I had this cool box left over from my bike tree project and thought it should have a special re-purpose. It was shaped like a hat box, with a lid and handles. Then I saw a great idea one day while leafing through the Metropolitan Museum of Art – “ […] Read More
I first read about the Brazilian town of Belo Horizonte in the book Hope’s Edge, the Next Diet for a Small Planet (Tarcher/Putnam, 2002) by Frances Moore Lappe and her daughter Anna. If you haven’t read it, I highly recommend it. Frances and her daughter travel around the world looking […] Read More
Thought something green and inspiring would be appropriate for St. Patrick’s Day. Detroit has been hit hard by foreclosures and the struggling auto industry. The Mayor and others think urban agriculture will help revive the city. DETROIT – “ Detroit, the very symbol of American industrial might for most of […] Read More
I was sitting on a bus – “ one of the new cavernous tanks on the road in Metro Vancouver. I had just happily settled into one of the few seats when I noticed an elderly woman teetering down the wide centre aisle. Bags of heavy groceries dangled from one […] Read More
I am a big fan of the University of British Columbia (UBC) Farm. I’ll be taking a tour there this spring. It’s the only working farm in the city of Vancouver, located on a 24 hectare expanse of land on the campus grounds, with 10 hectares actually farmable. With that […] Read More
I have joined a food co-op. I stumbled on it quite by accident one day. There was a sign posted in a front yard a half block from my place: Kitsilano Organic Co-op it said. I noted the email address and sent a note to find out more. Here’s how […] Read More
I had the privilege of hearing Percy Schmeiser speak recently. Monsanto sued this prairie farmer for growing Round-up Ready Canola when in fact he hadn’t planted it (see previous post: the Persecution of Percy). When the vigorous 79 year old farmer took the stage, he got a standing ovation. He […] Read More
Percy Schmeiser is a Canadian farmer from small town Saskatchewan. He has been farming for more than 50 years, saving his own seed, developing some of his own, minding his own business. His wife Louise is a full partner in the farm operation and managed most of the seed saving […] Read More
In celebration of Valentine’s Day, I share this poem with you. My favourite love poem. It is by Pablo Neruda, Nobel laureate who arose to great popularity in North America during the 60’s. While he was more widely known for his political poetry here, at home in Chile, he was […] Read More
Global Exchange is doing amazing work. I used their web site and various reports and resources a lot when I was working on the chocolate chapter in my latest book. Here’s something you can do for Valentine’s Day, that will not increase your calorie intake nor keep children enslaved. Feel […] Read More