[172] The forgotten joy of sharing – with Rebecca Heaps from Tentshare

A Sustainable Life with Jen Gale

"If you own a tent you can be a member of Tentshare. If you don't own a tent, you can be a member of Tentshare."
Love this quote from Rebecca Heaps, founder of Tentshare -'the Air BnB for tents'!

On the surface, camping feels like a pretty eco-friendly option for a cheaper holiday. And it is. However it does involved quite a lot of 'stuff' - the tent, the sleeping mats, the sleeping bags, the camping stove, and on the list goes. All of this stuff might only be used once a year and the rest of the time it sits in our sheds or garages gathering dust.
And for anyone who wants to have a go at camping, all of that stuff is a big outlay when you're not even sure if you're going to like it and want to do it again.

Which is where Tentshare comes in! Tentshare matches up people with tents, with people who want them. Not only is this such a brilliantly simple idea for camping, but also for festivals. Figures from 2018 estimate that 250,000 tents go into landfill each year in the UK, which is a LOT of resources and energy going to waste.
Rebecca shares the story of how she got started, and some of positive benefits of sharing camping equipment above and beyond the environmental ones - the connection, the joy, getting people outdoors appreciating nature, to name a few!
I hope you enjoy this episode! Do go and check out the Tentshare website - if you own a tent, popping it on Tentshare is a great way to support the sharing economy and contribute a mini nudge towards a less capitalist society! And if you're thinking of having a go at camping for the first time, save yourself a heap of money, and get yourself some great camping advice by using Tentshare!

Rebecca Heaps - Tentshare founder

GOOD NEWS!
In the new Good News section after the main interview, I share some of the good climate news happening (because there is some, I promise!). Here's this weeks pick:

• Solar will soon eclipse all forms of energy (Positive News)
• UK musuems agree to collective action to tackle the climate crisis (The Guardian)
• Much closer to home, I had a couple of e-mails that really made me smile this week, both from participants on recent Carbon Literacy course. Sullie got in touch to say that Being carbon literate has helped his secure a dream job working with a climate organisation! And Inga e-mailed to let me know that she had fulfilled her pledge of signing up with a climate education programme that provides training to schools in London, and they have already matched her with a nearby school where she'll be delivering a programme of 5 workshops in the Spring term.
  There's more info and dates for Carbon Literacy training here if this is something you're interested in!
  

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LISTEN...

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USEFUL LINKS:

• Tentshare
  - Website
  - Facebook
  - Twitter/X
  - Instagram
  - Linked In
  - You Tube - some great videos from Tentshare for repairing and cleaning your tents
• Rebecca on Linked In
• Party Kit Network
• [037] - How and why to set up a reusable party package for kids parties with Frome Eco Party Kit
• The Lean Marketplace
• Share Tribe
• OLPRO tents
• Know Carbon
• Camp Light - pre-pitched tents at festivals
• Medicine Festival
• Shambala Festival
• Little Recreations
• Eco Bunting
• Doodles.one
• [039] - Recycle your paddling pool with Wyatt and Jack
• [047] - Fighting food waste with Olio
• Blue Earth Summit
• My Green Pod
• [168] - Keeping outdoor gear in action for longer with Re-action
• Giki Zero
• Carbon Literacy training
• The Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse
• Crap-free Christmas course
• FREE! Crap-free Christmas webinar

Awful screengrab of me showing my mended gloves!

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What do you think?
Would you rent out your tent? Would you borrow a tent?
Are you going to put your tent on Tentshare?
Do let me know- I would be SO happy to hear of tents popping up on Tentshare
as a direct result of this episode!

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