http://www.becominggreen.co.uk Becoming Green Sat, 04 Feb 2012 14:29:14 +0000 http://www.becominggreen.co.uk en http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/Theory-U http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/following/becominggreen.co.uk/Theory-U Sat, 04 Feb 2012 14:29:14 +0000 Becoming Green 2742234 <img src="http://payload22.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/2742234/theory-u-in-practice1.jpg" border="0" width="670" height="502" width_o="720" height_o="540" src_o="http://payload22.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/2742234/theory-u-in-practice1_o.jpg" align="left" /> Theory U is too complex to describe in a couple of paragraphs, but I will summarise as best I can. It is a theory of creating change that learns from the future as it emerges. Through a process of participatory learning, related closely to action-research, those going through the U-movement vision, crystallise and prototype new ways of working and looking at problems, until they find new ways of operating that become the new norm. Involved in this is the process of presencing, letting go of old frames and old habits and resisting the temptation to 'download' lessons from the past. It is about overcoming the voices of judgement, cynicism and fear and having an open mind, heart and will to let in new ways of being. Learn more at Otto Scharmer's website. The graphic here is particularly useful in thinking about how to put Theory U into practice. http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/The-Man-Who-Planted-Trees http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/following/becominggreen.co.uk/The-Man-Who-Planted-Trees Wed, 23 Nov 2011 23:33:59 +0000 Becoming Green 2355636 <img src="http://payload2.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/2355636/ManWho.png" border="0" width="670" height="483" width_o="1112" height_o="803" src_o="http://payload2.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/2355636/ManWho_o.png" align="left" /> The Man Who Planted Trees is a 30 minute animated film version of a book by Jean Giono. It tells the story of Elzéard Bouffier a French peasant who set about re-foresting a desolate region of the Alps near Provence. It's a beautiful film to show to illustrate the joy of creation, biodiversity, modesty and the power of nature to shape human life. The story also helps to show how an ecosystem develops, sustains and flourishes. I'm very grateful to Ian Culbard, a colleague at Waste Watch who introduced this to me. http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/People-Things http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/following/becominggreen.co.uk/People-Things Thu, 20 Oct 2011 21:31:50 +0000 Becoming Green 2181029 <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/2181029/people_things.jpg" border="0" width="500" height="345" width_o="500" height_o="345" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/2181029/people_things_o.jpg" align="left" /> This came to me via Facebook, I don't know whose image it is, so apologies for the lack of credit. Great conversation starter. People were created to be loved Things were created to be used. The reason why the world is in CHAOS, is because things are being loved, and people are being used. http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/A-cautionary-tale http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/following/becominggreen.co.uk/A-cautionary-tale Sun, 19 Jun 2011 23:01:15 +0000 Becoming Green 1615267 <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/1615267/gold-apple.jpg" border="0" width="450" height="328" width_o="450" height_o="328" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/1615267/gold-apple_o.jpg" align="left" /> This is a cautionary tale I read about in the NEF book 'The New Economics' The legendary Gold rush in California in the 1850s was a bitterly disappointing and brutalising experience for many of those taking part. But for a few, it meant a fortune. One of those, carrying his gold home with him on a ship that foundered in the Pacific, became the subject of a cautionary tale by the great Victorian critic John Ruskin a few years later. He described how the passenger, who was carrying 200 pounds of gold with him, was loathe to abandon his hard won wealth when the ship disappeared beneath the waves. He therefore strapped as much as he could to himself, and jumped over the side. Once in the sea, the gold dragged him down to the bottom. ‘Now as he was sinking’ asked Ruskin rhetorically ‘had he [got] the gold, or had the gold [got] him?’ You can follow NEF on twitter http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/Go-by-train http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/following/becominggreen.co.uk/Go-by-train Mon, 06 Jun 2011 16:40:33 +0000 Becoming Green 1550462 <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/1550462/betjemen.jpg" border="0" width="500" height="332" width_o="500" height_o="332" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/1550462/betjemen_o.jpg" align="left" /> People's backyards are much more interesting than their front gardens, and houses that back on to railways are public benefactors. (John Betjeman) Before embarking on any sort of travel I'd heed the advice of Alain de Botton and have a good think about WHY we travel. And, like Satish Kumar teaches us, the journey is an end in itself and should be taken mindfully. Once you have decided to set off somewhere, it is environmentally and spiritually nearly always better to do this travel overland. For long distance travel, cars and bicycles are versatile but tiring and coaches are plain hardcore (I once travelled to Bratislava via Vienna from London on a 24hr Eurolines coach, it was cheap but grim). Trains remain, for me, from all angles, the best way to travel; full stop. However, for us Europeans, booking cross continental train travel has, until now, been a bit of a nightmare, Loco2 travel changes all that, hopefully for ever! Through Loco2 you can book a journey from anywhere to anywhere within Europe; as websites go, that is quite an achievement in itself. So, no more searching for badly translated webpages of Spanish regional rail companies; no more frustration at the nightmare of RailEurope.co.uk; and no more excuses for jumping on a cheap Sardine Airlines flight. http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/Quadruple-Squeeze http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/following/becominggreen.co.uk/Quadruple-Squeeze Fri, 27 May 2011 09:45:34 +0000 Becoming Green 1507025 <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/1507025/QuadrupleSqueeze1.png" border="0" width="670" height="500" width_o="1512" height_o="1129" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/1507025/QuadrupleSqueeze1_o.png" align="left" /> This is a great graphic created by the Stockholm resilience centre. In this TED talk Johan Rockstrom talks us through the human pressure on the world, suggesting that we are in a new geological period: the 'Anthropocene'. In the spirit of TED, Rockstrom is optimistic about the changing state of the planet and calls on us to 'let the environment guide our development.' http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/Satish-Kumar http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/following/becominggreen.co.uk/Satish-Kumar Tue, 24 May 2011 17:13:49 +0000 Becoming Green 1491729 <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/1491729/satish_kumar.jpg" border="0" width="448" height="299" width_o="448" height_o="299" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/1491729/satish_kumar_o.jpg" align="left" /> In November 2010, Satish Kumar, gave a speech at the LSE on 'Sustainability Living in Practice'. The title dramatically underplays what he says in this lecture. His attack on the 'de-skilling of society' and the detachment of our heads from our hands is a challenging truth to those in the audience at LSE. A couple of weeks earlier I'd met him and heard him speak at the University of Gloucestershire. The way he spoke about nature, economics, peace, humanity and sustainability really shook me and woke me up. He is an inspiration to many, wonderful to listen to and very wise. He is the chief editor of Resurgence magazine, instrumental at Schumacher College in Devon and the author of several books, including his quite breathtaking 'Earth Pilgrim' If you've only got 5 mins listen at 18 minutes here when he talks about the roots of the words Economy and Ecology, it reveals a forgotten truth. http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/Heat-Map http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/following/becominggreen.co.uk/Heat-Map Wed, 23 Mar 2011 12:12:24 +0000 Becoming Green 1208500 <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/1208500/ClimateChangeMap.jpg" border="0" width="670" height="326" width_o="2048" height_o="997" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/1208500/ClimateChangeMap_o.jpg" align="left" /> This image shows us the areas of the world that will be most affected by human induced Climate Change. The most striking thing about this graphic is that it is clear how little the rich and powerful nations are going to be affected compared with the poorer regions of the world. It is an excellent starting point for conversations about the politics of Climate Change. Does this map explain the lack of momentum for a global agreement on greenhouse gas emissions? A similar graphic with a lot more information can be found in this Economist article http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/15-minutes-outside http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/following/becominggreen.co.uk/15-minutes-outside Wed, 23 Mar 2011 11:46:59 +0000 Becoming Green 1206381 <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/1206381/15minsoutside.jpg" border="0" width="310" height="500" width_o="310" height_o="500" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/1206381/15minsoutside_o.jpg" align="left" /> I'm not sure if we really need books to tell us about the joy of being outside. If we do, then it's a pretty sad state of affairs we've got ourself into. I'm not a big fan of 'Lifestyle' books, but the core argument here is a good one. Mindless gawping at the TV, internet and games console = bad; messing about outdoors in all weathers = good. Spend at least 15 minutes outside each day with your children and all our lives will be better! This advice should not just be for parents though, everyone can love the outdoors given a bit of inspiration as to what to do once our front doors have closed behind us! The woman behind 15 minutes outside, Rebecca Cohen, has a pretty nauseating website full of videos, blogs and products to help you enjoy the outdoors (and advertise her). I'm not completely sold on that approach and her website is pretty grating, but I can't argue with her goal of connecting people with nature. So, take off your shoes and run around on the grass! Rebecca Plants (as she has re-named herself!) can give you loads of ideas on how to do it, just try not to buy too much plastic crap in the process! http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/Lost-Generation http://www.becominggreen.co.uk/following/becominggreen.co.uk/Lost-Generation Wed, 23 Mar 2011 11:25:16 +0000 Becoming Green 1206388 <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/1206388/lostgeneration.jpg" border="0" width="670" height="478" width_o="820" height_o="586" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/1/58102/1206388/lostgeneration_o.jpg" align="left" /> This is a pretty famous video (1min45) already, but loads of people have still not seen it and it is certainly worth showing to groups of young people when you get the chance. I've shown it at the beginning and end of several workshops and lectures and, if nothing else, it raises a smile. There are several different versions of this on YouTube, the link here is to the original. I'd love to see loads of groups of young people inspired to make their own versions. Lost Generation was written by Jonathan Reed who was apparently inspired by The Truth of Argentina. Maybe Lost Generation will inspire a load more of similar poems. Remember that the process of writing the poem is as powerful an end, for those involved, as the poem that finally results.