FUTUREVVORLD is back with season two of Progress Over Perfection, an ongoing audio exploration of Earth-friendly design and the people leading the way. To get things going again, FVV’s Co-founder and Editor-in-Chief Daniel Navetta had a chat with the multi-award winning sneaker designer, artist and footwear futurist Helen Kirkum.

Kirkum is a footwear designer like no other. Her London-based studio produces handmade, bespoke sneakers made from secondhand and vintage kicks. Customers can send in treasured old pairs and have them transformed into a made-to-order one-off. She first caught our attention when she partnered with adidas to create a collection of recycled sneakers modeled on the Campus 80. Since then, she’s been growing and growing.

During the conversation Kirkum talked about the difficulties of working with recycled materials, her relationship with Virgil Abloh, her thoughts on what a sneaker utopia might look like, and much, much more.

We of course got onto the hot and hypey topic of ‘sustainability’ and the overwhelming nature of that loaded word. Her advice to brands? “Don’t bullshit the situation” and be honest about your product and your process. We couldn’t agree more.

Season two of Progress Over Perfection has been made better because of your feedback. So, keep telling us how we can make it more awesome. It’s not yet perfect, but we’re always making progress.

Listen to the episode above, or on Apple, Spotify, and anywhere else you listen to podcasts.