Articles

So many of us talk about how hard it is us to survive these days. But consider the notion of ‘survival’ as portrayed in this striking documentary – a study of the bare bones lifestyles of indigenous hunters in the Siberian Taiga where winter temperatures can fall below -50ºc. The action, such as it is, […]

Are we fat because of man-made chemicals? That is what a new documentary, screened on January 12th on Canadian television, asked. The programme, which has gained attention across the globe, is part of environmentalist David Suzuki’s The Nature of Things  series. It looked at the scientific evidence showing that chemicals in the environment may be programming us […]

True story. In 2010/11 I became an anaerobic digester bore. I was campaigning with Compassion in World Farming against the proposed Nocton Dairies in Lincolnshire. There were any number of important reasons to object to the proposal, which initially wanted to raise 8000 cows indoors in disgraceful US-style mega-dairy conditions. But for me the key to stopping […]

Fabrics treated with antibacterial chemicals are leeching these toxic substances into the environment every time they are washed, according to Swedish scientists. As reported earlier in the year, the Swedish government has developed national plan for a toxin free everyday environment and this latest study is part of its commitment to understand how chemicals spread […]

Who decides what risks you will take with your health and your life? And on what information is that decision based?

You could hardly have failed to notice the headlines this week; a new study claims to show that vitamins can kill you. But before we find ourselves in the grip of widespread multivitamin phobia, it’s worth considering the context in which the story has appeared, as well as considering what the study actually said – […]

What do the protesters want? A fairer world! When do they want it? Now! What ideas have they got and what are they willing to do to in their own lives to make it happen? Erm… We live in a world desperately out of balance. A world with problems seemingly so severe and out of […]

It’s less than six months after a round of winter price hikes, but the UK’s energy companies are at it again. In July Scottish Power raised its gas prices by 19% and electricity prices by 10%. British Gas, now owned by Spanish giant Centrica, followed very shortly with 18% and 16% rises to its gas […]

As climatic changes trigger increasingly severe weather-related disasters it’s the death toll that inevitably grabs the headlines. What happens to those who remain is rarely examined. The gruesome reality, as witnessed by the ongoing agony in Haiti and in communities hit by the Indian Ocean tsunami, is that people are left to fend for themselves […]

Firstly dear reader, my apologies. This is a long one. But when it comes to the filthy business of ‘tuna ranching’, there is just so much to say.