Sometimes the missing piece of the jigsaw puzzle is where it all began…
For an organisation of people passionate about preserving the natural environment, we spend way more time in the plastic recycling or textiles workshop than we spend in the natural environment. To be frank, this does make sense. We do run a plastic recycling workshop and deliver interventions to keep clothing use for longer.
However in 2023 we did something that may not have made sense if looking in from the outside of the organisation. We introduced a focus on plant-based practices.
Why did Wastesmiths broaden its focus to waste and weeds?
To quote permaculture ethics: earth care, fair share, and people care.
As a small voluntary organisation we seek allies from across our communities, and plants are incredible allies in the work that we do. Our plant allies offer earth friendly alternatives to the things we’re trying to prevent polluting the environment. Plant based alternatives to plastic aren’t a new thing though they’re increasingly exciting. In Precious Plastic’s newly launched Version 5, researching plant alternatives to plastic is a core focus. Plants also offer all kinds of textiles and dye alternatives for clothing. We’re not looking to replace our plastic recycling workshop or our clothing interventions, though our plants allies will sit perfectly alongside to make our practice richer.
What’s more we know in the abundance of the natural world there is surplus, whether that’s food scraps like onion skins or coffee grounds, or foraged oak galls and dandelion root. Working with plant allies in textiles and plastic alternatives offers the opportunity to return natures surplus resource to our communities in the form of useful things.
Finally, plants can be extraordinary allies in our care for ourselves and our communities who are doing the important work of reducing the impact of human waste on the environment. This Saturday we gathered with Cata to reconnect with our Aylsham community, to develop deeper connections with our local native plants, and to prepare fire cider for the season ahead. Fire cider is a powerful tonic to boost the immune system through the winter, and gathering in community to make it feels like an important way to make the changing of the seasons.
Wastesmiths began when a community of people who are passionate about preserving the natural environment decided to organise to reduce the impact of human waste. Rediscovering the role of our plant allies in achieving our aims and realising our values has put a love of the natural environment back into a day job of wrestling plastic and tangling with textiles.
Wastesmiths C.I.C. 
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