July 2014

  • Coming out – and signing off, pro tem

    I finally said it out loud, and in a reasonably public place: that I think of zoos, safari parks and the like, as little better than prisons.  This view has been a long time coming but I know when it...

  • Creating a Learning Society in Edinburgh

    Joseph E. Stiglitz will deliver the 2014 RSA Scotland Angus Millar Lecture on the topic of Creating a Learning Society.   The RSA’s blurb says: It has long been recognised that most standard of living increases are associated with advances in...

  • Blackberries causing moral panic in Islington

    Committed urban types, happily back in London after a rare foray into rural parts, are said to be worried that the early sightings (and tastings) of ripe blackberries are harbingers of early-onset climate change.  The panic was enhanced, no doubt, because...

  • The UN looks to end poverty – but not yet

    The outcomes of the UN General Assembly Open Working Group (OWG) on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is now available.  There are 17 SDGs and 169 targets, including 62 targets in relation to implementation.  These proposals will now be submitted to...

  • The Sage of Twickenham and the circular economy

    When Vince Cable, the widely-acknowledged Sage of Twickenham, was asked a question in parliament the other week about the circular economy, he showed absolutely no understanding of what the term means. Dear me!  What do they get up to all...

  • A small town in Germany

    I was at the University of Vechta in Lower Saxony on Monday making a presentation at the start of a summer school on Empirical Research on Education for Sustainable Development – Themes, Methods and Trends.  I was the warm-up act for what...

  • Contemplating Steve van Matre

    On Saturday 27th & Sunday 28th September, at the Bishops Wood Centre in Worcestershire, you can, if you pay enough money, contemplate with the Earth Ed Guru himself: Steve VM. But, really, why would you – despite the tempting take-away...

  • Lice in London

    The London International Conference on Education (LICE) is "an international refereed conference dedicated to the advancement of the theory and practices in education".  LICE promotes collaborative excellence between academicians and professionals from education.  Its aim is to "provide an opportunity...

  • The great unamerican songbook

    My grandchildrens' end of year concert was themed this year.  You will work out what this was from this selection of songs: Eat healthy food      Give me 5Pick bananas            Apples and bananasVegetables    ...

  • UKIP alert – the rise of the non-native species

    According to a report in the Guardian 1,875 non-native species were counted in Great Britain in 2012 – a figure increasing by 10 species a year, it seems.  282 of these have become invasive. The parliamentary report, Invasive Non-native Species, says there...