Last month the London Marathon partnered with UK startup Skipping Rocks Lab, creators of Ooho edible water pods, in a bid to reduce plastic waste. The organizers of the event handed out over 30,000 capsules to runners, who either consumed the entire pod or drank the water and threw away the biodegradable seaweed packaging. The collaboration was part of a pledge to make this year’s event the most sustainable marathon ever.

Without a trace. In the intensifying global war on waste and eco-hazards, it will no longer be enough to just speak out against straws or reduce your plastic usage. Innovative new materials (like the edible seaweed used in Ooho’s pods and Loliware’s straws) and repurposed waste (see this Thai supermarket’s use of banana leaves) mean that brands are transitioning from reducing their footprint to nearly eliminating it. This is setting expectations for every brand in every sector. If you want to be proactive, not reactive: challenge your team to think beyond reducing your waste. How can you leave no trace behind?

In any event. One of the best ways to pioneer or test out your innovation with a much wider audience? Put it to use at a public event where it would be more than welcome. Marathons, for example, generate heaps of trash, which is why initiatives like Ooho pods and a zero-waste policy at the Tata Mumbai race are sorely needed. And for a non-environmental example, see the delivery lockers Amazon set up at Coachella. Is there a gathering, it doesn’t have to be Coachella-sized, that would be the perfect location for experimentation and interaction with new users? We aren’t talking trade shows. Think about where your competitors don’t already have a stall!