As a professional planner (of the town and country planning variety) and fan of Low-impact Living I always expect to see demands or requests being made of the planning system to assist in attempts by individuals or groups to experiment or set examples where impact on the environment would be minimised. Read more

I am privileged to be a director of the wonderful Ecological Land Co-op, and we are currently advertising for an operations manager. Read more

When it comes to nature in September, this month is a melancholy time of year for anyone who loves swallows. Through the summer I enjoy seeing them and the local house martins, swooping and diving around my house and garden, drinking from the pond or sitting on our electricity wires, twittering and preening. Read more

We’ve noticed from comments on our blogs and on social media that environmentally-conscious Americans have a slightly different attitude to using trees as a renewable resource – whether for firewood or for timber – than that prevalent in the UK. Read more

So why sprout seeds in clay sprouters? Surely if seeds grow happily into sprouts or microgreens, they will be healthy and be good for us? Do they really care if they’re grown in plastic? Well, there are some other things to take into consideration. Read more

This is the final article in this series. Over the past 15 weeks I’ve tried to highlight the times in history where philosophy has helped, along with technology and events, to change the direction in which we’re moving. Read more

Here is a list, agreed by anti-TTIP activists, of what we want / don’t want in any UK trade deals, whether EU or new UK deals. Read more

So after much effort edition three is now published. Renewable energy technology is changing quickly and so a couple of years ago I contacted Dave Darby with a view to updating edition two. Read more

We interview Pete Grugeon of the Bulworthy Project, who explains that there’s a gap in the market – with not enough charcoal burners to satisfy the demand for locally-produced charcoal. Read more

By the 1980s, a new way of thinking began to be applied to academic philosophy with almost a religious fervour that caused quite a bit of acrimony within academia, but which has now faded. Read more

Veganism is taking off in the UK, with new stats showing that over half a million people now follow a vegan diet [1]. For many, vegan events are the best starting point if you’re vegan curious, an aspiring vegan or already enjoying the benefits of this lifestyle. Read more

This was an interesting diversion. I was asked a couple of years ago if I would take a look at a watermill in Bourne (Lincolnshire) and see what the problem was with the generator. Interesting – how often do you get asked to play with a watermill? Read more

Twentieth century philosophy split very roughly into ‘analytic’ (mainly in the English-speaking world) and ‘continental’ (mainly in mainland Europe), and was influenced heavily by contributions to the way we think about ourselves and the rest of existence from two non-philosophers: Freud and Einstein. Read more

Starting on September 7th, I am pleased to offer you the chance to take part in a whole straw bale house build. From foundations to finish plasters and everything in between. Read more

SuperHome Open Days this September promise to be extra exciting with at least six recently refurbished homes opening to the public for the first time. Around 50 pioneering households are preparing to open their doors across the UK. Read more

Hello – we are James and Sukamala, tenants at Wild Geese Acres, Greenham Reach, which is an off-grid, low-impact farming project established in north Devon by the Ecological Land Coop  (ELC) – see website. http://ecologicalland.coop. Read more

Karl Marx (1818-1883) is possibly the most studied philosopher in history. He said that the point of philosophy is not to understand the world, but to change it – and change it he did, with an idea, although he never saw the effects of his idea after its interpretation and implementation by others after his… Continue reading A brief history of philosophy, part 12: socialism, utopianism and anarchism Read more

As someone who used to work in university research, it is deeply ingrained in my nature to observe and record what I see, and also, when necessary, to count things (I once spent six years counting weed seedlings). Read more

This is a farm-based education organisation.  Our story is the ‘shieling’ – a tradition where folk went up to the hills with the livestock. The shieling is a traditional practice of moving up to the high ground or moorland with livestock, to live there for the summer. Read more

Hegel represented the end of huge, speculative, metaphysical systems. After Hegel, philosophy started to splinter into many ideas vying for dominance – none of which could be said to represent the growing tip, only the branches.  Read more