2026 Speakers
2026 Speakers
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We are grateful to the following people who have agreed to be a speaker at The Plastic Free Gathering 2026.
Jen Gale, Sustainable-ish
Jen Gale, Sustainable-ish
Jen Gale is an ordinary, knackered mum of two whose life changed when she dragged her family into a year of buying nothing new. Jen is the author of The Sustainable(ish) Living Guide, and The Sustainable(ish) Guide to Green Parenting, and runs the Sustainable(ish) blog, podcast and online community. Jen has delivered talks, workshops and training to Bloomsbury publishing, Channel 4, Siemens Energy, The Open University, 3 and many more, and her down to earth and non-judgemental approach to imperfect eco-action helps people to start on their own sustainability from where they are.
Edd Moore
Edd Moore
Edd Moore is an award-winning environmentalist, former eco-coordinator and primary teacher who has been at the forefront of environment and sustainability in education for over a decade. Edd led his previous State Primary School in Dorset to many national and international eco awards. Edd was named 1 of 500 Coronation Champion for his environmental work, as well as Teacher of the Year by the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE). Edd worked at Green School Bali, known as one of the top, if not the top, Eco School in the world as their Primary Curriculum Coordinator.
Edd has written a book published by Bloomsbury with a foreword by Dr Jane Goodall DBE called ‘100 Ideas for Primary Teachers: Greener School.’ It is being supported by UK Department for Education through Climate Ambassadors Scheme which they fund, Let’s Go Zero and Foundation for Environmental Education who run Eco Schools Globally.
Finally, Edd works as an environment education consultant helping Schools, Multi Academy Trusts, and organisations bring climate action into the heart of learning.
Charlotte Mason-Curl - The Kids Party Pact
Charlotte Mason-Curl - The Kids Party Pact
Charlotte Mason-Curl is a marketing and comms consultant and the person behind The Kids Party Pact. She believes children’s parties are overlooked as a place to spark change. What started as a few Instagram posts has grown into a campaign that’s reached millions of parents. Thousands have now changed how they approach gifts and party bags, sending ripples through their communities. The campaign has secured National Lottery funding and featured in The Times, BBC Newsround, Positive News and more. With 13 years of marketing experience and a sharp understanding of behaviour change, Charlotte builds campaigns that cut through. Powered by strategy, creativity, and a fierce commitment to leaving the world less of a mess for her kids.
Chris Brown - No More Lids
Chris Brown - No More Lids
Having worked in hospitality all his life, Chris Brown became very aware of the single use plastic he, himself, was responsible for and set out to find a solution; connecting with the creator of the Good Cup soon after its conception, Chris set about bringing this unique product to the UK and Irish markets and has already achieved over 20 tonnes of single use plastic removed from cups and lids and hit over 4 million cups in just 18 months.
Stuart Chidley - Reposit / Beauty Kitchen
Stuart Chidley - Reposit / Beauty Kitchen
Stuart Chidley is a circular economy expert and co-founder of Beauty Kitchen & Reposit with his wife Jo. They are obsessed by circular design and collective action to deliver the innovation that’s needed to achieve a triple bottom line. Having launched indie beauty brand Beauty Kitchen, which is one of the highest scoring B Corporations in the world, with cradle to cradle certified products in returnable packaging they have now developed Reposit. Reposit is a cross category returnable packaging platform for the benefit of all stakeholders.
Lisa Hicks - SNOAP
Lisa Hicks - SNOAP
Lisa Hicks is the Inventor, Founder, and CEO of SNOAP — an award-winning sustainable personal care brand on a mission to revolutionise how we wash. With a background in finance and a deep-rooted passion for sustainability, Lisa brings together sharp commercial insight and purpose-driven innovation to create products that are kind to skin, hair, your wallet and the planet.
SNOAP was born from Lisa’s personal need to make better choices for her family — swapping harsh, plastic-packaged products for a gentler, more sustainable alternative. What began as a kitchen-table solution is now a fast-growing movement, with SNOAP replacing liquid soaps, shampoos, and conditioners across homes and businesses in the UK and beyond. Each product is designed to reduce waste, protect our waterways, and simplify self-care without compromising on luxury or effectiveness.
Since launching, Lisa has led SNOAP to win Green Business of the Year, Theo Paphitis' Small Business Sunday Award, multiple regional awards and even more national award shortlists for sustainability and innovation. Lisa also won over all five Dragons on BBC's Dragons' Den, where all five Dragons pitched to be part of SNOAP, with Deborah Meaden and Peter Jones being Lisa's choice to join her mission.
A proud Welsh entrepreneur and one of the few women working in product invention, Lisa is driven by the belief that small changes at home can lead to big changes for the planet.
Lara Jeffries - Surfers Against Sewage
Lara Jeffries - Surfers Against Sewage
Lara Jeffries is the Education Manager at Surfers Against Sewage, leading national programmes that empower young people to become ocean activists, reduce plastic pollution and drive real-world change. Before joining SAS, Lara worked across the full spectrum of primary education as a teaching assistant, class teacher and primary school headteacher. This grounding in education leadership, inclusion and child-centred practice continues to shape her approach to environmental education, youth voice and systems change.
Livvy Drake - Sustainable Sidekicks
Livvy Drake - Sustainable Sidekicks
Livvy Drake has a wealth of experience delivering waste and behaviour change campaigns at events and for non-profit plastics campaigning organisation City to Sea. Her talks and workshops are delivered in a way that makes complex and confusing topics accessible and entertaining.
The Sustainable Sidekicks are on a mission to share Sustainability and Behaviour change principles for greater environmental impact and engagement outside of the green echo chamber.
Lorraine Allman, MA AISEP AIES - Party Without Plastic®
Lorraine Allman, MA AISEP AIES - Party Without Plastic®
Lorraine is founder of Party Without Plastic®, launched to transform the party supplies industry by offering stylish, plastic-free party supplies that reduce waste and encourage re-use. A curated marketplace of products sourced from UK small business; Lorraine developed a transparent materials policy which cuts through greenwashing and last year was named an Ethical Innovator, earning a place in The Good Shopping Guide’s Top 200 Ethical Business List. She also launched the UK’s first AI sustainable party planner enabling customers to plan a celebration and shop for plastic-free options all in one place.
Lorraine is an Associate member of the Institute of Sustainability and Environmental Practitioners (ISEP), holds the ISEP Foundation Certificate in Environmental Management, and is an Associate Member of the Institute of Environmental Sciences (IES). Her commitment to environmental responsibility, combined with her entrepreneurial drive, makes her a standout leader in the sustainability space as she pioneers a movement that challenges outdated, wasteful and damaging party traditions which result in 90 million kilograms of plastic waste from parties and celebrations being thrown away in the UK each year.
Ellie Jackson - Wild Tribe Heroes
Ellie Jackson - Wild Tribe Heroes
Ellie Jackson is the author of the bestselling Wild Tribe Heroes books, true animal rescue stories that help children understand plastic pollution and its effects. Her work has reached over two million children and is widely used in schools to inspire practical action—from litter picks and beach cleans to recycling, campaigning and letter writing. The Wild Tribe Heroes series has become a powerful, hopeful way to engage the next generation in tackling plastic pollution.
Bianca Carr - Final Straw Foundation
Bianca Carr - Final Straw Foundation
Bianca Carr is the CEO and Founder of Final Straw Foundation, an environmental charity dedicated to protecting marine ecosystems, tackling plastic pollution, and empowering coastal communities. With a background in community engagement and sustainability advocacy, Bianca has led Final Straw Foundation to deliver over 249 school visits, remove 47,000kg of plastic waste, and build impactful partnerships across the Solent, with a passion for ocean conservation and grassroots action, fighting for cleaner seas and stronger, more resilient coastal futures.
Nisha Ravat - Green Tomato
Nisha Ravat - Green Tomato
Green Tomato has sustainability, community and nutrition at its heart, key priority areas for local and national government. They provide a carbon positive mobile greengrocery service offering high quality fruit and vegetables to communities in Leicestershire. Their unique, innovative, and nostalgic idea of using 1970s emission free milk floats not only reduces travel miles and packaging but also contributes to community cohesion and sustainability awareness.
As a teacher of science at secondary school, Nisha Ravat talks about the impact our activities have on our environment as part of the science curriculum. She launched Green Tomato in response to these issues and wanted to take a step to help her community reduce their carbon footprint.
Ali Hood - Recirculate Systems
Ali Hood - Recirculate Systems
Ali Hood is the Founder & CEO of Recirculate Systems Ltd, a pioneering software company revolutionising the circular economy by licensing its technology to reusable packaging systems. A former café owner, Ali experienced first-hand the economic and environmental burden of single-use cups, inspiring the creation of Recirculate’s software. Today, the platform integrates directly with payment providers, automating deposit-return without queues or any behaviour change. Recirculate has been accepted into the JPMorgan Chase & EY Fintech Forward Programme 2025, underscoring its potential as the global operating standard for reuse.
Mitchell Platt - Yoyo Grocery Co
Mitchell Platt - Yoyo Grocery Co
Mitchell Platt is on a mission to prove that reuse is a powerful, practical answer to our waste crisis. He founded Yoyo to redefine grocery shopping with quality food delivered in unique, returnable bags. Today, Yoyo is already making reuse accessible to everyone in the UK. Behind the scenes, they're building a system that enables packaging to be reused at a standard that’s cleaner, safer and more sustainable than single-use.
John Marchant - REUSE Foundation
John Marchant - REUSE Foundation
John Marchant runs REUSE Foundation, a UK charity accelerating the shift from wasteful, linear supply chains to a circular economy. The Foundation works: to educate about the dangers of plastic pollution and inadequacy of plastic recycling; to support innovation and reuse demonstrations; and to advocate for policy change to eliminate disposability. In India, John led the Beat The Sachet project that demonstrated the potential of reuse as an alternative to the single-use sachet, a primary cause of ocean microplastic. Through its Sponsor a Village campaign, REUSE Foundation is supporting a revised reuse pilot in India that builds on Beat The Sachet.
Julia Laskowska - Imperial College London student
Julia Laskowska - Imperial College London student
Julia Laskowska is a final year PhD student at Imperial College London, focusing on studying the impact of microplastics on the human lungs. Her studies span investigating the impacts of two common textile plastics - polyamide, more commonly known as nylon, and polyethylene terephthalate, one of the primary components of polyester, in relation to the three main cell types of the alveolus, the primary site of gas exchange.
Andy Dinsdale - Strandliners
Andy Dinsdale - Strandliners
Andy Dinsdale has been leading riverbank and beach surveys since 2004 and has represented Strandliners at national and international marine and river conferences. Strandliners focuses on environmental pollution, working with communities and using citizen science to support larger organisations to lobby for change. Andy has received a Points of Light award and a Platinum Champions award in recognition of his outstanding commitment to volunteering and service to the community.
Rebecca Kinnard - Suma
Rebecca Kinnard - Suma
Rebecca Kinnard is a passionate sustainability advocate, vegan, forest school leader and co-operative member of Suma Wholefoods, where she works in marketing and product development helping to bring eco-friendly, plant-based household and grocery products to market. At Suma, one of Europe’s largest equal-pay worker co-ops, Rebecca has led initiatives that spotlight ethical business and community-focused sustainability, including securing a regional win in the Sky Zero Footprint Fund and Suma’s first TV advertising campaign. She also drives product innovation for the Ecoleaf by Suma range, launching a range of plastic-free, bamboo cleaning accessories last year, and supports the co-op’s broader environmental and social goals, from reducing emissions to championing independent high streets and sustainable consumer choices. Rebecca brings a practical and inspiring perspective on how values-led business can contribute to a more sustainable future. She is always looking for new and innovative ways to address the plastic problem, while navigating the practicalities of making it happen, and keeping those cleaning products safe and dry!
Paul Garner - Suma
Paul Garner - Suma
Paul Garner leads Suma’s Commerce area, and has a background in strategic leadership, business development and supply chain sustainability, across a range of organisations. Paul’s passion for commercial success is coupled with his awareness of the environmental context we’re operating in, and being a force for good is what inspires him. He worked on refining and building the customer proposition, operational capabilities and financial performance of refill at Asda , and loves looking for solutions, the more innovative and sustainable the better.
Keith Hunt - Our Precious Earth
Keith Hunt - Our Precious Earth
Keith Hunt is the founder and owner of Our Precious Earth - a multi-award winning sustainable living shop in Minehead, Somerset and online. He started my business in 2023, fifty years after his first beach clean and seeing the huge increase of plastic ending up in our oceans, Keith decided he wanted to do more for our planet and inspire people to make changes in their shopping habits.
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