Introduction

Welcome to Can’t See the Wood for the Trees: a new blog and newsletter series from DeepGreen, dedicated to uncovering the hidden aspects of sustainability that often go unexamined.

Of course, there’s no shortage of sustainability talk these days (I hear you groan), but much of it stops at surface level. My goal is to move beyond the buzzwords and explore what real sustainability looks like in practice, by talking to people who are truly ‘walking the walk’.

Each month, I’ll invite a different expert from across the built environment: designers, engineers, scientists, academics, and industry leaders, to share their insights and challenge our collective assumptions. Expect thoughtful conversation, provocative questions, and 0% corporate fluff. This is about real people, real stories, and the sometimes messy, often inspiring, reality of trying to make the world a more sustainable place.

Somewhat bizarrely, my plans were set in motion by John Lewis’ supposedly sustainable approach to their two new Santa's Grottos for Christmas 2024. Apparently, the structures were to be reused for three years instead of being disposed of after only one. Hurray! 👏

However… I immediately had so many questions and suspicions (as I am, by nature, relentlessly nosy). Was this truly a sustainable approach: had a whole life assessment been carried out; had EDPs for every material been scrutinised; was this a fully rounded assessment of whole life impact? I’ll never know, and so I remain dubious…

But further research led me down an ever-deeper rabbit hole. John Lewis also shared that during the festive period they sell (EVERY SINGLE DAY): 1600 artificial Christmas trees, 1000 panettones, and a LOT of tinsel. We're talking a huge amount of plastic, just for starters.

I couldn’t help but wonder: are we applauding token gestures while ignoring the bigger picture? That question sits at the heart of this series. Are we missing the point and focussed on the wrong details and green-washing or green-hushing ourselves into complacency?

I’m setting out to explore these sustainability blind spots with those who see the same patterns in their own fields. Together, we’ll question accepted narratives, highlight overlooked opportunities, and share the practical insights that will help us all do better through our own work – in the built environment and beyond.

Here’s how you can get involved:

Subscribe to the newsletter to follow the conversation

Join in by sharing your own examples of sustainability blind spots and success stories

Collaborate - if you have a unique perspective to share, do get in touch; future editions will feature diverse guest voices from across the sector

Coming soon: my first guest, Carrie Behar, Associate Director at Useful Projects and Head of Sustainability for the Useful Simple Trust. Together, we’ll discuss why post-occupancy evaluation of construction projects needs to become standard practice rather than a 'nice-to-have', and why we must measure the real outcomes of our design intentions. While we’re focussed (and rightly so) on aesthetics, co-design, engagement, climate, safety etc, how do we know if a project’s objectives have ultimately been delivered?

Carrie makes a compelling case for POE to be rolled out far more widely - ideally on every project - if we’re to learn from both our successes and failures and ensure a mindset of continual improvement.

Let’s go deeper (and greener!) together. Because if we want to build a truly sustainable future, we can’t keep missing what’s hiding in plain sight.