Founder of Take 3, Tim Silverwood is an environmental advocate and keen surfer who encourages waste reduction.
How did you become an environmental activist?
I studied sustainability at university and always wanted to work in that field but was quite disillusioned by the job options. I worked in the travel industry and travelled the world a lot during my twenties.. It was travelling the world that made me realise how complex and under threat our planet was.
How can we be more eco-friendly?
To think about your actions. I have a real problem with disposable, single-use products and packaging. Take coffee or tea. I dare say most readers wouldn’t bat an eyelid at grabbing a disposable coffee cup for their fix on a daily basis. Add that up and it’s a huge impact, one coffee a day is 365 disposable cups. I haven’t used a disposable cup for 5 years, I choose to drink in or bring my own coffee cup. Considering I often have two coffees per day I’ve saved over 3500 cups from landfill in 5 years.
Are there any ingredients you recommend people use?
Be more conscious of where your food comes from. Ask questions and if you’re not happy with the answers then keep on shopping around. Farmers markets, food co-ops, local/butchers grocers and bulk food stores are a great place to start. Set yourself some challenges like only eating meat once a week or trying to go waste/ plastic free for a day, week or month.
Where do you picnic in Sydney and what treats would you bring?
Shouldn’t that be my little secret? I love the coastal walk between Bondi and Coogee. I would go with my gorgeous fiancee Elena and our sausage dog Frankie. Couldn’t go past a lovely cheese board and some red wine.
Do you have a guilty food pleasure?
I acknowledge the tremendous need to promote a vegan diet [to reduce environmental damage] but I’m struggling when it comes to cheese. In saying that, I did find an amazing cashew ‘cheese’ spread recently that is absolutely delish!
Do you have a favourite celebrity chef?
He’s not a chef but I’m a big fan of Costa from Gardening Australia. I love his energy and passion for earth friendly gardening practices and am so impressed that he can use the gardening platform to push a much bigger conversation about sustainability. He also has the best beard in the southern hemisphere.
Tim Silverwood will be speaking about reducing plastic waste on April 19th as part of Leichhardt Council’s Climate Conversation series. Register on eventbrite and checkout @take3forthesea on social media to find out more about Tim’s work.
Zero Waste Muesli
Ingredients
• 1kg oats
• 300g raw nuts (almonds, macadamia, brazil, cashew)
• 100g pumpkin seeds
• 50g sesame seeds
• ½ cup coconut flakes
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup coconut oil (or macadamia oil)
• ½ cup honey
Method
1. Chop all nuts.
2. Add ingredients together, mix well.
3. Heat oven to 180 degrees.
4. Spread muesli to 3-5cm on baking paper lined tray and roast for 15 minutes. Observe and stir the mixture through regularly.
5. Once golden brown leave to cool.
6. Enjoy with fresh fruit and ingredients of your choice.
