Benevolent Universe

Contents

Welcome

New Year New Philosophy • Satish Kumar

We must go beyond self-interest and embrace the idea of mutual interest

Frontline

Action From the Grass Roots • Lorna Howarth

Grass roots initiatives around the globe

Farming Freedom • Lorna Howarth

A simple agricultural technique could release farmers from the grip of agrochemical corporations

The Future of Agriculture • Lynn Batten

Closed-loop agriculture uses farm waste to power farm production

Ecologist

Renewable vs Fossil Fuels • Oliver Tickell

Where should we put our energy and efforts?

The Story of Energy • Paul Allen

The story of energy is the story of real transformation

GMO Mumbo-Jumbo • Vandana Shiva

Making the link between the use of GMO in cotton and the suicide of farmers in India

The Challenges Ahead • Mark Goldring

It's time to get to grips with the challenges of climate change and food security

The Bottled Water Con • David Gray

Why bottled water is such a bad choice for your pocket, for the environment and for your health

My Green Life • Sharon Garfinkel

Stephen Grosz, psychotherapist and author of The Examined Life, shares his thoughts on green issues

Quotes

Exit Interview • Blake Morrison

An extract from This Poem

A Little Duck • Michael Leunig

Ethical Living

Changing Paradigms • Elizabeth Wainwright

The unique leadership style of Uruguay's president José Mujica

Bob Brown • Elizabeth Claire Alberts

A profile of the former senator still fighting to protect the Tarkine wilderness of North West Tasmania

Last Plant Standing • Susan Clark

Cooking up a winter botanical feast

The Nature of Wine • Robin Lee

Winemaking is almost a spiritual endeavour

Slow Lane to Nonviolence • John Moat

Reflections on a unique way to resolve conflict

Keynotes

Benevolent Universe • Satish Kumar

Creating a green movement that places its trust in benevolence

Undercurrents

Banking for the Planet • Steve Keen

Revisioning a system of banking that respects Nature's balance sheet

Future Proof • Jane Davidson

Sustainable education prepares students for real-life challenges

A Call to Pragmatism • Russell Warfield

Philosopher and author John Gray on environmentalism, Nature and the global ecosystem

Rooted in the World • Craig Holdrege

The wellbeing benefits of "thinking like a plant"

To fit together • Shakti Maira

Ruth Padel talks about beauty, harmony and conceptual art

Regulars

Letters to the Editors

A selection of letters from our readers

Crossword • Timothy Bonsor

A brain teaser full of ecological clues

Poetry - A Sensuous Intelligence • Peter Abbs

A tribute to the late Seamus Heaney

Poetry - Poetry and Animism • Maitreyabandhu

Exploring the aliveness of the world through poetry

Poetry - Transhuman Magnificence • Paul Kingsnorth

Celebrating the radical American poet Robinson Jeffers

The Arts

The Dance of Clay • Simon Olding

Reflecting on the relationship between a ceramicist's spiritual and physical endeavours

Reviews

Saved By Technology? • Tony Juniper

Review of The World We Made: Alex McKay's Story from 2050

Long Live Trees • Christopher Andreae

Review of Under the Green Wood

Beauty Can Save the Planet • John Elkington

Review of The Shape of Green: Aesthetics, Ecology and Design

Economic Democracy • Jack Santa Barbara

Review of The Trouble with Billionaires: How the Super-Rich Hijacked the World (and How We Can Take It Back)

A Poet's Pilgrim • Jay Ramsay

Review of Cycling After Thomas and the English

A Bleak Picture • Helena Drakakis

Review of Out of This Earth: East India Adivasis and the Aluminium Cartel

Decentralised Democracy • Pat Conaty

Review of A Complexity Approach to Sustainability: Theory and Application

Healthy Soil • Pat Thomas

Review of Soil Lives!: A Biography of the Uncelebrated Earth Beneath Our Feet

Landscape and the Human Heart • Peter Reason

Review of The Old Ways: A Journey on Foot

Music as Activism • Merlyn Driver

Review of A tribute to Pete Seeger's album God Bless the Grass

Web Exclusives

Article - A New Scientific Paradigm • Damir A Shakambet

A new medicine for a new millennium

Article - Weaving Water • Dory Walker

Artist Sarah Sense weaves Native American tradition with digital photography

Review - Enduring Wisdom • David Cadman

Review of Spiritual Ecology: A Quiet Revolution