Sustainability and Education by Bob Cranwell

I should say, if you have an interest in this area of our development, that this is a wholly opinionated piece with few references, relying mainly on experience, observations and memory. Some of this turned out be entirely contrary to my own view at the time and thus I had some thinking to do. Hard thinking is something missing in modern life, sadly; but since we are actually talking about areas which require an entire shift from convention, this is only fair to point out. Read more…

Interview with Richard Smith, Sustainability Manager at BBC

This is an interview with Richard Smith, a sustainability manager at the BBC who’s job it is to work with everybody at the BBC to help collectively reduce the environmental impact of the BBC. And because the main thing which impacts the environment is energy use, that is directly related to climate change and that was why he was in Manchester Museum taking part in the Climate Control exhibitions and events. Read more…

Why Not an Economy of Recycling? by Amelia Modrak

The facts are there. Only 5% of the total plastic that is being produced is recycled, and a similar trend applies to the glass, metal and paper. The rest goes to its final destination: the landfill or the Ocean; or, speaking from a biological point of view, to the Ecosystem, with all the detrimental consequences attached to it.

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Invisible Deserts and Visible Diversity by Susan Brown

When I was a child I lived near a large pond which backed onto a wood. In spring the pond would fill  with frog spawn. I remember waiting  till the tadpoles emerged out of the gelatinous mass of spawn and catching a few up in a large jar. I’d endeavour to recreate the pond ecosystem in the jar- a haphazard process of topping it up with smelly pond water and strewing the water with pondweed – and wait for the tadpoles to transform into frogs.To my consternation, though their four legs sprouted and their tails began to retract they never made it to adulthood. Read more…

Embedding Sustainability Across The Curriculum: University of Manchester Community of Practice

At the University of Manchester a community of practice has been set up embedding sustainability across the curriculum and in teaching.  This is a recording of some of the presentations which were given. As the realisation sets in across the globe that we can no longer afford to be wasteful in the way we live, the question is recurring as to what ways of life we transition to and how. Read more…

Fine Wine, Future Generations And Notions Of Sustainability by Susan Brown

There is a lot of discussion of the term ‘sustainability’ and numerous definitions of the term. I’m not going to delve into a comparative exploration of these in this post. I’d like, instead, to explore a notion common to a number of definitions of sustainability:  that we need to pass on to future generations a World fit to live in (I include examples of such definitions at the end of the post). Read more…