# Finding Treasure: The elephant-size reuse opportunity with Cathy Benwell, A Good Thing

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/straight-talking-sustainability-7096932/finding-treasure-the-elephant-size-reuse-opportunity-with-cathy-benwell-a-good-thing
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/straight-talking-sustainability-7096932/finding-treasure-the-elephant-size-reuse-opportunity-with-cathy-benwell-a-good-thing.md
Podcast: [Straight Talking Sustainability](https://stenobird.com/podcast/straight-talking-sustainability-7096932)
Published: 2026-03-01T23:15:00+00:00
Episode link: https://straight-talking-sustai.captivate.fm
Audio file: https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/c56baa87-5c20-4816-8f9c-cbb2ac4075c8.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/straight-talking-sustainability-7096932/episodes/finding-treasure-the-elephant-size-reuse-opportunity-with-cathy-benwell-a-good-thing
Duration seconds: 2413

## Resource

In this practical and inspiring episode of Straight Talking Sustainability , host Emma Burlow sits down with Cathy Benwell , co-founder of A Good Thing, a Community Interest Company (CIC) that has created a matchmaking platform connecting 1,000 UK businesses donating surplus items with 3,500 charities and non-profits desperate for exactly those materials, from construction supplies and hotel bedding to branded merchandise and the occasional life-size inflatable elephant. Starting in February 2020 with just 10 businesses and 15 charities, this volunteer-powered organisation (45 volunteers supporting one part-time paid operations manager) has grown explosively by solving a problem everyone recognises but few have systematically addressed: businesses drowning in perfectly good stuff they no longer need, charities surrounded by wealthy organisations yet struggling to access basic supplies, and the frustrating reality that what people do naturally at home through Freecycle or Facebook Marketplace somehow becomes impossible once they walk into their workplace. Cathy's background spans publishing (graduate training scheme with a book company), government communications as a civil servant, then a transformative maternity leave involvement with HomeStart (UK-wide charity supporting families with young children) that ignited passion for charities whilst revealing the massive opportunity to connect them with businesses possessing surplus resources. Cathy's HomeStart colleagues worked on laptops taking 10 minutes just to boot up (literally making tea whilst waiting), yet at Squared Up, software developers routinely received new laptops every three years with old ones accumulating in cupboards because nobody had time, knowledge, or job responsibility to handle disposal. Cathy deliv…

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