Resurgence & Ecologist magazine Issue 321 • July/August 2020
Recovery time

In this issue of Resurgence & Ecologist, we look at the path to recovery. Daniel Christian Wahl writes of a ‘transformative decade’ and the need to change how we are, not just what we do; Vandana Shiva explains why the road ahead must encompass radical change in our food systems; and Laurie King reports from the Shetland Islands on an organic farming project.

Also in this issue: Heather Ackroyd speaks to artists about changing culture; psychologist Steffi Bednarek writes on mental health; and Anne Stobart shares tips on growing medicinal herbs.

Our July/August issue explores the theme of peat: its value for biodiversity and carbon storage, as well as to human history.

Highlights

Growing Self-sufficiency in Uganda
Building a New Normal: Daniel Christian Wahl
Fuel for Thought: Donald Murray
Coronavirus, Voice of the Earth: Satish Kumar
Digging A Hole For Ourselves: Nicky Scott
Voice of a Generation: Anna Turns

Feature articles

Growing Self-sufficiency in Uganda

Katie Dancey-Downs visits a permaculture project in Western Uganda run by and for people with disabilities, supporting sustainable agriculture skills so they can grow food to eat and sell. As the government encourages more people to grow their own food, the project is being recognised as a vital source of knowledge and much-needed skills.
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Chain Reaction

Food security in remote areas in increasingly on the agenda. In the Shetland Islands, local people are taking action to become more self-sufficient. Despite challenging growing conditions, community projects are emerging and gardeners are sharing skills with 'folk who want to grow stuff'. Laurie King reports on Transition Turriefield.
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Gardening for the Earth

Can Nature take care of itself or do we need to redress the damage done by humans? Stephen Blackmore and Gunter Fischer reflect on the transformation that has taken place at Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden in Hong Kong - an example of 'the finest application of horticultural science to repair the web of life'.
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Fuel for Thought

As part of our special feature on Peatlands, Donald Murray explores the good - and the dark - side to peat-digging. Drawing on his own experience working in the peats on a small Hebridean island, he recalls communal moments, Gaelic songs sung, back-breaking toil, the uplifting sight of wildlife and not forgetting, the ghost stories.
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Digging A Hole For Ourselves

Environmental groups have been urging us for years to stop buying peat that is causing great damage and a massive increase in greenhouse gases. So, why do so few gardeners make their own compost? Horticulturalist Nicky Scott sets out a 'how to' on making compost and techniques for successful peat-free gardening.
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Grow Your Own Remedies

The pandemic has made us all aware of our own health and the need for a strong immune system. Medical herbalist Anne Stobart shares her tips on herbs to support health. She offers some natural remedies for common ailments, with information on nutrition, relieving symptoms and getting the most out of your harvest.
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Home Is Where the Art Is

PL Henderson meets sculptor Walter Bailey who crafts his work from untreated locally-sourced green wood so that it can return to the Earth at the end of its life. Deeply connected to the natural world, "His sculptures not only echo the harmony and tensions of the natural landscape, but also ultimately focus on the essence of life itself."
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Bird's Eye View

Artist Jackie Morris reviews 'The Birds They Sang: Birds and People in Life and Art' by Stanislaw Lubienski, a book that opens up the world of birds to those who care to look. Within its pages she finds "Nature writing, perhaps at its best, weaving human and bird, city, park and country into a tapestry that sings off the page."
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