Wasted Tales

Eleanor is an eco-coffin, designed to facilitate the reunion of humans and earth at the end of life. She reflects on the estrangement of humans and nature, caused by our dichotomous thinking, and reminds us of our belonging to the eco-system. 

The young Chip shares his playful experiences as a reusable cup: from having to swallow coffee to being tickled in the dishwasher. Chip is accompanied by his grandfather, Charles, a disposable plastic cup. And while Chip describes his daily life, Charles discusses the generational differences between them, as well as the potential future of all cups.  

Will the water bike prides himself in his ability to spark joy in all age groups on hot summer days. During the pandemic, Will spent a lot less time carrying happy passengers around Dutch canals. Despite the lonely months, Will gets involved in an inspiring project with local students. Find out how this project gives him a whole new function in keeping Dutch canals clean and plastic-free! 

Huxley is not your regular pair of headphones. Being made of seven modules, he is infinitely repairable and therefore, completely circular! Find out what a day in Huxley’s life looks like, as the human’s essential companion in the COVID-19 pandemic.  

Cleo the brick-and-mortar concept store lives and breathes slow fashion, creating an immersive retail experience for all customers that walk through her doors. After years of abandonment by retailers who did not see her strengths, find out how her current retailer helped Cleo reach her full potential. 

Walter the wastebin is nearing retirement. With a long career working in a prison under his belt, he has seen it all. But is his waste management system too outdated to meet the modern demands of waste disposal? Walter reflects on his role in the system, and where waste bins could be headed.  

Tess the Tomato shares her journey of traveling from greenhouse to kitchen and the harrowing love story that accompanied her. Through trial and tribulations Tess comes face to face with the stark reality of food waste in a tomato’s world.  

Penelope the polyester jacket discusses her transition from her past form as Polly the plastic bottle, to a fashionable and circular rPET jacket. How did she get here? And what does she think about her new life?for more information please visit our website https://www.thehagueuniversity.com/research/centre-of-expertise/projectdetails/podcast-wasted-tales

Stefano the solar panel finds himself in a Dutch village named America, as part of an experiment. As the star in this small town, can Stefano live up to the pressure of being the key to community acceptance of noise walls in the region? For more information about Stefano and the Wasted Tales Podcast please visit https://www.thehagueuniversity.com/research/centre-of-expertise/projectdetails/podcast-wasted-tales

In this bonus material we present you Laura Stevens the voice of Fiona. Laura Stevens is a PhD candidate at the Mision Zero research group of the Hague University of applied Sciences. She researches education on Bio-Mimicry. Fiona, one of millions of disposable facemasks born from the covid-19 pandemic, ends up in an unexpected place. She meets fantastic creatures whose wisdom leads her to dream of ideal future generations of disposable face masks. Can they be made in such a way that they have minimum negative impact on fragile eco-systems?For more information on our podcast, see https://www.thehagueuniversity.com/research/centre-of-expertise/projectdetails/podcast-wasted-talesThis episode is based on the graduation project of design student Mari Genova. You can find an interview with Mari about her project here: https://www.thehagueuniversity.com/about-thuas/thuas-today/news/detail/2021/02/02/the-greatest-designer-is-nature-circular-facemaskMore information on Urban Metabolism: https://www.thehagueuniversity.com/research/research-groups/details/urban-metabolism

Fiona, one of millions of disposable facemasks born from the covid-19 pandemic, ends up in an unexpected place. She meets fantastic creatures whose wisdom leads her to dream of ideal future generations of disposable face masks. Can they be made in such a way that they have minimum negative impact on fragile eco-systems?For more information on our podcast, see  https://www.thehagueuniversity.com/research/centre-of-expertise/projectdetails/podcast-wasted-tales This episode is based on the graduation project of design student Mari Genova. You can find an interview with Mari about her project here: https://www.thehagueuniversity.com/about-thuas/thuas-today/news/detail/2021/02/02/the-greatest-designer-is-nature-circular-facemaskMore information on Urban Metabolism: https://www.thehagueuniversity.com/research/research-groups/details/urban-metabolism

Hello and welcome, you’re listening to Wasted Tales, where we will be bringing you into the lives and minds of waste and other materials within the circular economy. My name is Kim Poldner and I am a professor of Circular Business at the Centre of Expertise Mission Zero where we conduct integrated research to come up with regenerative solutions for a more sustainable future. By making inanimate objects key protagonists in this podcast, we aim to provide an alternative perspective to the circular economy discourse. What do these materials and artefacts experience? How do they view us humans in processes of recycling, repair and repurpose? And what can we learn from them?For more information please find us at https://www.dehaagsehogeschool.nl/onderzoek/kenniscentra/details/kenniscentrum-mission-zero