Shadowing Practice: Brian Cox School Experiments: plastics – industry video - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Plastics can get into the environment from many sources where they can break down and cause pollution.
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But plastic packaging is also a huge issue.
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They can enter the oceans and rivers and damage ecosystems.
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Catherine Conway is the director of Unpackaged, a company focused on a future without the need for single-use plastic packaging.
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They're exploring ways that people can buy products in supermarkets or takeaways in reusable packaging, packaging, which then gets washed and reused again and again.
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Unpackaged has worked for nearly 17 years, trying to move from single use to reusable packaging.
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We are trying to tackle the problem of single use packaging waste, mainly single use plastic packaging waste.
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We work mainly with supermarkets as well as hospitality, so restaurants, events.
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And what we try and do is help them move from single use systems to reuse systems.
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So we work with businesses to create change.
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But another thing that needs to change is actually government policy, so the laws and the regulations around single-use packaging.
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So we work with the government to help them come out with better laws to support the development of reusable packaging.
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Currently, the packaging system is linear, so we extract fossil fuels, oil, we turn it into plastics, we turn it into short-life products, and then it goes to waste management.
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Plastic is a material that will live for hundreds, if not thousands, of years,
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and it makes no sense to use this really valuable resource for a short-lived item such as packaging.
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What we're trying to create is the circular economy.
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The circular economy imagines cycles, so we turn packaging into reusable packaging and use it over and over again.
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Reusable plastic packaging is currently more expensive than single-use plastics, making the transition to a circular economy more difficult.
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So the challenge that we face is that plastic packaging is extremely cheap.
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The reason it's so cheap is because it's actually very resource efficient so it's a great material, we just shouldn't use it for single-use items.
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Another reason that plastic packaging is so cheap is because the problems that it causes, whether that's pollution in the oceans,
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pollution on land, human health impacts, isn't factored into the price that businesses are paying for it.
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We're trying to develop reusable systems and actually that adds more cost into it.
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Another problem we face is that we're all very used to buying products in single use, so it's very easy, we grab something off a shelf, we use it, we throw it away away.
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To move from single use to reusable packaging we need consumers to shop differently.
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So instead of just taking something off a shelf using it
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and throwing it away we may need to bring a container to fill up
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or we might need to take a bottle back to get a deposit back.
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So the challenge that we face is how we almost re-educate customers to do things differently.
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Reusable packaging needs to be washed and cleaned
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so today we're here in a new wash station that's being
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developed to be to be able to clean this new reusable packaging.
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So once these containers have been washed and dried, they're sent back to the manufacturers.
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So for example, a cornflake producer, where they get filled and sent back out to store again.
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What skills and qualifications are needed for a career in sustainable packaging?
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The skills we need in this industry revolve around design thinking and creativity, so we can come up with new solutions to problems.
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We need people who can analyse data and understand that the solutions are the right solutions.
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We also need really good project managers who can get really difficult, complex projects off the ground.
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The area we work in, which is circular economy and reusable packaging, is actually very new. So there's
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so many new solutions coming out every year year actually we
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don't really know what the jobs are of the future
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so young people can keep a real open mind about where they might go.
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I studied languages so it was a complete career shift to go into plastics and packaging.
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Really young people need to learn the basics so maths, English, science but really then they can specialise after school into specific areas
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which might be engineering or design that would really help our sector.
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Young people really care about the environment there's
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so many opportunities in our sector for people to come in
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and use their skills to make the world a better place
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can you envisage your future without single-use plastics we have to envisage a future without single-use plastics
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because we're simply consuming too many resources for the planet to
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be able to cope with the way we're going to get
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there is through innovation in terms of packaging we need a mix of solutions
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so some of the solutions will be taking the packaging off
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and consuming things loose some of it will be reusable packaging where we use uh probably mainly plastics uh
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but in reusable uh circles so they get reused again
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and again and again and then we will still probably have some single-use plastics
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but we have to really sort out our recycling so
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that it's they're managed properly at the end of life
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and what will drive that
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that change will it will it be government regulation will it be consumer pressure will it be the industry itself
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so the change is Consumers don't want this.
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You know, nobody wants to feel bad about the waste
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that they're putting in their bins just because they've bought something from a supermarket.
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But really what we need is supportive government regulation, which will allow industry to all change at the same time.
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If you're talking about system change from single use to reuse, then we need new systems,
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new processes, new infrastructure, and actually industry needs to move together and regulation can help that.
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So what be the change that we would see as consumers
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so i think there'll be two changes i think we'll get
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a lot more used to carrying packaging around with us
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so at the minute people are really happy to carry around water bottles coffee cups
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so there might be a bit more of that
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so you might take your packaging down to a shop to fill something up
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but also you'll get used to returning things
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so whilst you might get a delivery now uh to your door you'll get used to putting it back out but
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if you remember this is how we used to do things
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we used to have a milkman we used to put milk bottles back out
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so it's really just the return that we'll have to get used to
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when would you like to see that happen and
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when do you think it will happen i think i'd like to see it happen yesterday
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but recognizing the fact
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that it takes industry time to be able to develop these new systems we probably need regulation
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that comes in for 2027 2030 and 2040 and
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that will give industry the amount of time
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that it needs to make the changes once you've got those
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systems working at scale it should become cheaper for the consumer
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and more cost effective for the business so everybody wins
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and especially in the modern world material prices are very volatile
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so actually it's it's up to business to try
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and control those costs a bit better
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and reusable packaging is one of the ways to do that well thank you catherine pleasure
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 90 sentences and 1276 words to shadow. The speech runs for 6:28. The speaker talks fast, about 197 words per minute, so expect linked and reduced sounds. 86% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 less common words from the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
- package /ˈpæk.ɪd͡ʒ/ (noun) — Something which is packed, a parcel, a box, an envelope.
- regulation /ˌɹɛɡjʊˈleɪʃən/ (noun) — The act of regulating or the condition of being regulated.
- circular /ˈsɜɹ.kjə.ləɹ/ (adjective) — Of or relating to a circle.
- wash /wɑʃ/ (verb) — To clean with water.
- skill /skɪl/ (noun) — A capacity to do something well; a technique, an ability, usually acquired or learned, as opposed to abilities that are regarded as innate.
- resource /ɹɪˈzɔːs/ (noun) — Something that one uses to achieve an objective, e.g. raw materials or personnel.
- pollution /pəˈluʃən/ (noun) — Physical contamination, now especially the contamination of the environment by harmful substances, or by disruptive levels of noise, light etc.
- supermarket /ˌsupɚˈmɑɹkət/ (noun) — A large self-service store that sells groceries and, usually, medications, household goods, and/or clothing.
- differently /ˈdɪf.ə.ɹənt.li/ (adverb) — In a different way.
- container /kənˈteɪ.nəɹ/ (noun) — An item in which objects, materials or data can be stored or transported.
- shelf /ʃɛlf/ (noun) — A flat, rigid structure, fixed at right angles to a wall or forming a part of a cabinet, desk, etc., and used to display, store, or support objects.
- consume /kənˈsum/ (verb) — To use up.
- infrastructure /ˈɪnfɹəˌstɹʌkt͡ʃə/ (noun) — An underlying base or foundation for a building, organization, or system.
- transition /tɹænˈzɪʃ.ən/ (noun) — The process of change from one form, state, style or place to another.
- producer /pɹəˈdjuːsə/ (noun) — An individual or organization that creates goods and services.
Phrasal verbs you will hear
- back out (verb) — To reverse (a vehicle) from a confined space.
- break down (verb) — To stop functioning.
- come in /ˌkʌm ˈɪn/ (verb) — To enter.
- come in for (verb) — To be subjected to.
- come out /ˌkʌm ˈaʊt/ (verb) — To be discovered; to be revealed.
- come out with (verb) — To say (something) unexpectedly.
- come up with (verb) — To manage to produce, deliver, or present (something) by inventing, creating, thinking of, or obtaining it.
- fill up (verb) — To make (something) completely full.
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 23 contractions and reduced forms, such as we're, they're, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: regulation /ˌɹɛɡjʊˈleɪʃən/, wash /wɑʃ/, pollution /pəˈluʃən/, shelf /ʃɛlf/, transition /tɹænˈzɪʃ.ən/
- Long words — get the stress right: regulation /ˌɹɛɡjʊˈleɪʃən/, supermarket /ˌsupɚˈmɑɹkət/, differently /ˈdɪf.ə.ɹənt.li/, infrastructure /ˈɪnfɹəˌstɹʌkt͡ʃə/, innovation /ˌɪn.əˈveɪ.ʃən/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like package, regulation, circular.
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| “Used to” used to + verb — a past habit or state that is no longer true | used to buying · used to carrying · used to do |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | isn't factored · be washed · have been washed |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | has worked · have been washed · they've bought |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | people who can · regulation, which will |
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.