Series Synopsis

You can view the trailer for Season 3 of War on Waste here.

From our briefings with the ABC we can share the following information on what this season will focus on.

Areas that have been deeply covered in the past such as plastic straws, bottled water, furniture, e-waste, and coffee cups, are not expected to be covered deeply again. This has been an ABC editorial decision, based on wanting to focus on areas that have gone backwards in their efforts, rather than forward.

The topics of focus for this season, in many ways, are returning to the topics in Season 1 and will focus on:

• Plastics; soft, hard, micro and plastic recycling in general

• Food waste

• Fashion waste: with a major focus on fast fashion

• Big business and the waste they produce (again, focused mostly on plastic waste production/distribution/end-of-life)

• Corporate/brand greenwashing/PR spin

• Community street challenge: Where one street participates in a waste reduction challenge

Opportunities to amplify your business or brand

Here are our recommendations for how to leverage your business, organisation or brand during this major conversation moment over the coming month.

If you need any assistance or advice with how to activate these suggestions, get in touch with us.

Media

• Talent positioning: Leverage relevant episode topics, while it’s on the news agenda and mainstream consumer consciousness, by offering your spokespeople as experts in this field with C-suite commentary and media introductions/interviews (especially to online or radio programs and channels within the ABC)

• Opinion pieces or op-eds: Develop a longer form thought piece responding to a relevant topic within specific episodes, including an angle on why your business or brand is leading the charge on this issue, changing the industry and making a difference. When pitching this in you can also offer a spokesperson for an interview. We recommend this being pitched into mainstream titles, and trade and industry online publications

Digital

• Instagram/Facebook/Tiktok or LinkedIn: Take ABC social content and re-share and amplify on your channels where relevant

• LinkedIn: Consider writing a longer-format post on your individual or business/brand, if there is a specific episode or content relevant to your work

• Instagram/TikTok: Reels or lives on these channels are a good engagement tactic to encouraging your community to take action with the topics from the shows

• Podcast: If you have a podcast, do a deep-dive about the show. Ask participants, community groups or experts from the show to join you in a Q&A format

• Instagram: Consider interact elements of ‘stories’ by utilising polls, quizzes or ‘ask me anything’ tactics to drive conversation and engagement

• Website/EDM: If your site has a blog or update function, or your EDM is long-form, consider writing a post about the shows content and how it relates to your work

Employees

• Intranet/team sharing platform: Send out an update on the show details coming up and point employees to any online resources ABC releases as the series goes to air

• Lunch and learns/viewing parties for remote teams: Put on a lunch and learn where the team can come together and watch episodes, or join in on discussions with sustainability business leads about different waste and sustainability topics

• Fashion swap or a ‘wasted’ potluck for in-office teams: Hold a clothing swap event, or a potluck where team members can bring a meal to share that includes an ingredient that may have otherwise been wasted. Inspiration here

Government/Community Groups/Stakeholders

• Meet with policymakers: If your business or brand holds relevance with any of the above topics, use the series as an opportunity to engage with and meet key policymakers and drive forward advocacy. Be seen as a change-maker and a key voice of authority

• Stakeholder journey: Engage with stakeholders regularly and remind them of key milestones and activities achieved so far. Highlight the business/brand goals, and journey you’re on, with sustainability in mind

• Find ways to collaborate: Consider how you can support and engage the local community by consulting and partnering with state associations and local community groups. Run a clothes swap, clean up, or wider waste-focused initiatives with relevant local groups, supporting them where they need it most. Have a positive impact on your local community

Internal processes/operations

The War on Waste series is a key opportunity to assess your current processes and operations with waste and sustainability. A heightened focus and awareness of greenwashing could put your organisation at risk if measures aren’t thought through. If you do already have robust measures in place - how could you take this further? We can work with your business and operations team to audit, assess and improve waste and environmental measures.