. 

Andrew expertly explains the basic science behind using our ocean’s tides as a clean, powerful and predictable source of renewable energy, and more specifically talks to us about his company’s pioneering use of a floating turbine to create energy from the tidal streams around Orkney.   

This episode is a fantastic introduction to one of Scotland’s lesser-known industries within the renewable sector. Stand aside wind, solar and hydrogen - today we’re talking tidal energy!

As well as taking Fiona through the science and the nuts and bolts of how it all works, Andrew opens up about what else is needed in the wider market for a new energy industry like this to really take off. 

This episode is a real blend of discussion on Scotland’s cutting edge science, innovation and the importance of our Government’s role in assisting new, green technologies to enter the mainstream.  

Links to all things discussed:

Orbital Marine Power - check out their website and follow them on social media. 

Neil deGrasse Tyson, Explains the Tides - This is the video Fiona refers to as a helpful, visual aid for understanding how tides work.  

Turning The Tide: Orbital’s Mission - A great short video to explain Orbital Marine Power’s mission, technology and some stunning cinematography to boot. 

Orbital Marine’s technology explained - Dive a little deeper and learn more about the technological innovations Andrew and Fiona discuss in today’s show. 

The O2 - The most powerful tidal turbine in the world. 

Andrew’s podcast recommendations - Ways to Change the World with Channel 4 News Reporter, Krishnan Guru-Murthy, here’s a link to the episode with Chris Boardman which Andrew listened to the night before our chat.

In episode 2 of Season 2: Our Oceans, Fiona chats to Andy Bing, Co-Founder of Loch Duart. Their conversation unwraps one of the biggest, murkiest and lucrative industries in Scotland that somehow we know very little about, Fish Farming. 

As leaders in sustainability, Andy and his team at Loch Duart are well placed to give us special insight into how Scotland can balance commercial fish farming whilst protecting our precious marine environments. 

Tune in to discover the amazing process involved in rearing a salmon sustainably direct from a salmon farmer. Spoiler Alert: There are helicopters involved!

Links to all things discussed:

Loch Duart - Read up some more on today’s guest. 

Marine Stewardship Council - The key body mentioned by Andy that regulates sustainable fishing practices. This website is packed full of interesting reads!

Andy’s podcast recommendations - Private Passions like Desert Island Discs but with a classical twist. 

Fiona kicks off season 2: Our Oceans, with Paula Duffy, a scientist who has hung up her lab coat in favour of another mission, to make science accessible to the masses. 

Paula’s working with up and coming Scottish Biotech company, CuanTec as they put our nation’s seafood waste to good use: Creating a sustainable alternative to plastic from the mountains of discarded shells left by seafood processors.   

Paula helps Fiona to explore the frustrating issue of ever-increasing volumes of plastic pollution winding up in our oceans and together they take a deeper look into why recycling isn’t the answer. 

Thanks to Paula we cover a lot of science in this episode with none of the jargon or head-scratching. 

Links to all things discussed:

CuanTec - Find out more about CuanTec’s mission to create waste saving bioplastics.  

Breaking the Plastic Wave Report - The report where Paula takes her reference for, “11 million metric tonnes of plastic entering the ocean each year, and increasing!” The report is a comprehensive look at the different options available to us to end the issue of plastic pollution.

European Marine Science Park - This hub of experimentation in marine science is where CuanTec call home. 

Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre (IBioIC) - An entity to drive forward and support development for Scotland’s Biotechnology industries. IBioIC connects industry, academia and government and facilitates collaborations, provides scale-up capabilities, creates networks and develops skills.

Scottish Enterprise - Scotland’s primary provider of free enterprise support. 

Highlands and Islands Enterprise -  Similar to Scottish Enterprise but tailored to the needs of our business community in the highlands and islands. 

Scottish Edge - An annual competition to identify and support Scotland’s entrepreneurial talent. CuanTec are winners from 2017.  

Sky Ocean Ventures - a £25 million investment fund set up the media giant, Sky, supporting business solutions that will put an end to ocean plastics. 

John Lewis JLab Innovation - A partnership programme set up by John Lewis & Partners to get innovative retailing ideas from business concept to shop floor. 

Paula’s podcast recommendations - Table Manners Jesse Ware’s podcast exploring food with her mum and celebrity guests. Paula’s second recommendation was science podcast, Science Vs which takes a different scientific topic in each show and explores the boundaries of what’s possible.   

Scotland's podcast for business and the environment is back for a 2nd season. Here's a taste of what's to come.  

In the final episode of season 1, Fiona welcomes James Longcroft, founder of Choose to the show. 

James talks openly with Fiona about his journey as an entrepreneur and inventor, how overnight he halted sales of his successful bottled water brand to combat rather than contribute to the global plastic pollution crisis. 

James’s realisation that his original business idea wasn’t the best solution after all and his courage to pivot his entire business operation to rectify things is a story we can all take some major life and business lessons from. 

Links to all things discussed:

• Choose - head on over to the website and support James by purchasing a case of washing up liquid or hand soap and give your feedback on the bottle’s design.  

• Indiegogo - The crowdfunding platform James used to kick off Choose. 

• Water For Africa - The charity partner James has been committed to supporting since day one.

• Sky Ocean Ventures - The investment opportunity that helped James progress his bottle design from the prototype stage to large scale manufacturing. 

• Innovate UK - Another very helpful funding opportunity for innovation development that James rates highly. 

• The Great Ocean Clean Up - James reminds us that we can all do our bit to clean up the beaches and waterways around us. ‘If we can go to the moon we can stop a bit of plastic from ending up in the sea.’ 

• James’s podcast recommendations - Off Menu with Ed Gamble and James Acaster & No such Thing As A Fish.

In episode 04 Part 2, Fiona continues her conversation with Iain Findlay founder of the Aurora Sustainability Group and Green Grow Mushrooms.  

As a Sustainability Consultant Iain has one heck of an answer to the question Fiona asks all of her guests, ‘What can the environmentally conscious amongst us do to improve our business ventures or the businesses we work within?’

Iain’s answer talks us through the globally recognised sustainability framework, The Natural Step, and shows us how the core principals can be applied to any business to enact positive change. 

There are of course more fantastic mushroom facts and a plethora of call-outs to green business support initiatives here in Scotland. 

Links to all things discussed:

• Aurora Sustainability Group - The Sustainable business consultancy that Iain and his business partner founded in 2014. 

• Green Grow Mushrooms - The zero-waste mushroom brand started by Iain which has won several awards for its true use of the circular economy. 

• The Natural Step Framework - More on this universally accepted framework for sustainability that Iain has introduced us to. 

• Ellen McArthur Foundation - Award-winning sailor turned environmentalist, Ellen McArthur is at the helm of thought leadership in the Circular Economy. The work being driven by the Ellen McArthur Foundation is truly inspiring, I recommend signing up to their email newsletter. 

• Gunter Pauli, The Blue Economy - A huge source of inspiration for Iain, Gunter Pauli developed a revolutionary concept for the world economy that supports both people and planet. 

• NHS Highland Project - Further reading on the latest project Iain is undertaking with NHS Highland to reduce levels of toxicity in hospital wastewater. 

• Highlands and Islands Enterprise -  Similar to Scottish Enterprise but tailored to the needs of our business community in the highlands and islands.

• Climate Launchpad - the world’s largest green business ideas competition. This is a platform to launch green business ideas. It’s global, it’s tough and it nurtures some incredible new initiatives every year.  

• Climate KIC - A European initiative, closely tied to Climate Launchpad, focussed on developing the innovation required to adapt to climate change. 

• Indi Nature - A really interesting hemp insulation brand operating here in Scotland. Iain became good pals with IndiNature’s founder Scott Simpson during their shared experience of the Unlocking Ambition programme.  

• Undisturbed - Another Scottish start-up in the sustainability space that Iain met during his time in the Unlocking Ambition programme. 

• Scottish Edge - An annual competition to identify and support Scotland’s up and coming entrepreneurs. 

• Unlocking Ambition - A business accelerator programme of the highest esteem. 

In episode 04 Part 1, Fiona welcomes Iain Findlay, founder of the Aurora Sustainability Group and Green Grow Mushrooms to the show.

Iain is a man of many, many hats: He is one half of the sustainable business consultancy, the Aurora Sustainability Group and founder of the award-winning, zero-waste and circular economy agriculture concept, Green Grow Mushrooms.  

With so much to discuss with Iain, we have produced a special 2 part episode. In part 1 hear about how Iain established a zero-waste mushroom brand all in the name of providing his consulting clients with a tangible example of the circular economy. Green Grow Mushrooms has proved to be an award-winning business concept which Iain is set to expand across Scotland in a unique community supported agriculture scheme.

There are also some truly weird mushroom facts to learn along the way! 

Links to all things discussed:

Sustainable Scotland At Work written feature of Green Grow Mushrooms - To learn more about Iain and the Green Grow Mushrooms project read the original piece written by Fiona for Sustainable Scotland At Work in 2019. 

Aurora Sustainability Group - The Sustainable business consultancy that Iain and his business partner founded in 2014. Operating out of Forres, Moray providing support and direction across the entire sustainability agenda. 

Green Grow Mushrooms - The zero-waste mushroom brand started by Iain which has won several awards for its true use of the circular economy. Find out more, get involved or buy a prepacked, zero-waste mushroom risotto.

Highlands and Islands Enterprise -  Similar to Scottish Enterprise but tailored to the needs of our business community in the highlands and islands. 

Climate Launchpad - the world’s largest green business ideas competition. This is a platform to launch green business ideas. It’s global, it’s tough and it nurtures some incredible new initiatives every year.