What if your organization’s waste problem actually starts long before anything reaches the trash bin?
In this episode of Clear Haze Exchange, Marcus Hazelwood sits down with Hélène Carpentier, Founder of Circular Workplaces and former Global Head of Circular Economy and Zero Waste at CBRE, to rethink how organizations approach waste.
Hélène challenges one of the most common assumptions in workplace sustainability: that better recycling is the answer.
Instead, waste can be a signal of something happening much further upstream, over-purchasing, inefficient procurement, disconnected workplace systems, and resources that were paid for but never fully used.
The conversation explores:
• Why recycling alone can’t solve the waste problem
• How procurement decisions determine much of what eventually becomes waste
• The hidden cost of waste beyond disposal fees
• Why food, packaging, and everyday workplace purchases deserve more attention
• How waste reduction can improve the workplace experience
• Why sustainability teams, procurement, facilities, and workplace teams need to work together
• How organizations can shift measurement from downstream diversion to upstream prevention
Hélène also shares a striking example of how a 2,000-person workplace could lose more than £1.6 million over five years through waste-related inefficiencies, much of it potentially avoidable.
The takeaway?
Waste isn’t just something to manage at the end.
It’s information.
And if organizations pay attention to what it’s telling them, they may uncover opportunities to reduce cost, carbon, and inefficiency while creating better workplaces.
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What is Clear Haze Exchange?
Clear Haze Exchange is an interview-led podcast focused on simplifying sustainability while uncovering the hidden systems, decisions, and long-term impacts shaping our built environment and energy future.
Hosted by Marcus Hazelwood, an energy engineer with 15+ years of experience in sustainability and energy efficiency consulting, the podcast has evolved across two seasons:
Season 1 focused on breaking down the fundamentals—making energy efficiency, building systems, and sustainability concepts more accessible and practical for a wide range of listeners.
Season 2 builds on that foundation, diving deeper into the systems-level thinking behind sustainability—exploring how decisions in design, operations, policy, and business strategy create long-term outcomes.
Each episode features thoughtful conversations with industry leaders, engineers, architects, researchers, and decision-makers who are actively shaping the future of sustainability. From building performance and infrastructure to sustainable chemistry and organizational mindset, Clear Haze Exchange connects ideas across disciplines to provide real-world insight.
This podcast is for professionals and curious minds alike, those who want to better understand not just what sustainability is, but how it actually works in practice.
If you're interested in smarter investments, better systems, and meaningful progress, you're in the right place.
Subscribe to Clear Haze Exchange on your favorite platform and join the conversation.
For inquiries or guest opportunities: hello@clear-haze.exchange