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Weekly Greenhouse Round-Up

Sally Hill | 02.07.10

This post from Martin Wright at Forum for the Future, written amidst the climate science controversy in the press earlier this year, hit the nail on the head:

If Climate Change Didn't Exist Would We Have to Invent It?

The essence of the article, highlighted in the cartoon below, is that the changes required to adapt to climate change need to take place whether it is real or not.

The adjustments needed to address climate change are also necessary to reduce our toll on resources, stabilise the condition of the planet, and they're not actually so bad for our quality of life either.

Here are the links we loved this week:

Scotland's Big Tent Festival Adds Summer School to Promote Green Living
The weekend-long celebration of green and sustainable lifestyles launches new skills workshop
(Treehugger)

You Ask, They Answer: Slow Food UK
Q&A with the British wing of the Slow Food movement
(The Guardian)

Zero Carbonista: Wind Car Update
The latest from Zero Carbonista's wind car, racing in the Bridgestone Eco Rally
(Zero Carbonista)

Government Commission Urges Rapid Setting Up of Green Investment Bank
New UK Green Investment Bank to support low-carbon infrastructure ecological projects
(The Guardian)

Bridgestone Eco Rally 2010 to Showcase Cutting-Edge Car Design
Sustainable transport in action, a showcase of cutting-edge and super-fast eco cars
(The Telegraph)

Are Blue Bike Lanes Better Than Black?
Recent Guardian study shows that drivers give less room to cyclists when there is a painted bike lane
(Treehugger)

Sales of Small Wind Turbines Up, Even in Soft Housing Market
More people are turning to wind power: lower risk and less cost, what's not to like?
(CleanTechnica)

Organic Farming's Balanced Ecosystems Naturally Control Pests Better Than Monoculture
In case you needed another reason to favour organic farming over chemical agriculture
(Treehugger)

Eco Rally
The official site for the sustainable vehicle event

Book of Green
New Book of Green resources for your life, plus there's a great contest to win eco prizes

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eco rally, renewable energy, climate change, sustainability, biodiversity, book of green, links, green investment, festival, cycling

Big Ideas: 29 authors look at the spirituality of being green

Sally Hill | 19.07.10

Last Wednesday, ‘GreenSpirit: Path to a New Consciousness’ was launched in London. It’s a new book which is receiving a great deal of attention in ‘green’ circles. The gathering was well attended by some of the UK’s finest environmental minds including guest speaker Jonathon Porritt.

Jonathon, who is the founder of Forum for the Future, drew inspiration from the book as he questioned whether we can we achieve growth and prosperity and still have room for the needs of the human spirit.

The book is an extraordinary read. The stringing together of ideas from fields as varied as ‘deep ecology,’ astronomy, spirituality, theology and mythology, ancient and indigenous culture and tradition, ‘ecopsychology,’ traditional religions and environmentalism give the reader a vast array of concepts to think about.

Author Christopher Johnstone called it ‘a valuable guide to some of the deepest thinking on the connections between ecology and spirituality. Never before have so many important ideas on these subjects been assembled between the covers of a single book.’

To explain briefly the ‘GreenSpirit’ concept, advocate Patrick Moore describes it as ‘combining environmentalism with both a deep appreciation of nature and an enthusiasm for the challenge. ‘Spirit’ as in spiritual and ‘spirit’ as in team spirit.’

The book's authors (there are more than twenty contributing writers) follows a trend in current environmental debate which questions the anthropocentrism of our culture, value-system and institutions. That is, the deeply embedded set of values that sees human beings as the centre of the world – with the universe revolving around us.

The stream of thought throughout the book describes a shift that needs to take place in perception. It compares this to the change which that occurred when humans discovered the sun didn’t revolve around the earth, but the earth revolved around the sun. The mainstream version of this idea is evident in the movements around campaigners Polly Higgins, and All Living Things.

Edited by Marian Van Eck McCain, the tone of the book is thoughtful - never instructional. McCain's writers lead the reader along a path, where each of us can draw our own conclusions.

Traditional religions are dealt with in an interesting manner. While the book draws attention to the idea that there is a part of Christianity that helped to separate humans from nature, it is never critical or dismissive of this or any religion. The philosophy embraces people both within and apart from religion, and sees Christianity as one of many cultures and traditions that gives a context and body of knowledge from which we can build a greater understanding of life, the planet, the universe, and our place in it.

GreenSpirit proposes solutions to our environmental predicament, which it calls ‘greening our culture’.It involves reforming education, law, and the anthropentrism of our institutions – essentially an overhaul of our value system, which it sees as necessary in the context of global environmental challenges.

There is a danger in any new framework being held up as the solution and as a new and right way to think and be. However, the thinkers who have contributed to the book have built into the philosophy the need to appreciate diversity of thought and perspective, which goes some way to reducing this danger. The concept never dismisses a point of view, only puts it into a new context.

The ‘GreenSpirit’ mindset may be worth exploring for those who are interested in a deep engagement with the natural world and the ‘why’ questions of being involved in sustainability. Whether or not this resonates with you, it’s an engaging read about some very big ideas. GreenSpirit challenges us to see, think and feel in a whole new way about the world around us.

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green, sustainability, jonathon porritt, review, spirituality, book, marian van eck mccain, launch

Eco Hero: Sophie Thomas

Sally Hill | 28.07.10

‘So not your average designer’, Sophie Thomas is an agitator of the everyday. An active campaigner for sustainability in the design industry, she stirs things up and get people talking, challenging, changing and creating. She sees her biggest design challenge as helping to re-design society and inspire a mind shift towards a happier and sustainable future.

Over the past twelve years, as founding director of thomas.matthews Sophie has led and delivered a vast array of award winning projects across the world. Through her work and writing she has strived to demonstrate how creativity can inspire people to change behaviour.

Sophie plays a vocal part in promoting sustainable thinking in design and is a co-founder of the social enterprise ‘Three Trees Don’t Make a Forest’, which is building resources for the communication design community, enabling sustainable practice.

Sophie also worked with partner Matthews on No Shop, a three-day installation for Friends of the Earth that tackled issues of consumerism and consumption. Last year she helped to set up and run Greengaged an organisation helping to advance the design industry’s capacity to respond to environmental challenges through knowledge sharing.

Leading by doing, Sophie is dedicated to sustainable design and determined to make a difference. Here’s her take on the issues she’s working on.

Read more

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eco hero, sustainability, design, sophie thomas, materials, thomas matthews, three trees, greengaged

Greenhouse Weekly Roundup

Sally Hill | 07.01.11

'Trendspotting: the next big sustainability issues'
James Goodman and Martin Wright track the trends which will influence the coming year's sustainability debates.
Guardian Sustainable Business

'The Guardian's sustainability naivity'
Chris Milton disagrees and bursts open some interesting arguments based on the Guardian's list.
Sustainability Forum

Read more

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ecotricity, soil association, sustainability, food, waste, anaerobic digestion, consumer, recession, sustainable business, electronics