Episode Summary: in this episode of CarbonSessions, we dive deep into a conversation with Nina Davies, joining us from Bath (UK) and co-founder of The Green Runners, a running community making changes for a fitter planet. 

Launched on Earth Day in 2022, "The Green Runners" is a running community dedicated to promoting environmental sustainability and encouraging eco-friendly practices among runners. It was created in response to the urgency highlighted at COP26 in Glasgow. 

Conversation with Nina Davies, one of the co-founders, and CarbonSessions hosts, Leekei, Rob, and Jeremy. Highlights include: 

• The joy and freedom gained from running 
• Bob Graham Round 
• How runners can use running practice as a platform to create a positive impact 
• The Four Pillars of The Green Runners 
• ‘Sportswashing’ and how The Green Runners called companies out 

Tune in to learn how this impactful initiative harnesses the power of community to spark significant environmental change. 

To find out more about The Green Runners go to https://thegreenrunners.com/ 

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For more information on the project and to order your copy of the Carbon Almanac (one of Amazon best-selling books of the year!), visit thecarbonalmanac.org 

Want to join in the conversation? 

Visit thecarbonalmanac.org/podcasts and send us a voice message on this episode or any other climate-related ideas and perspectives. 

Don’t Take Our Word For It, Look It Up! 

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Featuring Carbon Almanac Contributors Leekei Tang, Rob Slater and Jeremy Côté. 

Leekei is a fashion business founder, a business coach, an international development expert and podcaster from Paris, France.  

Rob is from Birmingham in the UK, he is an orthodontist, triathlete, coach and podcaster. 

Jeremy is a scientist, an athlete, a coach, and a writer from Québec, Canada. 

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The CarbonSessions Podcast is produced and edited by Leekei Tang, Steve Heatherington and Rob Slater. 

Hi, I'm Christina.

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I'm from Prague.

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Hi, I'm Jen, and I'm from Canada.

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Hi, I'm Oladunji, and I'm from Nigeria.

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Hello, I'm Liki, and I live in Paris.

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Hi, I'm Brian, and I'm from New York.

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Welcome to Carbon Sessions.

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A podcast with Carbon Conversations

for every day with everyone

9

from everywhere in the world.

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In our conversations, we share ideas,

perspectives, questions, and things we

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can actually do to make a difference.

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So don't be shy and join our Carbon

Sessions because it's not too late.

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Hi, I'm Rob.

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I'm Jerry.

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Hi, I'm Leaky.

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And today, can you see that?

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Yes.

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So lovely.

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Yeah.

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So it's lovely, isn't it?

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I've just received my Green Runners badge.

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And today we have Nina, Nina

Davis, uh, one of the co founders

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of the Green Runners with us.

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Welcome, Nina.

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Niki.

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Hi, Robert.

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Hi, Jeremy.

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Lovely to be here with you.

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And what a fabulous badge there you have.

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Isn't it?

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I just received it today.

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I'm so excited about it because I'm

going to be on the race on Sunday.

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So it was really important for me to have

it before, uh, before this race on Sunday.

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So tell us, you know, um, how

did it get, uh, into running?

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Oh, how did I get into running?

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Um, actually, do you know what?

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I, I have always run.

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I was, um, My dad was into marathons,

like, in the time when like, into

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marathons was quite small, like, you

know, in the, in the seventies when,

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uh, it wasn't such a done thing to just

go out and enjoy yourself in the hills.

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Um, so I remember, like, even from

a little girl, kind of following

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him around the lanes on my bike and

planting water bottles on his long runs.

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And so I guess, you know, running

was a part of my life and I was one

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of those kids that had to sort of.

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Pretend not to enjoy the cross

country when really I did.

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Um, but, um, yeah, so I, I started off

running road marathons and, and, um,

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had a bit of a pause for, you know,

university years and, and then, you know,

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pause again when we had kids and things,

but it's, it's always been there really

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is one of my kind of like stalwarts of,

um, joy in life and, um, you know, and,

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Probably a sort of cornerstone of, kind

of mental health and well being for me.

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But it was, , to be honest, it was when

we got a dog, I really got into running

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because suddenly I got into trail

running and like, you know, discovering

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kind of being able to just be free

in the trails was just an absolute,

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um, yeah, it was a revelation and,

you know, absolutely transcended my

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running into a different space really.

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And so, yeah, combination of that and.

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And thanks to my dad, really.

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My dad was a big hill walker, as I

said, big runner and then hill walker.

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And, um, he, he sadly passed

away from motor neurone disease.

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And he, um, I remember him saying to

my brother and I like, Oh, um, I always

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wanted to do this thing called Bob Graham.

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Bob Graham round and it's a big kind

of time we didn't, my brother and I

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didn't really know what it was and

we were sort of, you know, Oh, don't

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worry, dad, we'll do it for you.

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And, uh, yeah, he had the last

laugh because he obviously, yeah, he

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obviously knew what that would entail.

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And yeah, a couple of years later,

we had our first crack at it and,

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and failed as often people do.

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And then a couple of years later, we did

it again and we did it and, you know, but.

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But really the best part of that

experience was time together with my

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brother and in the hills and recce ing

and getting to know the Lake District.

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And yeah, so long winded answer, but

yeah, running, running is, is, is a big

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part of my life and my family's life.

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So what are the details of that run that

you did and managed to succeed in the end?

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Oh, yeah.

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I'd like to know too.

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, the Bob Graham Round is, uh,

yeah, it's, it's a, it's a lovely

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event actually because it's not,

um, it's not on a specific day.

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It's not a race.

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It's a, it's a challenge to visit

42 peaks in the Lake District.

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It's about 66 miles, um, 27, 000 feet

, and the, the tradition is that you start

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at the town hall and you have to finish

back at the town hall 24 hours later.

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So, um, yeah, I mean.

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We totally maxed out time on the hills.

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We did it in 23 hours and 55 minutes.

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Um, you know, unlike people like Julian

Jarnet, whose record is something like.

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13 hours or something.

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You got more value for money then.

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100 percent Rob.

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Yeah.

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What was your journey into

the, um, green side of running?

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Obviously there's green runners, but that

come first or were there other aspects

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to green running that came before that?

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Yeah, they actually, they, they were

very timely together, I suppose.

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I, um, back in 2008 and 18, I, um, Left

the business I had been in, I'd worked 25

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years in the brand and marketing industry

working for consumer goods businesses

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and, um, I guess the last kind of five

years of that, I was increasingly, um,

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finding it difficult to reconcile the

kind of world that we worked in and, um,

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you know, the challenges we were facing,

um, from a climate point of view, and

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we Danone and, you know, towards the

end, we were being asked to work on, um,

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You know, CSR projects and I, all sorts

of kind of like post rationalization

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that was going on in that world.

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And I, and, you know, so, um, eventually

for me, I decided that, that, um,

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as much as I loved the team I worked

with, my time was up in that space.

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And so, , Yeah, and, and it also coincided

with the kids getting older and just

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wanting to be around a little bit more for

them, which is, it was my own business.

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And as you guys all probably

know, that's pretty full on.

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So, um, yeah, I decided to take a

bit of time out and in that time.

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Wanted to mark that time by really doing,

um, following my passions a little bit

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more, which, which were running and, and,

um, sustainability or, you know, wanting,

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just caring for the, for the planet and

the world that I love to run through.

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Um, It gives so much to me and I just felt

it was time to give something back to it.

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So, um, it, and I also happened to run

in a run group where Damien Hall, um,

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is a member and he, he had just released

his book, um, We Can't Run Away From

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This, which is all about running and

our impact and the carbon footprint of

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running and what we can do about it.

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And yeah, it was all, and.

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That really was the kind of the start

of leaning in with that, with that crew.

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And, um, yeah, and it was funny really.

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And it was just, you know, it was, uh,

started as a kind of WhatsApp group

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as so many of these things do, like,

and, um, you know, and then somebody

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in that WhatsApp group sort of said,

well, you know, all this stuff we're

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talking about is really important.

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You know, Leaky, like you're saying,

like having these conversations

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is so helpful to people.

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There was so much knowledge in that

little WhatsApp group and someone

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just kind of said, well, you know.

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Nothing's happening at cop and like, you

know, the vegan runners is a run club.

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Surely we could be, we could,

couldn't we be a run club, um, for

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people that wanna, wanna run and,

and be more mindful of how they run.

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And, and it kind of, uh, you

know, I'd love to say it was.

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Much more strategic, but it wasn't an

awful lot more strategic than that.

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It was a lot of passionate people,

um, passionate about running and

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environmentalism, some people that work

in environmentalism and, and run, and

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some people that run and passionate.

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So it's a, it's a really

nice mix of people.

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Um, and, uh, yeah, that's, that was

where it started So we, we launched

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it on Earth Day, , April 22nd in 2020.

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Yeah.

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And I should say that, um, running

has become very, very trendy now.

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And, uh, as anything that has become

trendy, uh, we are encouraged to buy

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more stuff , as it becomes more trendy.

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I remember I started running Over 20

years ago, because I wanted to do some

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exercise and, um, and I really, uh,

like the, the, the simplicity and the

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freedom of running, uh, you know, the

simplicity, it's just, you go out with a

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pair of trainers and it just go and run.

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And so that I really, really

loved because somehow I felt.

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I remember the first time I

started running, I felt like

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I was, um, Laura Ingalls.

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I'm a big fan of a little

house in the prairie.

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And so I don't know if you've ever used

you saw this show, but when she was a

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kid, she was so excited that Wherever

she goes, she was always running.

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So it's how I felt.

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I was felt this freedom, this lightness.

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And, and it was 20 years ago.

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And the other day I opened my, you know,

where I put all my running gear because

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it has like, it's a full cupboard of stuff

that I got from that I don't necessarily

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have bought, but it's like, I have all

this, you know, um, t shirts and like

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all the goodies and all the ponchos and.

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All of them, uh, they don't do that

so much these days, but like the water

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bottles and all that, and it just becomes,

you know, what started as something

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very light, simple, has become massive.

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And, oh, not even talking about, you

know, the app that tells you, wow, you've

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been running 600k or 700k with issues and

now you need to change them, you know?

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Yeah, yeah.

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Yeah, we talk about it a lot.

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I mean, it's so weird, isn't it?

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It's something that's so, as

you say, so simple and freeing.

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And also it's something that, um,

you know, that really connects us

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to nature in a purist kind of way.

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And, you know, particularly for people

that run on the trails, but, you know,

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also for people that are running in green

spaces and cities or even, you know,

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even around the pavements where we're

just connect, you know, we're running

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on the earth and yet we've made it

this very performance driven narrative.

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And I think part of that kind of.

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Obsession with performance is probably

also what is driving the consumerism

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in running more because, you know,

people want the better kit and they

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want the faster shoes and they, you

know, they want to, um, they want to

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look for those kind of marginal gains

as it were, but, um, you know, I think

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for me, that's part of the joy of not,

of not running kind of road races.

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It's like, you never really know

what sort of time you're going to get

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and no two races are ever the same.

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So you can kind of just.

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Just forget the times a

little bit and, and enjoy.

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And keeping it simple.

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Yeah.

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When I started running, uh, I, um,

I think I was quite naive, really.

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Um, I suppose I would've been about

17, 17, 18, and, uh, it was just

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a friend that said, uh, should we

go for a run up run on the canals?

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And so we, we started off doing, I think

it was a, um, about two miles and we built

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up to a four mile run that we did every,

every Monday on the Birmingham canals.

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And, um, after about sort of.

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Eight weeks of this, I decided

I'd like to run a marathon and

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say, um, I gave myself a student.

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It was a stupid thing really.

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But, um, four months later I was at

the start line of a marathon and having

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done all this training around, um, uh,

Studley, um, our village, all on the

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pavements, I hated running on grass

because it seemed to sap me of energy.

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I had lots of experience.

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I wrote a diary at the time, which I've

now lost, but I remember putting down,

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I swallowed my first fly as part of the,

uh, you know, experience I was having.

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And, um, it took until many years

later, I was in my late thirties

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when I joined the triathlon club

to actually discover trail running.

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And, and, uh, that really did change

things for me and open water swimming.

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I'd only ever done swimming in a pool.

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So suddenly being.

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Actually at one with nature,

swimming, cycling, and running.

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It was, um, incredible.

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And so trail running is now

one of my favorite things.

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And indeed, you know, last weekend,

uh, my son and I went out to our

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local park, Highbury, and, uh, we

ran with the dog, you know, just.

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And literally 10 minutes away from

where we live, we felt like we were

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in the countryside and yet we're

just one mile from the city center.

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So it's a, it's a lovely experience

wherever you are, really.

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Absolutely.

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What about you, Gerard?

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Yeah.

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And it's really nice to, to get this

sense of being like, even if it's

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not like just full on trails, just

having the sense of being outdoors.

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And I know like for me, I, for a

little bit, I lived in more of a city.

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And I remember just being so, so like,

kind of not confused, but just thinking

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I had to get out of the, you know, like

the concrete and all of these buildings

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within the city when I would go run.

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So I would kind of take the

fastest route out of the city.

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So that I could like minimize the amount

of time I spent running in the city and

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maximize the amount of time I was like

on more, you know, dirt roads and more

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on the countries that's mean to us a

lot of appreciation for being able to do

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this kind of activity, this, this sport.

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Not just within, just within the

roads, not that the roads are bad.

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Like, I mean, those are great too, but

like, for, for me, at least I really enjoy

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you're kind of out on the road alone or

say like with, with some other runners,

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but it's not, or you get out, how to dodge

traffic every 10 seconds and being able

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to just, you know, Just connect a little

bit more, um, with, uh, with the planet.

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Yeah, I think that's the, there are

two aspects to my trail running.

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Some, some of it is I like to go out

on my own with a little rucksack.

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And sometimes I might be gone for

about four hours and stop at somewhere

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and have, um, something to eat.

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But the more regular stuff is training

with other people that I like and, um.

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Where we do loops in the park and it

doesn't matter how slow or fast you are

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and you see people who are starting out

and they get faster and there's people

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like me who are getting older who are

getting slower and gradually moving

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to the back of the, uh, of the pack.

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But it, this, um, there is something of

a buzz about doing something like that in

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the morning and coming home and spending

an hour trying to get rid of all the

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mud off every part of your legs that has

built up over that time that you have.

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Running up and down these hills.

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I was just intrigued Nina as to how green

runners kind of communicate in that way.

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Yeah, I mean, it's really, it's lovely to

hear you talk about that community aspect

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aspect of running because I think that was

the opportunity that we really wanted to.

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Um, to connect with, I guess, you know,

generally runners are, you know, I'm

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probably biased, but runners are kind

of generally sort of positive folks.

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They're, they're doers, they're active,

they're, you know, they're outside.

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They are, you know, connected

to nature in many aspects.

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They do notice the effects of, of

climate change and what's happening

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because they are outside more often.

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And, and so I think, you

know, we felt actually.

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There's a need to, you know, most of

the people that we speak to, and in fact

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this was corroborated by a great piece of

research that was done, um, by Sporting

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Insights with the Running Channel.

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They did some research last year

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was like 98 percent of those runners

said they wanted to do, they wanted

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to take more positive action for

the climate through their running.

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But only kind of 52 percent

were actually doing anything.

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And I think, you know, for us, that,

that represents the opportunity.

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There's definitely a desire within that

community, but often it's that they

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don't know what to do, or they feel

conflicted, or they feel, uh, afraid

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to stick their head above a parapet and

do something and be called a hypocrite

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because they are buying trainers or

whatever, you know, whatever it is.

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And I think for us, that was like, you

know, Let's try and attach something

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that people are finding difficult, as

in taking action and, and, and moving

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their, their intention into action.

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Let's take that difficult thing and

attach it to something that people love,

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attach it into a community where they

feel positive, where they feel a sense

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of belonging, where, where there's, you

know, really tangible things that they

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can do, and that's a real opportunity

to kind of close that, close that gap.

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Yeah.

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From, you know, the people that

want to do more and, and, um, But

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don't really know where to start.

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And so, you know, and, and it

was also about bringing people

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together in a collective.

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I mean, we, we all know, we

all know deep down individual

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actions are not the answer.

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Yeah.

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But like, you can't sort of

hide under a stone and wait for

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everybody else to do something.

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And so for us, it was like.

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The individual action is more about a way

of helping people feel more positive and

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then involving them in collective action,

which is where, you know, we, we feel the

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real power is in our community, um, to,

to, to champion positive change in the

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wider industry and to lobby, um, against

brands and businesses and events that in

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our industry that we don't feel are doing

enough and to do that with a collective,

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positive, engaged, uh, community.

293

Um, So that was where, you know, that

was what drove us to the, and the

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green runners is essentially all around

helping people take, take action.

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So it's not about being perfect,

but it's about doing something and

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we, to make that easier and more

tangible with, for people, we, um,

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developed our kind of four pillars.

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So we have a pillar around, and

Likki, you know this, you've joined.

299

Yeah.

300

I was going to ask you in a minute about

your pledges, but we, we have four pillars

301

around how we, um, how we fuel, how we

move, how we kit up and how we speak out.

302

And when you become a member, you

make a personal pledge to do something

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under each of those four pillars.

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Um, something that suits you, that meets

you where you are in, in your journey.

305

Um, and then, you know, you become

part of that collective and we, we as a

306

collective, um, organize other actions

and activities and initiatives that,

307

that people, our members can get behind.

308

But, um, it's, yeah, like,

I'm, I'm, I'm intrigued.

309

How did you find that process of,

of making pledges and thinking

310

about what you wanted to do?

311

Well, um, I think that, you know, those.

312

Those, those pledges are very

important because, um, I think I'm,

313

I'm, I mean, doing this podcast, I'm

very, uh, familiar and, uh, taking

314

action, uh, to try to help solve the,

uh, climate change problem already.

315

So I'm very conscious about

a lot of different things.

316

I love things that you are, uh, making

people pledge in with the pillars,

317

but, um, but there's still improvement.

318

So that's very good.

319

So maybe, you know, before, um,

me telling you what my pledge.

320

As all my pledges are, maybe we

can go in a little bit more into

321

details of the four pillars.

322

So the first pillar is

how we, how we move.

323

Is it, is it, is it the first pillar?

324

How we move?

325

Yeah.

326

Yeah.

327

Yeah.

328

There's no particular order, but how

we, I mean, this is a really key one in

329

our industry because it's, it's really

about how we travel to and from events.

330

Um, if we're talking about

it just in running and, and.

331

You know, we obviously want to

make it very focused on running

332

because that's our community.

333

But what we have also found is

that you start with running and

334

it snowballs into, you know, your,

your, your way of life, obviously.

335

And that, that's certainly what's

happened for me, but yeah, really

336

there are, you know, there's a lot of.

337

The trail running industry, particularly

the road, make the major marathons, you

338

know, there's a definite kind of running

tourism, um, there's a desire to go to

339

these big popular races, um, that might

be on people's bucket lists and, you know,

340

it was, we, we've, you know, there's many

people that travel all around the world

341

several times a year, um, just to, to

land and run a race and fly out again.

342

And, you know, like I say, the important

thing about the Green Runners is that,

343

you know, and reassuring people is that

nobody's going to suddenly, you know,

344

we're not asking people to suddenly

stop, stop overnight or, but, but

345

it's about thinking about that, how

important those overseas races are.

346

Is there something more local

I could do on my doorstep?

347

Could I just do one of those a year

and make all the other ones more local?

348

Um, and on a day to day basis, perhaps

thinking a little bit more about, You

349

know, how, how you travel to run to a,

to run club if you go every week or,

350

um, car sharing to, to local races.

351

So lots of kind of, you know, very

simple changes that we can all make

352

on a day to day basis, but also in

the way we think about, um, racing and

353

all kind of like, you might've heard

Jasmine Paris talking about Barkley.

354

Yeah.

355

Yeah, she, she just had her incredible,

um, You know, finish at Barclay Marathons,

356

obviously over in, in the States, you

know, and I, I honestly, like, I know one

357

of the things that will have been really

spurring her on in those like last 99

358

seconds before the cutoff was like, Oh my,

for God's sake, I don't want to fly here

359

again and have to give this another go.

360

It was like, that was a really, obviously

difficult decision for her and, you

361

know, the only, only race she's chosen.

362

To fly to in the, in the last sort of

three or four years, um, you know, it has,

363

has been Barkley because that was her,

her, her real kind of, you know, dream

364

focused race and, um, and it has been

incredible in terms of, um, in, in terms

365

of the platform that she's, she's been

able to have off the back of that as well,

366

to be able to talk about, um, the Green

Runners and, and her ethos to running.

367

So, um, yeah, so it's really,

it's, that one's really about,

368

you know, being more mindful with.

369

The events we choose, our day to

day running in terms of our, our.

370

I'll travel for this one.

371

Um, go ahead.

372

Um, yes, we talked to Tina Muir last

year and, um, one of the things that

373

we were talking with about with her

was that, uh, it's, it's these big,

374

um, big races that attract so many

people from all parts of the globe.

375

And yet it's those very organizations

that can probably do more about systemic

376

change, uh, than, than, than anybody else.

377

And so there's that kind

of conflict, isn't there?

378

Between.

379

Between the two, um, but, uh, as you say,

it's trying to be mindful about that.

380

And, um, you know, because if you try and

deny it, you're just complicit, really.

381

Yeah, and I think, you know,

nobody wants to, um, take the

382

joy out of these, you know, the,

these bucket list events either.

383

Yeah, it's like, you know, these are some

of the things that really motivate us

384

and, and are inspiring and certainly are

growing our sport when it comes to kind

385

of, you know, ambassadors and, and the,

the elite runners, so, you know, there are

386

different ways to get to them and there's

definitely, you know, An approach of kind

387

of thinking less, less, but more quality.

388

You know, I, I went to a race a couple

of years ago in Switzerland and, and

389

we made it a family holiday around it.

390

I got the train.

391

It was, you know, the whole

experience was just incredible.

392

Um, I've never been on a

train that goes uphill before.

393

It was, you know, tiniest little rickety

train in the mountains in Switzerland.

394

Um, yeah, it was, it was delightful.

395

Um, and, you know.

396

A few years, you know, 10 years

ago, I probably would have thought

397

nothing of just jumping on a plane.

398

I wouldn't have seen any of that.

399

And, you know, and I would have been

in and out in 48 hours or whatever.

400

Yeah.

401

Uh, for this pillow, I think I'm already

pretty good because I never fly somewhere

402

to be part of the race because, uh,

I'm a runner, but a very casual one.

403

Like I don't have, I'm not, I'm just

trying to compete against myself.

404

So.

405

That's it.

406

Yeah.

407

So that's, that's good enough.

408

If I finish a marathon,

I'm very, very happy.

409

I don't need to do all the big majors.

410

And I live in the city, so it's

easy for me to not, there are a

411

lot of races around me and, uh,

I Cannot even do all of them.

412

And so I don't travel too far to uh to

participate to a race Um, but there's

413

still improvement I can do and though

One of the pledge . i'm trying to

414

To run to where I train, you know,

like to run my training sessions.

415

Now, um, I start to run

to the training session.

416

Uh, which is double, um, you

know, double gain, double win

417

because I get to train more.

418

And, uh, I'm using any

means of transportation.

419

So.

420

So that's my improvement, my slight

improvement in that area, for that pillar.

421

Yeah, perfect warm up before a

run time play, a warm up run.

422

Yeah, and there's lots of little things,

you know, we've sort of focused on, on

423

air travel because that's the biggest,

but you know, even, even on local

424

races, it's, um, you know, car sharing,

encouraging your group to, to car share.

425

We've had little.

426

Little wins about people kind

of like, you know, just little

427

things they've done in their club.

428

Like actually we put the place to

meet for car share rather than the

429

place where the run is going to be.

430

And just by that little shift in

kind of like, in terms of nudging the

431

conversation, they've, they've, you

know, they've encouraged much more, many

432

more people to car share and just break

down that stigma of, you know, perhaps

433

the people that didn't want to before.

434

So yeah, it can be, it can

be very little things too.

435

We hear of lots of people that talk

about training runs and they basically

436

just catch a train out to somewhere

and then like run home, which I

437

think is a, another really lovely

way to kind of build indifference.

438

Lots of adventures, you know,

that's a wonderful idea.

439

Yeah, it sounds, it sounds really good.

440

And I mean, this, like, what I'm

hearing from like how you describe this

441

pillar, and I suppose it's probably

applies to the other players too, is

442

really just having intention, just

being a little bit more aware of how

443

you construct your training and like

what you're deciding to go for races.

444

And just being, yeah, more mindful,

intentional about what kind of

445

choices are involved in each of those.

446

And so it's not so much like you,

like you were saying, it's not so

447

much just completely stop traveling

forever, but instead it's being,

448

okay, well, is this, is this race,

like my train bucket list race?

449

If so, that's great.

450

If not, then maybe there are other

options for me that I don't need

451

to necessarily go around, like fly.

452

a hundred percent Joe.

453

Um, and the second pillar is a

very, very big one, at least for me.

454

The second pillar is how we kit up.

455

Can you tell us a little

bit more about that?

456

Runners do like their kit.

457

Runners do like their kit, and one of

the original, um, one of the co-founders.

458

Um, and probably one of

the kind of first kind of.

459

Inspiration behind The Green Runners 2

and Damien's book is a runner called Dan

460

Lawson, I don't know if you know of him.

461

He's a GB, um, DB track, 24 track

runner actually is his kind of like,

462

really his big thing, but he, he's done

many, many things, um, an incredibly

463

inspiring man and he, and he had a

business called Rerun, um, clothing at

464

the time when we set up, um, The Green

Runners, um, which was really about

465

a place where people could donate.

466

Unwanted, um, running kit specifically

because, um, Um, you know, we know

467

that every single pair of trainers

that has ever been made is still

468

sitting out there somewhere, a lot

of decomposed, um, all those millions

469

and millions of pairs of trainers.

470

Um, and as you say, there's a sort

of narrative around once you've done

471

three, 400 miles in them that you

should be changing them and, you know,

472

and so it's all this, these kinds of

conversations that we're really trying

473

to change with the kit up pillar and For

me, again, it's sort of like, I think,

474

you know, if we take it to the extreme,

people can be very negative about it.

475

Like, Oh, you know, well, we,

you know, we all need good kit.

476

And of course we do.

477

Um, you know, we've become

consumers and not owners.

478

We don't think about really

looking after our kit.

479

We don't think about really

owning the right kit for us

480

that we know is going to last.

481

We don't repair it.

482

We don't think about how many times we've.

483

Chuck it in the washing machine after

every single run when it doesn't

484

really need it and then it wears out.

485

You know, we're just, we're, we're just

consuming and going through kit like it's,

486

you know, going out of fashion and let's

face it, running is not a fashion show, so

487

it doesn't need to be fashionable either.

488

Um, so, you know, this pillar really

is, again, it's all about helping people

489

to be mindful about thinking about the

right kit, um, and to encourage people

490

to purchase sensibly, look after it.

491

And, um, and then when it does come to

its end of life for you, um, pass it on

492

to somewhere more responsible, you know,

even the running kit that goes to charity

493

shops, usually ends up in landfill.

494

In, in a developing country, um,

so there are lots of other more

495

responsible places we can get rid of it.

496

Pre lubbed clothing are doing a

fantastic job of selling things on.

497

There's lots of ways of locally

giving it to, um, charities who are

498

encouraging, um, encouraging communities

to get into running, disadvantaged

499

communities that don't have kits.

500

So, you know, there's lots of

ways of also then passing it on

501

and keeping it in the system, um,

rather than just disposing of it.

502

I think my, um, my way of improving

my practice on about how I kit up

503

is to say no to goodies because, uh,

including t shirts, because when you,

504

you sign up for a race, you often get

lots of useless Goodies and t shirts.

505

I have tons of t shirts now.

506

So what I try to say to do now is to

say no, thank you I think that's you

507

know, the thing is produced anyway

But it's it's a way for me to you know

508

to make the organizer aware Actually,

I could write to them and say yeah.

509

Yeah, I should write to them.

510

Yeah Yeah, 100 percent and then it

comes into your speaking out pillar too.

511

That's, that, that's absolutely

what I do and, you know, again, you

512

can do it in a very positive way.

513

It's just, uh, offering them an option.

514

In fact, one of the, um, one of the

organizations we often talk about

515

when we do write to, to, to an event

that, um, you know, asks you to put

516

in the t shirt size before you can

even book your spot, you know, is,

517

is a company called Trees Not Teas.

518

Um, and TreesNotTeas kind of work

with race organization, organizers

519

and, um, and offer the option when

you sign up to a race to plant

520

a tree instead of taking a tea.

521

Cool.

522

Um, and so, yeah.

523

And the benefit of that, the benefit

of that organization is if the race

524

company sign up to it in advance,

they also know how many t shirts they

525

need to print, so they aren't just

printing them anyway, and then they're

526

going to have a lot of excess waste.

527

So yeah, they're a good bunch.

528

Tree, trees, not teas, check them out.

529

And if you know, if you are signing up

to a race, doesn't have that option.

530

That's something to, to, to, um, perhaps,

um, invite them to have a look at.

531

I quite like the idea of also, because

this is this trail that I've kind of

532

left behind me with all these t shirts

and whatever, whatever that I have,

533

but I do keep them and, um, but it

gives me the opportunity to go retro.

534

Uh, so if I'm wearing my, um, there's

a, as a race, it's a 10 mile race in

535

Herefordshire called the Muddy Woody.

536

And, uh, I, when I did it

537

bright orange t shirts with green and

all sorts of funny patterns on it.

538

And it always gets

comments when I wear it.

539

So because it's got this date of how many

years ago showing my age and all of that.

540

But, uh, it's, it's quite nice because

it just, you know, and then of course

541

you can get onto a conversation,

uh, about, you know, the fact

542

that I'm still wearing this thing.

543

Um, but perhaps we don't need

to be, you know, continuing

544

this trail of destruction.

545

Yeah, I love that.

546

I love that.

547

I'm a big fan of, um, pre love sports

who, who essentially, you know, sell

548

secondhand gear because I love the

idea that like every T-shirt has had

549

a little story and a, and a journey.

550

Yeah.

551

And I think that makes it all all more

exciting when you, um, and, and they, by

552

the way, also, um, pre love sports are,

are also, they also make our badges for us

553

badge that you, that you shared earlier,

leaky, they, they print them onto.

554

t shirts that they get given

that they can't sell on.

555

So if they get a t shirt that is

like, you know, full of holes or isn't

556

sellable or is in too bad a condition,

they then, um, put those aside and

557

print the badges on them for us.

558

And the third pillar is the nutrition.

559

Is that right?

560

Yeah.

561

How, how we fuel, I guess we, we talk

about this one really, because it's kind

562

of, it's, um, what we eat and what we

drink and thinking about the kind of.

563

Packaging and waste as well as just, you

know, so I think, you know, one thing

564

that makes us a little bit different

from a group like the vegan runners

565

is we don't, you know, we, we, um, we

aren't about every runner having to be

566

vegan, but there's no doubt about it.

567

That is obviously a really.

568

Positive, um, thing that we can all do

in terms of, um, taking steps towards

569

that or being more mindful about, um, in

increasing plants in our, in our diet.

570

And lots of, lots of studies and TV shows

and things out there to show that it

571

doesn't, um, impair your, um, your health.

572

performance as a sports person

at all, um, as long as you take

573

it seriously and do it properly.

574

Um, but yeah, it's also, you know,

for us as a big thing around, um,

575

around drinking, you know, there's a

lot of these mass participation events

576

have a lot of single use plastic.

577

Um, you know, and it's an easy, it's

an easy target when you go to something

578

like Brighton Marathon or London Marathon

events and you see all these bottles

579

discarded, I mean, it's It's a really

tricky one, but you know, it's another

580

reason for me why I love trail racing.

581

Yeah, you're totally self sufficient.

582

You carry a little rucksack and

you have your refillable flasks

583

in it and you don't have to take

anything and nothing single use.

584

For me, there's no reason why that

couldn't be the same in those races, but,

585

um, you know, so there's lots of, lots

of ways I think we can try and, yeah,

586

reduce ruse packaging, um, within that.

587

Um, and then also, you know, championing

for, for business, for, um, there's a

588

lovely brand, new, uh, nutrition food

brand called One Good Thing that has

589

no wrapper at all, it's like wrapped

in a kind of edible, um, Um, um, uh,

590

I can't remember what it's made off

the top of my head, but you know,

591

one, one good thing OGT and they're

delicious actually, they're really good.

592

Um, yeah.

593

So, you know, I don't know about you,

Rob, when you've done some of these

594

events, but the number of times you.

595

Go along the trail and see

discarded gel packets everywhere

596

along the pathways and, you know.

597

Yes, I've been.

598

I'm sure people don't do it intentionally,

but when you're running, shoving them

599

in your pocket, sometimes they fall out.

600

Yeah, I think the, um, I've done,

because, Ironman has been one of the

601

big events that I've been doing for the

last 10 years and, uh, um, it was not so

602

much an issue on the, on the bike ride.

603

You, it's still, it really annoyed me

that you're cycling along and you see

604

bottles and, and they do sometimes fall

out if you're, you try and pick them out

605

while you're riding, they fall over and

it's actually dangerous to stop and, uh,

606

and go back and retrieve them really.

607

But, um, You do see a lot of discarded

gels, all that sort of thing that are

608

clearly, I think, being done on purpose.

609

And that, that really is, is

frustrating, particularly when the

610

organizers do say, look, you know,

you, the locals have closed their roads

611

for us, and we should respect that.

612

And so, I've actually taken to, when

I'm doing my races, to try and avoid

613

having things like that, and just having

things just in my little pouch on the

614

crossbar so that I can just pick them

out and eat them without having to worry

615

about wrestling it out of a wrapper.

616

Uh, so, you know, even if it is

something like a chocolate bar or

617

something, or like a bounty bar,

um, that has been in a wrapper, at

618

least I know that I'm not going to

discard that on the, uh, on the road.

619

But the worst part of it

is the, is the running.

620

Part, because there's all these feed

stations and you're just running

621

through a sickly mess by the end

of the, um, by the end of the day.

622

Uh, and I find that really

disturbing about those races.

623

Yeah.

624

And it's so easy to, you know,

again, it's just so easy to change.

625

It's such a simple thing when you go to,

when you go to an event, you know, ask

626

you to bring your refill, refillable.

627

Cup and you take, you scoop your

own water and just refill it.

628

And it's, you know, it's all part,

it's all part of the experience.

629

You have a conversation with the

people at the aid station and you

630

get, you know, and, and it's, it's.

631

It's all those human connection points

that we also just, you know, miss out

632

on if we're just grabbing and going and

not interacting fully in the experience.

633

Yeah.

634

When I think of the last marathon

in Paris, there were 50 participants

635

and there was a water station

every 5k and I don't know how

636

many bottles everybody took, but

I took two at each water stations.

637

So that means I have taken at least two.

638

Eight water bottles.

639

That's a lot.

640

And then you multiply by 50, 000 people.

641

That's a huge number.

642

That's horrible.

643

That's enormous.

644

Yeah.

645

Yeah.

646

Yeah.

647

And that's, as you say, it's some, it's

so, I bet you didn't finish communic.

648

No, no.

649

Yeah, no, I didn't.

650

So as you say, it's something

that's not, that should not

651

be that difficult to change.

652

No.

653

And to me, again, part, I think

part of it, I don't, I dunno

654

where it sort of comes from.

655

I guess again, part of it is

this performance narrative.

656

You know?

657

It's like, oh, I can.

658

Slow down, can't afford to stop and

fill up a bottle or, you know, it's

659

like gonna not shave those few seconds

off my, off my personal best time.

660

And I, I, you know, this, that sort of

narrative is not helpful in terms of mind

661

mindset and, and more mindful running.

662

Um, you know, but I also think it's

just this general kind of loss of.

663

Agency, individual agency and you know,

actually, you know, that's, again, I

664

talk about the packs when I take my own

food and my, you know, usually just my

665

homemade sandwiches and my own water

and yeah, I'm self sufficient and.

666

So it should be, you know, I

can, I'm a 50 year old adult.

667

I'm perfectly capable of packing enough

water and food for a, for a race.

668

Um, yeah, I think that's part of the,

part of the mindset shift that, you

669

know, we should be trying to encourage.

670

Yeah.

671

Some runners can do it for, for ultra.

672

trail, so why can't we

do it for a marathon?

673

Yeah.

674

I've been involved with the, um, uh,

some of the Roseland August Trail runs

675

in Cornwall, uh, that, um, I've, um,

it's the only ultra that I've done.

676

I've done it a few times.

677

Um, the one I've done is, is a 32 mile.

678

So it's the shortest possible

one you can do as an ultra.

679

And, um, I think the nice thing about that

one, it is very kind of parochial and.

680

Um, so I remember once at about

25 miles, I was overtaken cause I

681

was having problems with my feet.

682

Uh, I was absolutely destroyed by all

these hills that I was running them down

683

and these two girls just ran past me

chatting in tutus and um It was like a

684

local just a little local 5k really to

them um, but the the nice thing about

685

that feel to the race is that um, People

don't want to you know You Um, a lot

686

of them are the locals and they, uh,

they want to respect the environment

687

that they're running through, um, but

the broom wagon people who, um, follow,

688

follow behind and make sure people are

keeping to the times, um, they tend

689

to sort of clear up, uh, and, and,

and, you know, take off, take anything

690

off the route that they possibly can.

691

Um, so if you're able to help them

so that they don't have to do so much

692

work by being mindful of that, it,

it, it kind of all helps to, you know,

693

have that community spirit to the day.

694

Isn't it?

695

Yeah, just being, being a

bit kinder all around, hey.

696

Yeah.

697

Um, okay, let's talk about the fourth

pillar and, uh, actually the fourth

698

pillar is one of the reason why we're

having this conversation because the

699

fourth pillar is about speaking up.

700

Absolutely.

701

And, um, probably the most important

pillar of all, um, I think it's very,

702

you know, I often have conversations

with people on runs and at races

703

and they kind of go, Oh, hi.

704

Yeah, I agree with that and

yeah, I do, I, I do that.

705

Oh no, I do actually repair my trainers

and then I sort of say to them, well,

706

you know, you should be a green runner

and they kind of say, well, well, I'm

707

not really that outspoken and you know,

I'm a more moderate person and I think

708

there's this perception that speaking

out has to be radical, but speaking

709

out doesn't have to be radical at all.

710

Speaking out is as you guys do

is just having conversations.

711

Wearing your green runner

badge when you go to a race.

712

It's just, you know, helping to,

to make people feel, be aware.

713

And, and, and, um, you know, that's,

I think sometimes we think it's the

714

hardest pillar of all, but really

it should be the easiest because

715

it's just about talking to people.

716

Um, And inviting them to be a part of it.

717

And for me, this is, you know, when,

when I talk to runners like that, I

718

kind of, I want to sort of say to them,

well, then we need you because we're

719

much more powerful as a collective.

720

I guess the speaking out is also about

what we can do as a collective, um, as

721

well as, As just individuals and, you

know, this year is a big one voting,

722

obviously we've all got chances,

individuals to vote, which we know is, you

723

know, one of the biggest things we, we can

do to speak out, but also as a collective

724

in terms of the running industry.

725

Sort of until we reach that tipping point

of enough people asking for no t shirts

726

or enough people asking for no water

bottles or enough people saying it's not

727

good enough that these shoes don't fit.

728

Don't last more than, than 300 miles,

you know, we, we need to encourage

729

people to be Running protagonist to help

us kind of create that tipping point.

730

Um, and that's what being part

of the Green Runners community

731

and a collective will help us do.

732

You know, we can, we can have some

of the conversations that people

733

might be afraid to have on their own.

734

And, and you guys have made it quite

easy to start a conversation because

735

with this badge, uh, you can easily

stitch it like, you know, I'm wearing

736

something black and, you know, because

it's of the, of the color contrast.

737

It's.

738

It's quite, um, eye catching, so it's

quite easy to start a conversation with

739

that, you know, and I'm going to do

that, uh, for my next race this Sunday.

740

And I'm also going to, to, to, well, I'm

going to basically, uh, wear my badge

741

for, um, every race, but particularly,

, in August, because I'll be running the,

742

the, one of the, the Olympics, uh, the

marathon for the Olympics, but the one

743

that is open, uh, for the general public.

744

So I'm going to wear that.

745

The Green Runners will be at the Olympics.

746

Yeah, amazing.

747

Amazing.

748

Yeah, the badge definitely works well

and it's, um, it's lovely actually

749

because when you go to a race and

you see somebody else with their

750

green badge on the start line, you

know, it's, it draws you together

751

with people and, you know, you then.

752

You know, that you are meeting

and sharing some miles with

753

like minded folk, hopefully.

754

And, um, you know, that, that for me has

always been a really, a really positive,

755

joyful kind of human experience of being

drawn to, to some, another green runner.

756

Um, yeah, it's something we get asked

about, talking of kind of being drawn

757

to, to green runners is like, you know, I

think it's something we get asked a lot.

758

It's like, Oh, You know, can I,

can I meet up with, you know, do

759

you, do you go for runs together

as a, as a community, as a club?

760

I mean, our community is,

is all over the world.

761

I mean, we are predominantly UK, um, but

we do have, have, um, green runners all

762

over the world, but one of the things

we are looking to, to, to implement this

763

year is more local green runner meetups.

764

Seeing how we can, um, use our community,

um, and, and perhaps look at some

765

kind of like local Green Runner leads

so that actually, um, local groups

766

of green runners can get together in

places where they can meet each other

767

and run and perhaps meet at a train

station That, that's easy to, easy to

768

access and, and, and have a run from.

769

But you know, that part of, um, in real

life connection I think is important too.

770

But, um.

771

But just going back to the speaking out

pillar, the, I mean, I think the other,

772

the other thing that you, you probably,

if you follow us on social media and

773

things, you'll see that we do do is that

we do, we do speak out against brands

774

and businesses, never individuals, but

against brands, businesses, events, um,

775

who we feel aren't doing good enough,

particularly in the sports washing

776

space and fossil fuel sponsorship and,

um, places where we really feel the

777

Of greener running is being undermined

and not, and being misrepresented, you

778

know, hugely our sport is being hugely

misused, um, by fossil fuel businesses.

779

Like UTMB.

780

What did you, what's the story with UTMB?

781

Yeah, the UTMB has, has been

great, really, uh, you know,

782

a great, um, initiative.

783

So we, we obviously called them out

about their, um, Dacia, Dacia, or Dacia.

784

I never really know how to say it.

785

Dacia sponsorship, they became

the headline sponsor last year.

786

So, you know, everywhere was like

Dacia logo next to UTMB, which is,

787

uh, you know, and, and that pinnacle

race for so many people, it's, um,

788

you know, hugely popular, I mean.

789

There's obviously lots of other

challenges around it, the race, in

790

terms of their series and encouraging

people to fly, but you know, that, that

791

was something that really upset a lot

of people that, um, you know, such a

792

well respected kind of pinnacle event

that was all about people enjoying

793

the trails and being out in nature

and having this incredible experience.

794

Um, was, you know, was being cited

right next door to a brand that produces

795

S, you know, gas guzzling SUVs, um,

and is currently kind of killing the

796

world that we run through, um, it

just felt so incongruous, so, um,

797

yeah, we called them out over it and

actually, you know, it's been a really.

798

Um, interesting journey, we've had lots

of discussions with, um, um, they've

799

been very open and proactive to talking

like two days before the start of the

800

race, they were, you know, all of our

team, including the owners were on a

801

call with some of the green runners,

um, you know, asking for feedback and

802

because it really got traction and

picked up traction amongst the, the

803

elite runners that run that field,

run that course, um, and this year, in

804

fact, they've actually, uh, dropped.

805

That's here from their

headline sponsorship.

806

So they are still sponsored by

them, but I don't know what's

807

gone on behind the scenes.

808

They've obviously done some negotiating

to sort of, um, change the contract in,

809

in some shape or form, but, um, it's

certainly, their name is certainly not

810

up there in lights like it was last year.

811

So it's, you know, these, it's, it's

a really positive step to show that

812

actually, You know, collective action

works, calling people out and then, and

813

then, then supporting them and having

conversations and offering to help and,

814

you know, point people in the right

direction, which is, I guess, what,

815

what the Green Runners is all about

is like, yes, let's use collective

816

action to, um, raise awareness, but

then let's, Let's work together to

817

do something about it and, um, you

know, and help support people as well.

818

So we were, we're really encouraged by

that and we hope it will go further.

819

Yeah.

820

I just, I just find it so, so intriguing

kind of like in this, when you talk

821

about this pillar, the, the difference

between the idea of speaking up when

822

I hear this in comments, like about

me speaking, but really it's, it's

823

not just about me speaking up, it's

also about having the community.

824

Surrounding me to feel

comfortable doing so as well.

825

Like, I mean, like this, this is what

it really sounds like when you're

826

talking about this and the, as you,

once you feel comfortable within a

827

community, it's a lot more normalized

to go and speak up and to say things.

828

Let's say things as a group with

the group, you have like even more.

829

Um, power to, uh, you know,

affect change in the world.

830

So I think, I think there's like

this really neat, like juxtaposition

831

between like you as an individual

wanting to speak up or maybe not feel

832

uncomfortable doing so, but then also.

833

Being surrounded by people, um,

that make it, that makes it easier.

834

Actually, Jeremy, what, what you

said speaks, speaks to the stat

835

that I was going to actually talk

about in that, um, 80 percent of, of

836

people would like to do something.

837

Um, but of those 80%, they only

think that the group is 20%.

838

And it's a strange Pareto

principle about it.

839

But the fact is, if you know that

it's actually 80%, then it makes

840

it so much easier to talk about it.

841

And when you do start initiating

those conversations, you're

842

usually pleasantly surprised.

843

Yeah, exactly.

844

And that's why, for me, it's really

important that if there are, you know, if

845

there are runners out there who do think

like this, then, you know, Come and join

846

us and wear that badge because the more

we see that out there, the more we, we

847

will feel supported in that, in the, and

to have those difficult conversations

848

and, and, you know, to really feel

like we can, we can make an impact.

849

I mean, just in the UK, there's like, I

think the last stats were about, they're

850

like seven and a half million runners

just in the UK, you know, and so you

851

think you're in this sort of, oh, we're

doing, I'm doing something really small.

852

In a really small niche, you know,

but it, it isn't, what if, you know,

853

what if all those, all those people

started to, you know, started to

854

do something through their running.

855

And, and for me, it's been, you

know, it did start through running

856

because I felt that was a tangible

place I could do something.

857

And now it's, it's transcended

into, into my whole life.

858

And, you know, it's.

859

And it's been so joyful.

860

It's saved me money.

861

It's opened my eyes to a

new way of seeing the world.

862

I've met different people.

863

It's, you know, I think sometimes, I don't

know, sometimes people think the greenies

864

are the kind of like sandal wearing

tree huggers the joy out of everything

865

I do in the corner, aren't they?

866

I, it's just not like that anymore.

867

And like, you know, it's, It

can't be like that anymore.

868

This is like, you know, at one

point, you know, we were talking

869

about, Oh, we'll have green runners.

870

It's the future of running.

871

It's like, no, no, it's, it's the now.

872

Yeah.

873

It's the now of running.

874

And this is, you know, this is, it's

the now of human behavior, to be honest.

875

Um, and, uh, yeah, so it's, it's, yeah.

876

But I, I, and that, you know, the point

you make Jeremy, I think about having that

877

support, you know, we see that in so many

other initiatives that we're working with.

878

So we're, we're doing a

partnership with England Athletics.

879

Um, they have 1700 affiliated clubs all

around the, um, all around the country.

880

And so we're trialing, uh, a

partnership with them where we have

881

kind of green champions from the

Green Runners community helping to,

882

um, cascade their kind of policies.

883

So the England, England Athletics is

the kind of governing body that sets the

884

policy, but actually it needs to be really

owned by each local club and community.

885

And that's what we're helping to do.

886

Powerful combination of like.

887

Governing bodies doing the right thing,

setting the right standards, setting

888

people, giving people the right ambition,

but then kind of it actually happening

889

on the ground, owned by the community

in a really, you know, positive way that

890

picks up on the energy in that local area.

891

For me, that's a really

powerful combination.

892

And, you know, some of our, some of the

clubs that are in that trial of, you

893

know, One of the Green Champions kind

of said to me the other day, he said,

894

you know what, I've been trying for

nearly three years to get sustainability

895

on the agenda with our, our club.

896

And it isn't until we get an initiative

like this, which is governing

897

body and community wide, that I've

actually been able to land it.

898

And, you know, he, he, he

struggled to speak out.

899

And so, but now he's kind of, he feels

like he's got the support of, uh, of

900

the, of so many people behind him.

901

Um, and it's happening.

902

That, that holy grail, I guess, of

kind of like the two pronged approach,

903

the kind of top down and bottom up

approach is kind of, you know, is

904

something that I believe we can showcase

in Green Runners and like, it needs

905

to happen in lots of other spaces.

906

I was just gonna say that, um,

there was, um, one of our, uh, club

907

members, um, was involved with the

start of, um, park run is I just

908

wondered whether Chrissy Wellington,

uh, was, is, um, member of our club.

909

Um, she was, was involved at the

sort of, uh, outset of, uh, park Run.

910

I just wondered whether you

had any initiatives with,

911

um, with that organization.

912

Do you know, we, we would love to, we

would absolutely love to, and I, actually

913

I do, Chrissy lives not far from me here,

actually, but, um, but, um, and, uh, yeah,

914

no, we would love to talk to Parkrun.

915

I think we'd probably just feel like we

have to get to the right point where,

916

you know, Parkrun are obviously extremely

protective about their, uh, their brand

917

and their independence and, you know,

their ethos of, of being very community

918

owned and always free and, um, Yeah, so I

hope, but I, I, I feel like we definitely

919

align, um, and, you know, park running

is such a simple concept, isn't it?

920

Yeah.

921

Um, unfortunately we do have park run

tourism, which is not probably the best

922

under the, uh, how you move pillar.

923

So maybe we'll, maybe we'll have

a chat with them about that.

924

Eco tourism, perhaps we need to move

it to park run eco tourism, but, um,

925

you know, but they, they certainly,

um, they certainly do a lot of good.

926

So, um, Yeah, it would be,

it would be great to, to, uh,

927

talk to them at some point.

928

And of course, if you just happen

to be somewhere and you think, Oh, I

929

could go and do a park run, it's, it's,

um, it's a other outlet, isn't it?

930

So it's a positive thing in that respect.

931

Yeah, absolutely.

932

Um, and if you, you know, if, if,

uh, if you know, you can go there and

933

actually that event is, you know, by

its nature, ticking a lot of boxes

934

of what a greener event should be.

935

Yeah.

936

It's local.

937

It's in a local environment,

usually a park or somewhere

938

where people can get to easily.

939

Um, you know, it's very non

judge, non performance based.

940

It's challenging that narrative

of performance and racing.

941

It's very inclusive.

942

It's, you know, you don't need to have

the best quality kit to go there and

943

you feel like you're going to stand

out if you haven't got the best kit.

944

So I think, you know, by its nature

and its ethos, it's, it's a lot of the

945

things they do are very aligned with.

946

So before we wrap up, maybe we can

just, um, tell people how easy it is to

947

become a green runner no matter where

you are, uh, because I'm in France

948

and I'm probably a green runner now.

949

So it's just going to the website and

sign up and it's, it's very, it's,

950

it's not very expensive I think to

become a, to, to receive the badge.

951

So it's very easy and simple.

952

Yeah.

953

We, we obviously want, you know,

it's very important that it's,

954

um, Inclusive and easy for anybody

and everybody that wants to join.

955

And, um, that's why we aren't

actually a running club.

956

So we're a, we're a

community interest company.

957

We're a CIC, nonprofit, volunteer run,

um, And we aren't a club because we

958

see ourselves as like a community that

can attach to any existing run club.

959

So you can put that badge over your

existing, you know, onto your existing

960

run club vest, or if you're not in a

club onto any t shirt that you've got.

961

Um, and yes, you can, um, Hop over to

our website, which is thegreenrunners.

962

com and find out all about our, you

know, a bit more about our pillars there.

963

There's lots of resources and stories

and blogs, um, and you can, you can

964

join there from, you know, the, there's

a few options to choose from, but the

965

starting membership is five pounds a

year, um, and, uh, which just helps

966

to go towards keeping the lights on

basically, paying for the website.

967

Um, and, uh, yeah, but, um, no,

we're, we're, we're a volunteer

968

led community like yourselves.

969

So, um, a lot of passionate people

doing what they can, when they can.

970

Wonderful.

971

Fantastic.

972

Thank you.

973

Yeah.

974

Thank you very much.

975

Thank you so much, guys.

976

Yes.

977

Thank you.

978

It's been a pleasure.

979

You've been listening to Carbon

Sessions, a podcast with carbon

980

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everyone from everywhere in the world.

981

We'd love you to join the Carbon

Sessions so you too can share your

982

perspectives from wherever you are.

983

This is a great way for our community

to learn from your ideas and

984

experiences, connect, and take action.

985

If you want to add your voice to the

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986

org slash podcasts, and sign up

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987

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988

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989

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990

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991

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992

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993

we can change the world.