Tuesday, November 17, 2015
Wednesday, May 20, 2015
Life is now
"Let us allow the nature to teach us stillness"...."since the ego cannot survive in the stillness"...
..."stillness is where creativity and solutions to problems are found"...
..."the disfunction of the ego is amplified by technology"
Eckhart Tolle
Eckhart Tolle's long time bestseller gives clues on suffering and the end of suffering, on how to live in the now, and how to avoid our consciousness to be consumed by repetitive and often useless thinking.
Monday, March 23, 2015
The world of beautiful
Have you ever asked yourself: "How important is it to me that there is a future with birds, seals, and other magnificent creatures?"
How can we move from where we are to The more beautiful world our hearts know is possible?
How can we move from where we are to The more beautiful world our hearts know is possible?
A 5min video by Charles Eisenstein and Ian Mackenzie
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
The language dominion
What do we even aim for when we talk environment?
Tom Butler was one of 45 leading scholars, authors and activists who convened at The Great Hall of Cooper Union, New York City, on October 25-26, 2014, for the public presentation: "Techno-Utopianism and the Fate of the Earth." Speakers discussed the profound impacts—environmental, economic and social—of runaway technological expansionism and cyber immersion; the tendency to see technology as the savior for all problems. For more info, see http://ifg.org/techno-utopia/program/ .
Monday, November 3, 2014
Buy Nothing Christmas
Last year I gave you an inspiration on how to enjoy nature friendly holidays and the year before I wrote about meaningful gifts: last minute green presents.
BuyNothingChristmas.com holds further ideas on how to give more by giving less.
Wednesday, October 15, 2014
The Economics of Happiness
It is pointless to talk of all the crisis we are living. Better would be to know a way out. How can we dismantle the craziness that takes us to collapse? How can we recover and return to happiness?
"Going local is a powerful strategy to repair our fractured world, our ecosystem and our selves…"
RELATED: Happiness and materialism far apart
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
Nature is speaking… it has always been...
"The best thing a
human could do for this world is to lie down and die" said a friend of
mine when years ago we were debating a way forward. It has stroke me how harsh
but truth this was. Human arrogance has carried us to the cliff. We, humans, have
boosted about their cleverness but we have lost all our wisdom. What is our
intelligence for when we are not wise enough to know how to use it?
For decades Deep
Ecologists, spiritual leaders and those connected to nature have been recognizing the need of humanity to step back and to
recognize other beings as more than a convenient resource. Animals, plants, rivers and lakes, forests and mountain tops have been subject to human exploitation due to greed.
Today, when we stand on the
cliff of little return, it is our celebrities who warn us. Perhaps this time we
will listen? Perhaps this time we will reflect and do more than rise a Facebook thumb...
Deepest reverence to you, mama Earth.
Sunday, September 28, 2014
Organics with Love
When forty years ago Joseph
Wilhelm and his former wife Jennifer Vermeulen started to mix muesli in their
bathtub to bring healthy food products to the German market, they hardly could
have imagined becoming one of the key producers and distributors of
organic food in the world. It was 1972 when RAPUNZEL, named after
a 19th century fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm, was born.
A „hippie“ dream of living the organic life soon turned into a
small specialty store.
Photo: Items from Rapunzel's first
store now adorn the museum next to the production plant
Photo: Rapunzel's bus
From a vision to produce organically
cultivated muesli, nutty spreads, bread, fruit and vegetable,
RAPUNZEL grew into a company with 300 full-time employees operating from a
small German town Legau (Bavaria). Today, RAPUNZEL markets some 12,000
tons of organic food across the world presented in more than 450 certified
products.
Yet the organic pioneer has not
stopped there. Joseph Wilhelm is an untiring fair trade promoter and
an active supporter of organic agriculture beyond Germany and Europe. In
cooperation with the International Federation of Organic Agriculture (IFOAM),
he has been cherrishing the effort of other pro-Earth and socially
conscious activists with One World Award (OWA), which recognizes outstanding
engagement and achievements in environment protection and fair livelihoods. Six finalists were awarded during this year's gala celebration with
800 German and international guests that are themselves engaged in
sustainability, environmental protection or organic farming.
Happy birthday RAPUNZEL and congratulations to the winners!
Photo: Hana with Maike Wilhelm (as Rapunzel) and the former Alfalfa's CEO Mark Retzloff enjoying Rapunzel's festival
Thursday, August 28, 2014
Meat today is the new asbestos, more murderous than tobacco...
We torture or kill 2 billion sentient beings every week
90% of small fish are ground up into pallets to feed our
livestock
Although vegetarian, cows today are the world's largest
ocean
We torture and kill 2 billion sentient being every week
90% of small fish are ground up to feed livestock
Although vegetarian, cows today are the world's largest
ocean predators
Billions of chicks get ground up alive, simply because they are
male
10.000 entire species are wiped our every year because of one
50.000 litres of water are needed to produce 1kg of red beef
(Philip
Wollen)
Philip Wollen is an Australian Philantropist, a former vice president of Citybank, which he left to dedicate his life to animal rights movement. He initiated Earthlings - an award winning documentary about society's tragic and unforgivable use of non human animals that are suffering for food, fashion, pets, entertainment and medical research.
Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Happiness and materialism far apart
"At present, we are stealing the future, selling it in the present, and calling it GDP" Paul Hawken (2009)
As Club of Rome releases
its historical Limits to Growth in the United States
in 1972, the same year the term "gross national happiness"
(GNH) is coined in the Kingdom of Bhutan. In pursuit to build an
economy that would promote Bhutan's unique culture based
on Buddhist spiritual values, the emperor of this landlocked
Himalayan country of less than one million (746,500 people today) introduced a
five-year planning based on GNH.
Slogan about Gross National
Happiness in Thimphu's School of Traditional Arts
Since then, for over 40 years, the kingdom of Bhutan is
placing environmental concerns and spiritual wellbeing over rampant
capitalism. As Paul Hawken further states: "working for the earth is not
a way to get rich, it is to be rich".
Monday, April 14, 2014
Years of Living Dangerously
Hot from the owen, this is the recently released first episode of an excellently narrated documentary. An account that joins the dots for us to see the bigger picture of the consequences of our modern living based on excessive consumerism, which we claim necessary and which multiplies as the global population and hunger for Western living-style rises.
In the "age of rights" for humans we have forgotten our responsibility. We all fall victims to our inability to see and account for the our disconnection with the nature. Unless we fix our understanding of the world of nature, of which we are an inseparable part, we will make the history as the next extinct species.
Time is counting…
In the "age of rights" for humans we have forgotten our responsibility. We all fall victims to our inability to see and account for the our disconnection with the nature. Unless we fix our understanding of the world of nature, of which we are an inseparable part, we will make the history as the next extinct species.
Time is counting…
Saturday, February 8, 2014
The Next Economy
Those who follow my blog might have noticed substantial inactivity. Yes, I stopped posting articles, mainly out of despair. So much to say, what first, and how? Even if I wrote every day, we would not cover all the complexities of the self-destructive system that humans have created out of greed.
As the speed of natural devastation picks up and the response to the natural rampage becomes short, obsolete, and mostly non-systemic, many who strive to keep this precious Earth alive with all its beauties become speechless. But as a famous quote whose author I do not recall states "there is no time to be a pessimist", we must now, more than ever, reflect on our actions and their consequences. We must now rethink our way forward.
If the way forward is based on understanding our need for biological sustainability, since without biological sustainability there is no other sustainability, I let you ponder on this way forward for the outbursting population of 7 billion.
Words of a long time environmentalist and conservationist, Doug Tompkins who, together with his wife Kris and a large team of people dedicated to preserving our nature, have embarked on a challenging path. They have been able to succeed, so why can't we all?
Related articles:
Picasso's organic landscapes by Douglas Tompkins
Why tree hugging makes sense
Give yourself a present - find who you are
As the speed of natural devastation picks up and the response to the natural rampage becomes short, obsolete, and mostly non-systemic, many who strive to keep this precious Earth alive with all its beauties become speechless. But as a famous quote whose author I do not recall states "there is no time to be a pessimist", we must now, more than ever, reflect on our actions and their consequences. We must now rethink our way forward.
If the way forward is based on understanding our need for biological sustainability, since without biological sustainability there is no other sustainability, I let you ponder on this way forward for the outbursting population of 7 billion.
Related articles:
Picasso's organic landscapes by Douglas Tompkins
Why tree hugging makes sense
Give yourself a present - find who you are
Tuesday, December 24, 2013
Enjoy nature friendly holidays
While half of the nation feasts on carp fish, my grandmother's 91st Xmas spent with a delicious, frugal and nature friendly Xmas dinner as she has always been used to: eating mushroom soup and a porridge. This year I join her for traditional Xmas candle light stories.
May all people be happy, healthy, safe and in peace now and always. May we be kind and respectful to all beings.
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Give yourself a present: find who who you are....
Do we ever ask the most important question of our life? Are we ever questioning our assumptions, labels, descriptions that we or others gave us? When we ask, we tend to run into many misconceptions which effect our actions.
This holidays give yourself the most delightful present: ask and find who you are. :-)
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
Tiding up the unsustainable mess?
Have you wondered what might be the "solutions" to the mess we have created on this planet? Annie points out we need to refocus, start thinking differently, and change the rules of the game. Different people might be up for a different strategy from shifts of individual values to circular economy. Here is Annie's food for thought. Watch for yourself...
Video: Annie Leonard, The Story of Solutions
Monday, July 29, 2013
Prospering business of green
It is always good to remind yourself why you do
what you do, why are you in business and what matters.
You might be familiar with the work of Yvon Chouinard, a legendary climber, environmentalist and a founder of an outdoor clothing company Patagonia. In this video Yvon proves that ecological responsibility doesn't contradict economic
success. Let's be part of the solution.
Thursday, June 20, 2013
Change your way of thinking, change your world!
You are what your deep, driving desire is.
As your desire is, so is your will.
As your will is, so is your deed.
As you deed is, so is your destiny.
(Brihadaranyaka Upanishad)
There is nothing impossible, we just shall change our way of thinking. There is always a different way, another possibility... Can you see it?
Keep it sunny side up!
Monday, June 3, 2013
Wastefulness reinvented - think in circles
Why every time we do something we need to pollute?
Why every time we eat something there is so much waste produced from transportation, packaging...?
Why every time you want to buy new jeans there is such a huge environmental footprint?
Why every time we talk sustainability we think about making less bad rather than making all cycle good?
Why there has to be a beginning and an end? Would not a cycle be better?
It is all about our way of thinking. Can we rethink our ways of doing?
Why every time we eat something there is so much waste produced from transportation, packaging...?
Why every time you want to buy new jeans there is such a huge environmental footprint?
Why every time we talk sustainability we think about making less bad rather than making all cycle good?
Why there has to be a beginning and an end? Would not a cycle be better?
It is all about our way of thinking. Can we rethink our ways of doing?
Best ideas are simple! :-)
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Fish friendly marinated sardine carpaccio (raw)
This goes back to my years in Spain when I fell in love with the Mediterranean cuisine. However, much of their delights are fish and meat based. One of those dishes being marinated sardines, which is simply delicious.
Without wanting to engage in the “is it healthy to eat fish these days” and “can one be regarded as a true lover of the nature when consuming animals” rhetoric, I adopted an all-in-one approach. Rethinking that sardine “tapa” and creating a nutritive, healthy, ethical and simply raw alternative.
If you would like to venture into this, you will need:
Slice the zucchini with a peeler into thin, almost transparent slices, and place them onto a dish. Spread a very little amount of crashed or finely chopped garlic on the first layer and cover with more zucchini slices. Pour a little amount of balsamic vinegar and olive oil to cover the zucchini so they marinate for a couple of hours before serving (alternatively you can mix the marinate vinegar, oil, salt, and garlic before soaking your zucchini). Your zucchini needs to be soft once marinated. A little while before serving, sprinkle the zucchini with the seaweed which will give it a fish taste. I cut mine in stripes. Best roll up and eat with chopsticks (reusable, non-plastic and ivory-free ones, please :-)
Enjoy and let me know how you green your recipes :-)
Without wanting to engage in the “is it healthy to eat fish these days” and “can one be regarded as a true lover of the nature when consuming animals” rhetoric, I adopted an all-in-one approach. Rethinking that sardine “tapa” and creating a nutritive, healthy, ethical and simply raw alternative.
If you would like to venture into this, you will need:
1 baby zucchini
virgin olive oil
balsamic vinegar
crashed garlic
seaweed (e.g. sheet for sushi role or other that you like)
marine salt
marine salt
Slice the zucchini with a peeler into thin, almost transparent slices, and place them onto a dish. Spread a very little amount of crashed or finely chopped garlic on the first layer and cover with more zucchini slices. Pour a little amount of balsamic vinegar and olive oil to cover the zucchini so they marinate for a couple of hours before serving (alternatively you can mix the marinate vinegar, oil, salt, and garlic before soaking your zucchini). Your zucchini needs to be soft once marinated. A little while before serving, sprinkle the zucchini with the seaweed which will give it a fish taste. I cut mine in stripes. Best roll up and eat with chopsticks (reusable, non-plastic and ivory-free ones, please :-)
Enjoy and let me know how you green your recipes :-)
Sunday, April 28, 2013
Wearing your food - sustainable fashion
We live in exciting times where our challenges become a fuel for creations. Upcycling is where art, innovation, fun and caring for the environment marry: creating new from old, repurposing the not-needed, wearing our waste.
A fashion designer, Hoyan Ip rises an interesting food for thought in claiming there is not much new in the fashion industry, most trends are re-interpreted season by season. With her Bio-Trimmings project she asks interesting questions and acts on what has been lately brought to our attention from many corners: wasted food. So can we wear our food waste?
Hundreds projects have been presented where waste played the role of clothing. Repurposed plastic dresses, or paper fashion. They all point out to the fact that headless consumerism is uncool. While one could argue what is the "right level of consumerism", one thing is clear to most: Our rate of consuming supersedes, by far, our waste management efforts.
Heaps of trash, even if redistributed or recycled at current rate, will not diminish if we do not cut on the speed at which we acquire our stuff. That makes me wonder what would world look like if our economy functioned in a closed circular loop just like nature where the old is a base of something new. Seemingly, the only solution to our wastefulness of all kinds...
A fashion designer, Hoyan Ip rises an interesting food for thought in claiming there is not much new in the fashion industry, most trends are re-interpreted season by season. With her Bio-Trimmings project she asks interesting questions and acts on what has been lately brought to our attention from many corners: wasted food. So can we wear our food waste?
 |
| Hoyan Ip's repurposed food |
"As there are more
and more designers emerging, there is very little we can do to dispose of the
unwanted clothes ethically especially when you realise such sensitivity and
thought has gone into making a garment. The solution is to re-use the clothes,
de-brand them, repair them and wear them. However, for those who swear by
iconic brands such as Chanel may disagree on what this project proposes. It
changes the psychology of consumers on what we think about brands."
The question is whether "adding
products made from wasted food de-value the brand or add value to it because of
its ethical reasons. Trimmings such as buttons, metal buckles and zips are
all manufactured industrially where there are concerns on the impact it has on
the environment as it consumes a lot of energy and fuel." (Source: Hoyan Ip)
To me, consuming is uncool. A new fashion is to care.
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Monday, March 25, 2013
Picasso's organic landscapes by Douglas Tompkins
When I met Douglas Tompkins and spoke to him over a delicious but
frugal Country-Life vegetarian dinner, I was amazed how his values resonated
with mine.
It was even more amazing that although I missed his contributions to the 2013 German BioFach congress forum where he was one of the
panelist of the "Imagine... - the beauty of organic farming", I
virtually "bumped" into him later in Prague. Both of us were
supposed to be elsewhere. Whether this is a coincidence or a destiny, his documentary presentation swept me off my feet. The unparalleled beauty that he
and his team created by, what he calls, "painting the landscapes", has
showed before only in my dreams.
Douglas Tompkins is an American environmentalist, conservationist and
a former owner of two clothing companies, The North Face (outdoor outfit) and the ESPRIT. In 1989, he left the business arena
to dedicate himself to environmental activism and land conservation. Together
with his wife, Kristine Tompkins, over those years, he has conserved some 8,100 km2 of wilderness, in
Patagonia (the southern part of Chile), as well as in Argentina. He currently runs four foundations dedicated
to conservation.
Described as a deep ecologist, he believes that true
ecological sustainability and species extinction can be achieved only through
rethinking our values where nature is no longer seen merely as a commodity for
human exploitation and profit. Rather it must be seen as "a partner and model in
all human enterprise".
Video: Laguna Blanca, 20min
Deep ecologists see the main culprits for current state of Earth in:
• "The loss of traditional knowledge, values, and ethics of
behavior that celebrate the intrinsic value and sacredness of the natural
world" and instead dwells on an "assumption of human
superiority to other life forms"
• The prevailing economic and development paradigms of the modern
world" which is "fundamentally incompatible with ecological
sustainability on a finite Earth"
• "Technology worship and an unlimited faith in the virtues of
science; the modern paradigm that technological development is inevitable,
invariably good, and to be equated with progress and human destiny. From this,
we are left dangerously uncritical, blind to profound problems that technology
has wrought, and in a state of passivity that confounds democracy."
• Overpopulation Source: Foundation for deep ecology
When I saw his documentary Laguna Blanca, I sighed: "This is what it looks like when dreams come true!"
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Business of creating miracle: our way forward...
As we are awakening, our purpose becomes more obvious to us.
Thank you, Charlie for sharing your vision.
Video: Sacred Economics with Charles Eisenstein - 12min documentary
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Forget the climate change, mind what is on your plate...
As dumpster diving becomes a popular sport and bin cooking is a perfect adept for the next bestseller, climate change might be of a secondary interest to some environmentalists.
„Tell me what is in your bin and I tell you who you are!“ comes to mind when the issue of food waste is discussed.
Storing pig feed in household bins Europe-wide has become a standard, with 89 million tons of food being tossed away on the continent each year. A Western trend where wastefulness is an accepted paradigm.
 |
Discarded fish alone amounts to as much as 30 million tones/year
(UNEP, 2012) |
Why not? What is not forbidden, is allowed. More so, if wasting is free of charge.
World leaders‘ myopic „growth“ rhetoric surpasses the logic of our system: worldwide, we produce enough to feed 12 billion, only to dump half of it. Is this a remedy for depression? Another planned obsolescence? Or can we just not do the numbers?
In a world of 7 billion where one billion people starve and another 1.4 billion are overweight, we blame underproduction for world hunger, creating a justification for Monsanto’s crimes: more pesticides, more food. More GMO, more food security...
One sided political interests, citizens’ blindness and fading ethical values prevent a five-in-one solution. Cutting your food waste will:
-stimulate resource conservation
-eradicate world hunger
-shrink landfills (fewer plastic carrier bags, packaging of processed food. "In the USA, organic waste is the second highest component of landfills" - UNEP, 2012)
-reduce global warming (by cutting transport and storage of food that never makes it to our plates, as well as cutting methane emissions from food waste)
-ensure food security
With activists like Tristram Stuart at the front and the UNEP on their side, can this trend be reverted? Can uncovering the food waste scandal change our wasteful habits?
Hope rises but the task is much too big. Each and every one of us must lift the lid of our garbage bins, dig into our consciences, and put into action what our grandmothers told us long ago „food is not to be wasted, there are far too many going hungry in this world“.
...or is there just too much on our plates?
It all starts with our thinking, it is all about our attitude. Can we be inspired by nature where everything is a source rather than waste?
You have the power to change because nothing is waste until you throw it. It is up to you to re-thing food waste!
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