Shaping Places

Bex Trevalyan is a social entrepreneur and co-founder of Library of Things — a UK-wide network that lets people borrow useful items instead of buying them — and Platform Places, a movement unlocking empty high-street buildings for community use. In this episode, Bex joins Dave Erasmus to discuss how sharing can build stronger, more connected communities — and why the future of place might lie in collaboration rather than consumption. From her childhood love of mud pies in rural Lancashire to reshaping London’s high streets, Bex reflects on how our relationship with stuff, space and one another can transform the places we live. Together, they explore what happens when local people are given the tools to create change, and how small, shared acts can spark wider social impact. Discover more about Platform Places at https://www.platformplaces.com/ Discover more about Library of Things at https://www.libraryofthings.co.uk/ 

Rosanna Vitiello is an urban strategist, cultural researcher and co-founder of The Place Bureau — a research, strategy and design studio connecting people with the stories of their environments. In this episode, she joins Dave and Matt to explore what really makes a place — and how cities speak to us if we learn to listen. From the chaotic charm of Naples to the breezy theatricality of Bournemouth, Rosanna traces how the sea, the street and the smell of coffee (and even rubbish) can reveal the soul of a city. She discusses her work helping communities shape the future of their environments, why places are more than just buildings, and how understanding the “lexicon” of a city can unlock its shared identity. Discover more about Rosanna’s work at theplacebureau.com Join the conversation on her Substack: theplacebureau.substack.com Get involved in defining and designing places for tomorrow: https://www.theplacebureau.com/toolkit 

In this first episode of Shaping Places, Dave Erasmus and Matt Mason meet Sean McCormack — the vet-turned-conservationist helping to rewild London. As founder of the Ealing Wildlife Group, he’s leading efforts to bring beavers back to the capital for the first time in 400 years, and showing how the places that shaped him now shape his work. A self-confessed nature nerd and qualified vet, Sean shares his journey from treating animals in clinical settings to rewilding entire communities. What began as burnout from veterinary practice became a mission to reconnect people with nature on their doorstep — from reintroducing the UK’s smallest native rodent, the harvest mouse, to leading a thriving 8,000-strong community of wildlife enthusiasts. Together, Dave, Matt, and Sean explore what it means to reshape our relationship with nature in the city, how local action can spark national change, and why storytelling might just be one of the most powerful conservation tools we have. To discover more about Sean and the good work of the Ealing Wildlife Group, visit https://drseanmccormack.com, https://ealingwildlifegroup.com/ and https://theealingbeaverproject.com/ or check out his social media https://www.instagram.com/thatvetsean.