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The Indisposable Podcast®

Upstream

Celebrating solutions to plastic pollution - because throw-away is so yesterday.

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20 episodes
Avg 50 min
English

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#190
Thursday · 39 min
Inside Climate Week NYC
Upstream’s Crystal Dreisbach and Mai Li Spencer debrief Climate Week NYC 2026: Where reuse showed up, where there’s more potential, and where to go from here.
#189
August 13 · 49 min
Scoring Goals for Reuse
Reuse advocates from FIFA World Cup host cities Seattle and Toronto share their insights into how a major event can be a catalyst for reuse — even when that event doesn’t do reuse itself.
#188
Dec 11, 2025 · 56 min
Crafting Just Reuse Policy
Real talk on challenges and opportunities when it comes to centering people and planet in policymaking.
#187
Sep 18, 2025 · 46 min
Incentivizing Reuse Within Recycling Reform
Learn about WA State’s landmark 2025 EPR legislation, the Recycling Reform Act, and how it incentivizes both recycling AND reuse.
#186
Jul 31, 2025 · 1 hr 18 min
Local Reuse Initiatives
An on-the-ground report back on reuse projects from Central Ohio Reuse Coalition, Reusable Toronto, and Zero Waste Miami.
#185
Jun 26, 2025 · 58 min
The Pathway to Reuse in Retail
Recent reports lay the groundwork for bringing reuse to the retail setting—and now that information is being turned into action.
#184
Jun 12, 2025 · 54 min
Reuse in Food Codes
Experts and advocates share their insights into reuse and refill in state and federal food codes, plus strategies to update your own state’s food code to be more reuse/refill friendly.
#183
May 29, 2025 · 37 min
Catalyzing school reuse with dishwashing grants
Lessons from the California school district that helped 300+ schools transition to reuse through a statewide grant program.
#182
May 15, 2025 · 56 min
Normalizing Reuse With Behavior Change Science
An exploration of behavior change science for reuse with Jen Carrigan and Katie Patrick.
#181
May 8, 2025 · 42 min
A Grand Reuse Project
Upstream and partners are helping the Grand Canyon build the nation’s largest open-loop reuse system. Learn about the process and their progress so far.
#180
Apr 17, 2025 · 31 min
The Quest for a Universal Reuse Symbol
2025 will go down in history as the year the universal Reuse symbol was born — listen in to learn more and to participate.
#179
Apr 3, 2025 · 43 min
The Reuse Job Market
Featuring Natasha Wayne of Reaching All Minds Academy and Matthew Luisier of r.World — two people helping manage the shift to a reuse economy in very different ways.
#178
Mar 20, 2025 · 45 min
Reuse Goalposts for Stadiums & Arenas
A nuanced, wide-ranging conversation with Christy Briggs of Lumen Field & the Seattle Seahawks and Mary McCarthy of Levy Restaurants on the opportunities and challenges posed by bringing reuse to the sports & entertainment sector.
#177
Mar 6, 2025 · 41 min
Reuse beyond policy: impactful community projects
Isabel Mack, creator of Party Kit Network, and Toni Mason with Bull City Boomerang Bags discuss community-focused reuse initiatives driven by passion instead of policy.
#176
Feb 27, 2025 · 56 min
The Vision & Playbook for Reuse in EPR
Upstream shares key points from their recent position paper on what to expect in a best-in-class PRO and discusses the model set up by CITEO in France.
#175
Jan 30, 2025 · 1 hr 1 min
Reading, Writing, 'Rithmatic, Reuse
Switching K-12 schools to reusables is a win-win-win for improving children’s health, educating and empowering the community around sustainability issues, and providing an impressive ROI for school administrators.
#174
Nov 21, 2024 · 47 min
The Conscious Cafeteria Project
Diving into the findings of a national pilot study of reusable foodware for healthier, more sustainable schools.
#173
Nov 7, 2024 · 49 min
The Plastic Free Pharmacy
Cabinet Health is on a mission to eliminate plastic in pharmaceuticals, starting with a mail-in refill model.
#172
Oct 24, 2024 · 30 min
Unstoppable community organizing
Organizers in states where it is challenging to pass policy are still doing good work to reduce plastic waste and encourage reuse. Plastic Free MKE shares the story of their success.
#171
Oct 10, 2024 · 1 hr 14 min
Bans on bans
Preemption laws—or “bans on bans”—can make it hard for localities in more conservative states to pass plastic reduction and reuse policies. Learn insights and workarounds from on-the-ground advocates in Florida, Colorado, and Montana.

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