Greetings from Nuremberg – my name is Matthew. I’m an Australian freelance copywriter specialising in technology, sustainability, and the environment. As a self-proclaimed “EcoWriter”, I really do live and breathe the topics I write about. And I believe I offer a specialised experience that few others can. I enjoy crafting all forms of eco-based content, but I feel most comfortable writing in a way that feels more like an ongoing conversation. Much like we’re having right now.
Table of Contents
Starting Off
My journey as a writer was perhaps a little different to many others; I’ve never worked for an agency or formal employer, but rather, I’ve built my own client base from the ground up. While many people spend their mornings scrolling through Instagram, I’m usually glued to environmental news sites from around the world. Keeping my finger firmly on the environmental pulse.
I recently wrote new websites for Aypa, an energy storage company, and SeaCleanse, an ocean cleanup organisation. And I’m currently writing long-form content for a carbon offset supplier named Terrapass. I’ve also written for automotive companies, solar businesses, product manufacturers, technology blogs, and a host of others. Most of my work comes from my website, direct referrals, word-of-mouth, and Linkedin. And I like to think that is specialised in the fields of sustainability and the environment has really helped me make a name for myself.
Before I was a writer – and it still makes me smile to call myself that – I worked in solar energy for ten years with a couple of different companies as also as a business owner. It was a wild ride to say the very least; lots of ups and downs, lots of money made and lost, and plenty of long, long days. But through it all, my passion for the environment and my inexhaustible desire to make a difference drove me to keep working hard. Just like it still does now.
Moving Further Afield
After living in Adelaide, South Australia for my entire life, I moved to Germany in 2017 for a two-year working holiday/once-in-a-lifetime experience. Six months in, I already knew that I wanted to stay, and three years later. I’ve got an incredible apartment with my beautiful German girlfriend in the middle of Nuremberg. We live right next to the Pegnitz river which runs through the city. There’s a giant church out of one window, and the Nuremberg castle out of the other. I can’t even begin to explain how lucky I feel. 
Living in Nuremberg is fantastic as a freelance copywriter. Albeit not at the moment due to the second round of COVID-19 lockdowns. Germany isn’t exactly known for its coffee, but thankfully there’s a growing café scene. And quite a few good places to go if you know where to look. (A simple guide: if they roast their own beans – you can bet the coffee is pretty good!) I spend most of my days in a small cheesecake shop called “Käsekoung Stub’n” in one of Nuremberg’s outer suburbs. Which is basically furnished like a 1940’s German living room complete with WW2-era music. The owners speak about as much English as I do German – which is not a lot. But we have managed to form a cute friendship that my girlfriend finds incredibly amusing.
If and when we leave Nuremberg – which we already talk about sometimes – I think we’ll likely try the UK for a little while before ultimately settling back in Australia. My girlfriend and I absolutely love Scotland and Ireland. So perhaps somewhere like Dublin or Edinburgh would be a fantastic place to live for a while. And certainly incredible places to work as a freelancer.
Environmental Writing
Being a writer that specialises in the environment can be a bit of a double-edged sword at times; some days it’s incredibly uplifting and gives me hope for the future – while other days, frankly, it’s downright depressing. The environment is in pretty bad shape folks, and while there are lots of amazing things happening – both on centre stage and behind the scenes. We’ve got a long, long way to go. That being said, I do believe we’ll eventually live in a clean, healthy world – it’s just a matter of when.
My favourite client at the moment is an Australian news site called The Eco Bahn, which focuses on sustainability and technology in the world of eCommerce. The owner, Simon, is a great guy to work with, and I get a lot of creative freedom to write detailed, long-form articles. I was the first freelance writer they’d ever hired and I felt a fair bit of pressure to deliver some really valuable content. But so far, it’s been a great relationship. I’m especially proud of a recent article I wrote that explored plastic vs compostable packaging, which I admit might not sound overly interesting, but I think it showed that – as if often the case – there’s a lot more to these topics than meets the eye. I also really like a recent opinion piece I wrote about electric vehicles for a company called Electric Monk, which I think makes for some pretty fascinating reading – even if you’re not particularly interested in cars.
Final Thoughts
Ultimately, I can genuinely say that I love everything about being a copywriter. I love the freedom, the flexibility, and I still can’t believe I get to make a living writing about something I’m so passionate about. While I may not have 20 years of experience like some other writers, I’m proud of the client base that I’ve been able to attract and work with. And I love meeting new clients that are just as committed to making a difference as I am.
And in the same way that cleantech is a vibrant industry with a bright future. I feel like my copywriting career is only just getting started. After all, there’s a whole world of great clients out there. And plenty of important conversations that we haven’t had yet. If you like what you’ve read, and you think we’d be a good fit to work together – get in touch.
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