Hope & Enchantment

Hope & Enchantment
Issue 342 • January/February 2024

Our theme for this issue takes us straight to what feels like the pages of a book of fairytales, but these are tales with a serious message of hope, enchantment and purpose. From a poetic ‘ode’ to a humble fern to the enchanting story of a dress made entirely from nettles, we explore ways to find the extraordinary in the ordinary. We look at the oft times dark path to enchantment and learn how the human psyche craves meaning. The invitation here then is to lose yourself in an uplifting theme that will take you to the edges of your own imagination and hopeful visions for 2024.

In the Slow Read, the modern mystic, author and thought leader, Andrew Harvey, tells our editor Susan Clark that all is not lost and that what he calls ‘the Great Shattering’ that looms will be our breakthrough to a new consciousness and a new idea of what it means to be a new human being on a new earth.

Other highlights within this issue include the reintroduction of the Poetry Pages. In ‘Quiet Wildfires’ our new poetry editors introduce the work of Greek eco poet, Astra Papachristodoulou. In Connected Life the founder of The Thousand Year Trust, Merlin Hanbury-Tenison tells us why he has hope for the future and in our Ecologist pages, we discover how artists really can influence climate politics.

Highlights
Our Life is Here: David Buckland
Unexpected Enchantments: Paul Evans
The Story of the Nettle Dress: Dylan Howitt
A New Consciousness: Andrew Harvey
Poetry: Quiet Wildfires
Radical Landscapes: Anna Souter