Brackish (formerly Making Design Circular with Katie Treggiden)

Brackish (formerly Making Design Circular with Katie Treggiden)

Welcome to this new iteration of my podcast, which was called Making Design Circular and now has the same name as my Substack, Brackish. Brackish is a term used to describe water that is a mixture of saltwater and freshwater, for example, where a river meets the sea. I first encountered it sitting in a boat in just such water and it immediately became one of my favourite words. I am fascinated by intersections, liminal and littoral spaces, overlaps and interconnections, and I want to use this space to explore all of those things – the ideas that don’t fit into neat boxes. So, I’ll be exploring those things here – the places where craft meets nature, where the rules don’t apply and ‘shoulds’ start to fall away. Which brings me to the second meaning of the word brackish. As well as meaning ‘somewhat salty’ in very neutral terms, it has also come to mean ‘unpalatable’ or ‘repulsive’. I didn’t know this until after I decided upon it as a name, but as a woman in her middle years, who is relearning how to take up space, I am so here for that alternative definition! From occasional ‘salty’ language to refusing to adhere to feminine standards of beauty or behaviour, I am leaning into my brackish era – and I’m doing it here with some brilliant women and non-binary folks who are doing the same. brackishbykatietreggiden.substack.com

Episodes

July 9, 2025 66 mins

In this episode, Katie speaks with Sophie Austin, a multidisciplinary director, writer and producer, about how storytelling can become an act of regeneration, resistance, and community building.

Sophie’s work spans theatre, film, and audio, and she is passionate about amplifying voices from both marginalised human and more-than-human communities. She is the founder of Teatro Vivo and SHH Productions, and currently serves as Creativ...

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In this episode, Katie speaks with Alex Dunkley - a writer, musician, and independent funeral celebrant – about creativity, courage, and the quiet power of ritual.

Alex weaves all three aspects of her work in and alongside each other kaleidoscopically, and identifies as being AuDHD. Her work invites stories into the room—whether that's through song, ceremony, or the written word—exploring how narrative can hold space for grief, joy,...

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In this episode, Katie speaks with Juliet Bennett, to explore how wild swimming, coaching, and nature combine to create powerful, transformative experiences. From the clarity of lake water to coaching on windswept beaches, Juliet shares her journey into blue health, her love for cold water immersion, and how outdoor coaching is opening up new ways for people to find purpose, hope, and connection.

"I added the word 'broken' to my bra...

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April 16, 2025 54 mins

In this episode, Katie Treggiden speaks with Amy Wilson. Amy is an artistic and adventurous soul, wielding the epic powers of creativity daily at her studio, Acorn. She is passionate about creating brands, stories, and art in the world that shift paradigms and expand perspectives. Amy advocates for childlike play, the power of the imagination, Mother Earth, and the future - among other things! She is abstract, imperfect, free, and ...

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 In this episode, Katie Treggiden speaks with Kirsty Tanner, a Scottish multi-disciplinary artist, designer and maker, living in Liverpool. She runs design studio Tom Pigeon alongside her personal practice working across paint, textiles and collage. Kirsty's childhood in rural Scotland meets her love of Modernist design and Brutalist architecture, combining abstract expressions of nature with strong architectural line and negative ...

March 19, 2025 45 mins

In this episode, Katie Treggiden speaks with Joanne Lamb, an Irish artist based in London, who creates delicate woven vessels inspired by nature and the Celtic Wheel of the Year.

"I want each of the baskets to tell a story, they are imbued with a sense of time and place for me. The power of telling stories helps us connect with nature, event the earliest humans have done that." – Joanne Lamb

What we cover:

* Joanne's artistic process ...

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In this episode of Brackish, Katie speaks with Agnes Becker, artist, science communicator, and creator of We Are Stardust, about bridging the gap between art and science, connecting with nature, and finding freedom in creative expression.

Brackish is a term used to describe water that is a mixture of saltwater and freshwater, for example, where a river meets the sea.

I first encountered it sitting in a boat in just such water and it...

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January 22, 2025 39 mins

Brackish is a term used to describe water that is a mixture of saltwater and freshwater, for example, where a river meets the sea.

‘I first encountered it sitting in a boat in just such water and it immediately became one of my favourite words. I am fascinated by intersections, liminal and littoral spaces, overlaps and interconnections, and I want to use this space to explore all of those things – the ideas that don’t fit into neat...

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In this episode, Katie talks to Elle Bower Johnston. Elle (she/they) is a body witch. Their work is the alchemisation of breathwork, somatic, and rest practices with witchcraft and folk magic. She works with creatives, witches, queers, change-makers, weirdos - folks who might not necessarily feel like they belong in ‘wellness’ or ‘spiritual’ spaces - to help them get into deeper their relationship with their body and connect with t...

August 15, 2024 51 mins

In this episode, Katie talks to Rosie Murphy. Rosie is a consummate communicator and connector.

She is just one of a broad ecosystem of architectural workers uniting for greater social justice and environmental consciousness in all aspects of the built environment. She is an advocate for networks such as Black Females in Architecture, HomeGrown Plus and Architects Climate Action Network. 

Rosie's work is centred on youth engagement, ...

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August 8, 2024 40 mins

**This episode was originally an Instagram Live, so at the point of going live on the podcast, the rest challenge we talk about has already happened – however, the Making Design Circular Conference is happening on Thursday 05 September 2024 – find out more get your ticket for that HERE >>> **

 

In this episode, Katie talks to Jo Casey. Jo Casey is an Autistic and ADHD speaker and business coach who helps fellow quirky-brained entrepr...

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December 14, 2023 35 mins

In this episode, Katie continues last week’s conversation with Tamu Thomas a renowned transformational life coach, dedicated to guiding women towards achieving work-life harmony by embracing holistic well-being practices that align with their nervous system. 

Katie & Tamu explore:

  • The term ‘high-functioning freeze’
  • Defiant hope & rage 
  • Activism v Martyrdom 
  • And of course, the final quick fire round of season 4!

You can connect w...

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December 7, 2023 65 mins

In this episode, Katie talks to Tamu Thomas a renowned transformational life coach and the author of "Women Who Work Too Much: Break Free from Toxic Productivity and Find Your Joy." She is dedicated to guiding women towards achieving work-life harmony by embracing holistic well-being practices that align with their nervous system. 

Tamu's groundbreaking book sheds light on the systemic pressures that force women into a cycle of over...

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November 8, 2023 41 mins

In this episode, Katie talks to Lucy Hawthorne. Lucy is a campaigner at heart and Founder of Climate Play. Through play-based training and facilitation for adults, she helps make it safe, light and fun for people to face climate change. 

Combining a lot of LEGO with climate psychology, she creates conversation on the topic that teams actually want to have, rather than only feel like they should. Her serious play approach helps peopl...

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In this episode, Katie talks to Ella Wiles and Andres Roberts from The Bio-Leadership Project. The Bio-Leadership Project’s mission is to change the story of leadership by working with nature. A movement of people and organisations, changing human systems to be more resilient, regenerative, and designed to protect our planet.

Bio-Leadership is about challenging an outdated story of progress, about building organisations and communit...

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In this episode, Katie digs into one part of her Making Design Circular framework, the methodology that underpins everything she does. She talks about walk, and walk is short for walk, don't run. It is this idea that you don't have to do everything all at once you can take things step by step. And to support you doing that she has developed a path to sustainability, taking of all the things you could possibly do and put them into a...

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October 18, 2023 46 mins

In this episode, Katie talks to Tom Curran, a World Leading Expert on Perfectionism. With an eye on politics, economics, and society, he takes a cultural lens to the study of perfectionism. His work is groundbreaking and has uncovered a frightening trend of young people breaking under the strain of perfectionistic pressures. Tom brings perfectionism to life and makes it relevant and understandable to the widest audiences. He is a T...

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This week Katie is doing something a little different.

As you may have heard her mentioned in the previous episode, her latest book, Broken: Mending and repair in a throwaway world came out in April of this year, and she will be reading you the wonderfully. Thought-provoking  introduction to give you a flavour of the book. 

Here are some highlights:

Making a statement

“Although any form of mending or repair could be seen as a form of a...

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In this episode, Katie talks to Minnie Moll, Chief Executive at the Design Council. Minnie spent years in innovation, design, advertising and brand consultancy. She was Managing Partner of HHCL, the ‘Advertising Agency of the decade’ and then Global Marketing Director of Innovation company? What If!, which won Great Place to Work Institute’s ‘Best Place to Work in the UK’ two years running.  Minnie was voted Vistage UK Business Lea...

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March 29, 2023 62 mins

In this episode, Katie is joined by Laura Eigel PhD, the founder of The Catch Group, a leadership coaching firm accelerating women into the C-suite, and the host of the You Belong in the C-Suite podcast. Known for her direct feedback and her passion for living a life guided by her values, she has been an HR executive at Fortune 50 companies, joined the C-suite as a Chief Learning Officer, and now coaches high-achieving women to bui...

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