Hit or Miss? Let us know what you think

Sizzle is about to launch Enrich the Earth our first collaborate project - you can get a sneak preview here https://enrichtheearth.co.uk  The project has been in a constant state of evolution responding to the input and expertise of over 25 diverse organisations with different perspectives and opinions. 

A danger of a collaborative approach is that the core message becomes muddled, branding is diluted and innovation squashed.   The project team can disappear down a confusing rabbit hole of technical detail responding to the expert input of different specialists.

There have been times when Enrich the Earth has fallen into these traps, but we now feel sufficiently comfortable to ask our what people think of the current iteration.  Are we on the right track, what can be improved and does it make sense?

To provide context, here are some of the things that have proved challenging.

Is the ambition sufficiently clear?

We struggled to communicate a complex issue in a simple and compelling manner.  Our best effort is that ‘Enrich the Earth is a diverse movement of organisations seeking to turn waste into nutrient rich gold’.  In short, we want a composting revolution. 

The ambition is to get the maximum value from the estimated 14 million tonnes per annum of green and garden waste UK households throw away each year.  This is a largely undiscussed topic but will gain growing relevance with the likelihood that all UK local authorities will have to start collecting food waste and with government stating they wish to ban the use of peat in horticulture. 

We suspect that it will take time for organisations, media and individuals to grasp the importance of the message and would be intrigued to know whether our initial framing is sufficiently clear and compelling.

Are the core principles strong?

We realised that a diverse coalition can only be held together if there is a set of agreed principles around which the project can coalesce.  We sought to build principles based on the waste hierarchy that could deliver the best financial and environmental impact.  Our five principles are here https://enrichtheearth.co.uk/about-us How do they look to you?

Is the approach credible?

Sizzle is a new and small organisation heading into a space where there are large and experienced players.  In some ways this is advantageous as we can take a fresh stance, challenge conventions, bring in new partners and chivvy others to move faster.  The downside is that organisations question why we are getting involved, they are sceptical that we can make a difference, they fear we will duplicate activities and doubt that we have sufficient knowledge.

To overcome this, we have created an External Advisory Group of diverse organisations, we have appointed four highly respected experts to lead the work streams and the trial area was selected following an open call for applicants resulting in a strong local partnership to deliver the project.  Is there more that we could have done and is this approach sufficiently communicated on the website?

How strong is the branding?

We wanted to create a fresh brand and content that could be used in a wide range of settings from social media through to garden centres.  Finding a name and brand was challenging, what is your view of our chosen route?

From this basis we will create a range of content including a large interactive wormery, point of sale materials, influencer content, policy briefings, infographics and ‘how to’ videos.  Ideally these materials will be sufficiently credibly and compelling to be used by a wide range of organisations.

Is it clear what we want to achieve?

Our aim is to create systemic change and is focussed on four areas.  We want to:

1.     Practically demonstrate that up to 30% food/green waste can be used in a compost providing a viable, cost-effective peat replacement.

2.     Cut the amount of contamination in green and food waste to ensure this material has value.

3.     Reduce the amount of waste handled by local authorities by 500,000 tonnes a year by promoting a composting revolution.

4.     Identify changes in legislation required to get the maximum value from UK household organic waste

Do these aims make sense and are they articulated sufficiently clearly? 

We are convinced that greater collaboration is needed to rapidly address the significant environmental challenges we face.  However, creating these collaborations is time-consuming, risky and complex.  If you have time, it would be great to get your thoughts on the approach we are taking.  Building on this experience we will be looking at other tricky areas to address.  If you wish to get in touch, please email trewin@sizzle.org.uk