Eats plants
Early last month I gave a short talk at Aberdeen Climate Action's Climate Café where I shared my top tips on how to easily and cheaply reduce your carbon emissions. Taking action on climate change can sometimes feel overwhelming or even impossible. Many solutions are just not practical for the individual like putting solar panels… Continue reading Meals that start from 9 pence per person
The UK is expecting a scorcher today with a possible high of 42C. This will be unprecedented if it gets this hot. Many people have asked how we're coping in Aberdeen but Aberdeen rarely gets hot and we've been hovering around 20C or just below the past few days. Today the forecast is for 25C… Continue reading Cool in Aberdeen
A third UK pet food manufacturer has released an insect-based cat food this year. Yora has been making insect-based dog food for a little while but the cat food was taking a while to materialise. I contacted them about it over a year ago now and they told me they were working on it. I… Continue reading Victoria gives Yora’s insect-based cat food the paws-up
I used to write about climate change quite a bit on my blog. The first posts date from 2013. I was usually prompted to write after having an emotional reaction to something I had read or heard - usually someone denying it was happening. One of my earliest posts was prompted by claims that climate… Continue reading Another report and the message on climate change is still the same – our emissions must be zero
Sometimes I feel sad about the world. I read the things people say online and I feel despair. What hope is there for us? Some people try to do the right thing and reduce their impact on the planet but what good is it when everyone else is more interested in their taste buds than… Continue reading The world needs more Bens
One of my coworkers lives in Italy and he told me they're going into lockdown from December 24th - 27th and then again from December 31st - January 3rd. This is the opposite of what's happening in the UK where everyone is in lockdown now but we're free to meet other households from the 23rd… Continue reading Two countries and their Christmas strategies, the 5-mile boundary, and Manifesto
The Aberdeen City Council has a consultation open until the 19th January 2021 on proposed changes to South College Street. This work is part of a bigger project known as the Berryden Corridor which will see a dual carriageway built from north to south through the central city. I spent much of last weekend writing… Continue reading South College Street Consultation
There are some letters to the editor in the Guardian about getting a test for Covid-19 in the UK and they sound more like episodes of Little Britain than a "world-beating" testing system. One person went to a drive-through testing facility and was given a testing kit and told to swab her tonsils herself. How… Continue reading British test and trace and scientific experts
Climate change is like borrowing money and getting into debt. Consider this: you borrow a large sum of money and the interest rate goes up every year. You do not make any repayments on the loan and instead borrow more each year. Pretty soon the amount owing is huge and growing because a) the interest… Continue reading Climate change is like getting into debt
These graphs from the Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology show how hot and dry Australia has become. Ironically, they were reported by an American newspaper - The New York Times. The only Australian news source to report the record-breaking heat and drought was The ABC. I cannot find another Australian report of it. Please… Continue reading 2019 Australia’s hottest and driest year
Australia is the hottest place on Earth right now. Bushfires are raging across the country destroying homes and habitats, smothering cities in smoke, and taking lives - two volunteer firefighters tragically died this week. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister has been holidaying in Hawaii. https://twitter.com/RonniSalt/status/1207813570756395008 Yesterday he realised his mistake and announced he's returning home. https://twitter.com/nytimes/status/1207913540406960128… Continue reading When leadership fails
Australia recorded its hottest day EVER on Wednesday with a national average temperature of 40.9C. Paradoxically, the front page of The Australian newspaper, which is owned by Rupert Murdoch, ran a story on coal exports and another story attacking the people who are trying to tackle the problem of climate change. Instead, a British news… Continue reading Hottest day ever for Australia
I had an epiphany this week. When suggesting a vegan diet to someone to reverse heart disease they responded by saying my vegan diet is more to do with animal rights than cholesterol, therefore, it's not relevant to them. However, my motives are irrelevant especially since I don't have heart disease. It's like refusing morphine after… Continue reading Love your greens
I saw this great Tweet from Pedal Me a few days ago: https://twitter.com/pedalmeapp/status/1188058858360627205 I'm not sure where this quote originates - those who say it cannot be done should not interrupt those who are doing it - but it's very apt in so many ways. Climate change is one example. According to an article in… Continue reading Those who say it can’t be done should not interrupt those who are doing it
The global climate strikes begin tomorrow. The Aberdeen event is at Marischal College tomorrow at 11am. I will be there along with Ben and the kids. You can use the map at https://globalclimatestrike.net to find your local event. I am lucky that my employer is supporting me in attending this event otherwise I'd need to… Continue reading Global climate strikes
Ben and I watched the first episode of the TV series Chernobyl last night and it was brilliant! I'm looking forward to watching the rest. One of the protagonists is the same actor who plays the dad in Friday Night Dinner. It's a very different role for him in this series and because of this,… Continue reading Chernobyl
Global climate strikes are planned for September 20 - 27th and I'll be attending the Aberdeen strike on September 20th from 11am - 2pm. There's a map at https://globalclimatestrike.net where you can find your local event. I urge everyone to attend for the sake of your children and grandchildren or, if you're young, then for… Continue reading Global Climate Strike
Yesterday was hot. BBC weather says it was 24C here which felt pretty awful. How did I ever survive living in Brisbane? At least here the temperature typically falls overnight and one can get a good night's sleep. We're also cooler than many other parts of Europe which are experiencing heat waves right now. I… Continue reading Hot weather and visits from family and friends
I was going to write a post about faith-based leadership when I came across this article - Faith without works: Why the Prime Minister's call to pray for rain is offensive It was written by a Pastor and is very good. The author, Byron Smith, writes about a speech the Australian Prime Minister gave last… Continue reading Faith-based leadership and a climate emergency
I've decided to stop shaving my legs. Living in a cold climate where I wear tights or trousers for 8 months of the year has made me realise what a pointless waste of time shaving is. I started shaving as a teenager because this is what society told me I had to do. I never… Continue reading I’m going on a permanent shaving strike
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