Secondhand is first choice for shoppers and businesses helping to end the climate crisis (Perthshire)  

Our guests 

Fiona Gilbert, development manager at Remake Scotland  

Laura Blair, circular economy sector manager for cities & regions at Zero Waste Scotland  

In this episode, we head to Perthshire where the charity Remake Scotland is pioneering the re-use revolution. 

Fiona Gilbert from Remake talks about creative scavenging and how Zero Waste Scotland’s Revolve quality guarantee for secondhand goods is encouraging people to shop differently to help end the climate crisis. 

Laura Blair, from Zero Waste Scotland’s circular economy team, explains how our ‘circular’ cities and regions network helps local textiles manufacturer Halley Stevensons waste less by supplying offcuts to Remake, inspiring a range of sustainable new products. 

Remake’s new ‘tool’ library lets people borrow everything from DIY tools to guitars and bouncy castles – and Fiona’s next big plan is to open Scotland’s first secondhand shopping centre. 

Find out more: 

Zero Waste Scotland provides a range of expert advice and support to help everyone waste less to cut the carbon emissions behind the climate crisis.  

Our Circular Cities and Regions programme was pioneered in Glasgow where we joined forces with the council and chamber of commerce to help businesses and communities. We now work on the programme with councils and chambers across Scotland including our newest circular region, the Highlands and Islands. 

Zero Waste Scotland’s Revolve certification is a national quality guarantee scheme for secondhand goods and customer service. Remake Scotland is one of more than 120 certified stores around the country selling a range of pre-loved items from clothes and books to bikes and furniture. Membership currently costs £100.   

Our Circular Economy Accelerator provides free support to help charities and firms like Remake Scotland and Halley Stevensons textile manufacturer work together to find ways to increase the value of wasted byproducts.  

Zero Waste Scotland’s Circular Economy Business Support Service (CEBSS) provides tailored, one-to-one expert advice for small and medium sized businesses across all sectors in Scotland. 

It’s designed to help companies do business differently to help end the climate crisis by finding more circular ways of working, including alternative supply chains. This can increase resource efficiency, profitability, product quality and customer base. 

Circular economy business models include sharing resources, modular design, re-use and repair, reprocessing and remanufacturing. 

Zero Waste Scotland’s Circular Economy Investment Fund (CEIF), which is financed through the European Regional Development Fund, supports innovative businesses to reduce waste and emissions, create sustainable jobs and attract further investment. 

Nearly £10m has been awarded through the CEIF so far. To apply for funding or find out more click here. 

To find out more about Remake Scotland, including their tool library and re-use container at Perth and Kinross Council’s recycling centre, click here.  

For information on Halley Stevensons click here.