Very early on in our project we received a lovely message from somebody who had seen our Instagram page and realised that we shared similar interests.
This person was Clare Osborn of Clare Talks Rubbish, who over the last 12 months has gone on to inspire us with the work she does and with whom we were supposed to meet at the back end of last month. As ever, we got a Zoom call date in the diary and were glad to be able to catch up with Clare last week so we'd like to share with you our highlights.
"Never under estimate the power of conservation and giving back on your own mental and physical wellbeing. Â For me, beach and river cleaning were a huge part of my therapy when dealing with trauma and mental health problems. Â It played a key role in moving me from 'red mind' overwhelm and stress - to 'blue mind' calm and clarity."
Clare Osborn
Who is Clare and what is Clare Talks Rubbish?
Clare is an ex-lawyer turned coach who is passionate about connecting with the natural world, looking after our planet and respecting the power of the ocean. Clare Talks Rubbish is a collaborative platform that she founded with the aim of bringing people together who want to be part of the solutions for our planet; who want to create or build a business that gives back; and who understand that the health of our planet starts with our own wellbeing. Our personal favourite is her Clare Talks Rubbish Podcast that you can find on Spotify - well worth a listen.
In addition to her work with Clare Talks Rubbish, Clare collaborates with a number of different organisations with the aim of learning more and more each day as well as connecting with new people. We asked her to explain a little more about herself so that she can share her story directly:
- Apologies for any choppy videos - this conversation happened over a distance of 3767 miles -
Where did the inspiration behind Clare's work stem from?
As you will know if you're a regular reader of our blog posts, we are always keen to hear where our collaborators found their inspiration, as such stories can be inspiring to others who perhaps experience similar situations or feelings. In Clare's case, her story is especially interesting given her change of career path 3 years ago. She also describes herself as 'not your typical candidate for being an environmentalist' which is something we love to hear because it shows that anyone is capable of making change and investing time and energy into protecting the natural world.
In 2012 Clare took a career break and did some travelling. Just like us over the course of our global journey, Clare witnessed first-hand the difference that a mere individual can make. Here she explains that she can pinpoint the time she first felt she connected with the natural world.
There is obviously a common trend amongst our contacts because Clare uses the Starfish Story (as did Simon Jordan the other week) as a way to explain the importance of individual action:
'I'm not your typical candidate for being an environmentalist but I learned to scuba dive and fell in love with the ocean'
What is ’Blue Mind’?
Speaking to Clare reminded us of just how much we miss the ocean now that we are back in our respective homes. We've always known that the sea makes us happy but we certainly didn't know very much about the importance of open water spaces before speaking to Clare. She articulates the power of water so beautifully and introduced us to the idea of the Blue Mind groundswell which originates from Wallace J Nicholls and his book of the same name, relating to the health benefits of water in all its forms:
Take Home Message:
Clare reminded us of something incredibly important today: we are water. Without water we are nothing. Given that our planet is mostly made up of our oceans, should we not be fighting harder to protect them from the likes of disgusting amounts of plastic pollution?
As we near the end of chapter 1 of PLASTIC: Unwrapped we are really beginning to piece together a number of issues and thought processes. Protecting our oceans is one of the most important conservation issues that we are faced with in the 21st Century and every single one of us can make a difference as an individual.
In a matter of days, Plastic Free July will be upon us. Perhaps we can take this reminder from Clare and use it throughout July to try and clean up our waterways, use plastic alternatives where possible and protect our blue planet because without it, we have nothing.
Before we love and leave you, we'd just like to encourage you to head over to Clare's website where can find out more about her coaching and podcast. She is an inspiring individual whom we are very grateful to have been able to meet thanks to our journey with PLASTIC: Unwrapped.
Over to you, Clare: