Helping you to plan climate action in February
Welcome to my monthly overview of what’s happening on the Sustainability Calendar. As always the full year-long calendar can be found here.
Overview
February is all about fair trade. Fairtrade fortnight highlights the people across the world who grow our food, drinks, cotton, etc.: farmers, workers and small suppliers. By focussing on these people the event hopes to ensure a fair and equitable wage for these people and to ensure that they are not exploited.
This year farmers and suppliers have undoubtedly been hit hard by Covid-19, and this will be part of the discussion, but the organisers have said that…
This week: effective altruism, smart animals and a look forward to the first week of March
Welcome to the first Rethink Convenience newsletter. Each week I’ll summarise what’s been published in Rethink Convenience, highlight some of the interesting things I’ve read and watched in the last week, and give a preview of some of the things that are coming up in the next week.
I’ve not published anything new this week whilst I’ve worked to get the next edition of the sustainability calendar ready in time for the 1st of March. I have lots lined up for the next few weeks though; watch this space.
What I read and watched this week
The inspirational William MacAskill interviewed on Chris Evans breakfast show. I…
Why and how we celebrate Love Day
I wrote the following for a cultural network blog, a series to introduce various holidays around the world to people of different cultures. St Valentine’s Day is more well known than others, but it was fun to summarise it in a short piece that assumed no prior knowledge of the occasion.
St Valentine’s Day is a worldwide celebration of love and romance, observed on the 14th of February. It is a day when people express their love for another by sending cards and gifts or by making romantic gestures.
Observance of St Valentine’s Day is widespread. It has no religious…
Love your partner and love the planet
I get it now, as a happily committed man. It’s not cheesy. It’s not a pointless holiday. This St Valentine’s Day is an opportunity to mark my love for this person, to celebrate it in as deeply personal a way as I can. It doesn’t matter if I normally do romantic gestures once a day or once a month or never. This day is a celebration.
My resistance to the commercial side of the holiday stems from a longing for gifts that meant something, that have permanence, and that are responsible and sustainable. …
My thoughts on my passion for sustainability, how to get more men involved in the fight, and my legacy
I was interviewed on the.eco.dude’s Instagram channel in February 2021, as part of his series talking to other men in the sustainability space (or “eco dudes”). This great series highlights that not enough men are active in matters of sustainability, climate change and environmental activism, and I was proud to be the first European participant.
For those who don’t want to sit through 25 minutes of me talking (and watch my accent get more westcountry as I relax into the interview), I’ve copied the main questions and my responses below (along with links to further information).
(1) What three things make you an Eco Dude?
I’m a writer and…
