31/10/2011 by admin.

The human population is estimated to have reached 7 billion worldwide. In acknowledgement there were ’celebratory events’ in India and China to mark the birth of the 7th billion person living on Earth right now.

The number of people on the planet has more than doubled over the last 50 years with a further 1 billion people alive now compared to the start of this millenium. It’s a startlingly sharp increase and has provoked some renewed discussion on how many people the planet can sustain.  We all require shelter, food, water and clothing and have aspirations on health care, education and access to material goods and experiences. We are also living longer and advances in health care and technology suggest this trend will continue. Trouble is the more of us there are the more we make demands on the worlds resources and squeeze and exploit the natural world for farming, materials and land for property.

In the modern world more people equals more cars, more CO2, more energy requirements, more desire for goods, more waste and pollution, but more profits for the world’s multi-national companies. There’s also the laudable aim of improving the life of those in developing countries.  Politicians, relegious and other world leaders tinker with the population issue, but the reality is our numbers are out of control and the consequences are stark and worthy of any Halloween horror story.  Climate change will exascerbate the problem of too many people increasing, social unrest, famine, disease, poverty and war. All this whilst the natural world shrinks ever more with bio-diversity seriously threatened and mass extinctions.  

We can’t just leave this to ‘market forces’. World leaders need to grasp the nettle on this issue and fast before we fall fail to the lessons of Easter Island or before Mother Nature strikes back. We know it won’t be easy as its in our genes to want to reproduce and children bring so much joy and every child deserves happiness, health, safety and a successful life. Also, historically the more children we have the greater their chances of achieving maturity.  There are religious and human rights issues to consider too. But ‘business as usual’ on population growth risks an abyss for humanity.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuIxDMj3DNA&feature=related

Posted in Q69 Do you put off to tomorrow what you could do today?, Q76 Are you going to take action now to save our world?, Q51a How many people does it take to fill up the Earth?, Q47 Do you know your history?, Q46 Do you value a good education?, Q15 Do you sometimes fear the worst?, Q34 Have you ever restored something?, Q36 Should a good life cost the Earth?, Q.4 Have you ever wanted to stop the clock? | No Comments »

30/10/2011 by admin.

Our 26 October ‘Ides of March’ post anticipated Mother Nature would put on a show to the developed world as a wake up call.  

Well, surprise surprise. Just days after North-Eastern Americans were basking in an Indian Summer, temperatures plummeted 40 degrees as heavy snowfall swept in. New York City and the East Coast were hit with snowfall before Halloween for the first time since records began.

Parts of the North East received more than two feet of snow as records for October tumbled.  This is climate chaos in action. Warmer global temperatures is bringing more extreme weather events.

Take Thailand the ‘Land of the Smiling Faces’ is experiencing prolonged flooding after heavy monsoon rains in July. Much of the country is underwater with many thousands of people displaced with the threat of insect-borne disease. 

It’s a humanitarian crisis, possibly forewarned by the recent celestial vision in the Eastern hemisphere.

Posted in Q75 Have you ever put on a show?, Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q41 Do you like surprises?, Q36 Should a good life cost the Earth?, Q14 Do you believe your stars?, Q16 Have you ever had a psychic experience?, Q12 Is our Earth enchanted? | 1 Comment »

22/10/2011 by admin.

In 1484, a scurrilous note was pinned to the door of St Paul’s Cathedral. It read quite simply, “The Catte, the Rattee and Lovell our dogge rulyth all Englande under a hogge.”  The brief, cryptic, satarical poem lampooned some of the highest born in the land, including Richard III who feared the poem would be used as proganda to lead a rebellion. 

In our novel Malachi warns us of the significance of the poem, perhaps directed at the inept way in which leaders across the globe are able to adopt a truely sustainable approach to living - being weighed down instead by economic crisis and war in the Middle East. 

Its fascinating then that an Occupy camp has set up outside of St Paul’s Cathedral. The group, Occupy London Stock Exchange, are protesting about the way financial institutions have mismanaged affairs in recent years.  Their presence has led to the cathedral being closed to visitors for the first time since the end of the Second World War.  The decision was taken for health and safety reasons. 

A spokesperson for the group, who gave her name as Lucy, said, “It was felt by everyone that we really wanted to stay and continue with the protest. This protest is massive, it affects everybody, everyone’s watching at home right now. It’s not just about a few people who have got some tents in St Paul’s, it’s not a stunt, it’s not a spectacle.”

Remember readers - in Charles Lamb’s Journal, Lucy’s the name of Mother Nature. Perhaps there’s a deeper spiritual message to all of this - that we should turn away from greed, money and possessions and live to saviour the beauty of the Earth.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0qQyW0W0Rw

Posted in Q62 Have you ever helped the poor?, Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q51 Have you ever taken part in a protest?, Q36 Should a good life cost the Earth?, Q28 Have you ever lived in poverty?, Q33 Do you believe in life after death?, Q22 Do you love our Earth? | No Comments »

03/10/2011 by admin.

Yesterday, Britain basked in the hottest October day EVER. At Gravesend in the South-East of England temperatures soared to 29.9 degrees C, eclipsing the previous record set in 1985.

The warm front led many thousands to head to the coast with Bournemouth and Brighton proving especially popular.  The hottest October day followed the hottest April in Britain on record.

Our weather is so topsy turvy. Time for story of inspiration, collaboration and the magic that happens when the world is turned upside down.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoVKQ5G3t1g

Posted in Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q53 Do you prefer to keep warm?, Q36 Should a good life cost the Earth?, Q35 Do you trust your instincts?, Q24 Do you get enough time to yourself? | No Comments »

24/06/2011 by admin.

The suitably titled furniture and retail company Habitat has entered administration, falling fowl of the troubled economic times.

Formed in the 1960s the company’s vision was to challenge the way we think about our living space. They created what we now call ‘Lifestyle’ offering contemporary design at affordable prices.

We find the company’s demise as ironic given its title and branding - its logo is of a house with a heart inside. Habitat destruction in the natural world is currently the prime cause of species extinction worldwide. Clearing habitat for agriculture is the main cause, but others are mining, logging, trawling and urban sprawl. The rapid expansion of the world’s human population is increasing the food requirement substantially.  The outlook’s bleak but, in common with the retail outlet, there’s a rescue plan:

1. Considering the many irreplaceable ecosystem services provided by natural habitats,
2. Protecting remaining intact sections of natural habitat,
3. Educating the public about the importance of natural habitat and biodiversity,
4. Developing family planning programs in areas of rapid population growth,
5. Finding ways to increase agricultural output than simply increasing the total land in production,
6. Preserving habitat corridors to minimize prior damage from fragmented habitats

Posted in Q51a How many people does it take to fill up the Earth?, Q58 Do things happen for a reason?, Q36 Should a good life cost the Earth?, Q34 Have you ever restored something? | No Comments »

17/04/2011 by admin.

Life is a bit of a mystery. Our novel records how Samuel Coleridge’s ‘Rime of the Ancient Mariner’ helped inspire the Blakesware Set and The Haymakers Survey. Curious then that an author named HAYES has brought Coleridge’s tale up to date as a cautionary environmental story.

It has been reimagined as a stunning graphic chic novel by Nick Hayes. The adapted tale refers to the North Pacific gyre - an enormous plastic and chemical sludge double the szie of Texas floating as if an island in the ocean, caused by humans excessive consumption.  Hayes was inspired to act after seeing an item online of an albatross whose stomach had exploded after eating plastic bottle tops which it mistook for shrimp. 

We wish the updated book every success.

Posted in Q42 Do you enjoy drawing?, Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q36 Should a good life cost the Earth?, Q26 Do you take poetry seriously?, Q.3 Do you have a good imagination?, Q.2 Are you an art lover? | No Comments »

23/02/2011 by admin.

I was at a sustainable development conference in London today.  It was fabulous to see so many committed people from an array of backgrounds, experiences and expertise come together to explore issues.

The coalition government for England and Wales claim to be the ‘greenest government ever’ using the Big Society idea to stimulate partnerships at local level to ensure communities work together towards common environmental goals and solutions.  It was pity then that a government minister wasn’t at the event to reaffirm that commitment. However, this was more than compensated by presentations and panel discussions involving senior representatives from a number of key organisations including Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth and the Future’s Forum. The event was sponsored by British Gas and it was surprising to learn of their environmental care initiatives, including a £2m scheme called Green Street. Though serious questions remain on whether their actions go far enough given the extent of their record breaking £2billion annual profits just announced. We also witnessed presentations from companies doing retro-fit on buildings.

Having reflected on the day one of the challenges on sustainable development may be the term itself.  It may work for practictioners, Radio 4 listeners, Newsnight viewers and readers of the quality press but will it enthuse and engage the wider community?  It’s a confusing, clumsy, limiting and arguably overly positive term.  It suggests ‘business as usual’ to many with a bit of tweaking here and there. We need a more viable and sexy alternative expression. If you want to be understood speak in the language of your audience.

Here’s a story about stuff which underpins challenges on sustainability…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GorqroigqM&feature=related

So western society as a whole is ‘making hay whilst the sun shines’ and had been doing so since the 1950s.  We’re programmed to consume and aspire to levels of wealth, possessions, comfort and experiences.  We want to see a new form of Haymaking - where people are empowered to live sustainably in partnership with nature led by businesses demonstrating genuine transparent corporate responsibility. 

Being a Haymaker also means reconnecting with Nature. Remember the passion of the people in protecting our woodlands made the government U turn? Maybe we should do more to harness that passion to redirect it to the wider environmental cause. This is part of our vision to make people happy.

Posted in Q41 Do you like surprises?, Q46 Do you value a good education?, Q36 Should a good life cost the Earth?, Q34 Have you ever restored something?, Q17 Can you speak another language?, Q.8 Do you crave a better life? | No Comments »

03/02/2011 by admin.

Mother Nature is benevolent and kind at heart - she loves the human race. We are the controlling species on planet Earth tasked with the responsibility to live sustainably and respect wildlife and the environment. The cyclone we reported yesterday provides a perfect example. Amid the fury of the storm an English midwife from Hertfordshire on holiday in Australia celebrating her 25th wedding anniversary delivered a baby at an evacuation centre in Cairns. The infant’s mother has chosen to name the child Lucie - the name of Mother Nature personified in The Haymakers Survey.  The new arrival coincided with the storm’s path avoiding the most populated areas of the continent.

But this kindness comes at a time when the evidence is mounting up that humanity is on the verge of a global crisis. Take these examples:

• Globally 2010 was the warmest year on record, arguably due in the main to human related activity.
• 2010 saw the Amazon experience a severe drought (worse than that in 2005, which was described then as a once in a century event). Scientists suggest this is further evidence of the Amazon’s vulnerability to rising global temperatures.
• Experts say we are losing 137 plant, animal and insect species every day due to rainforest deforestation
• If current trends continue 40% of the Amazon rainforest will be lost to soy production and palm oil by 2050 
• Extreme weather conditions in Russia, Australia, USA, and Malaysia are having a major impact on key food production and availability driving up prices worldwide and triggering civil discontent in the middle East.  
• Whilst an astonishing One in Ten adults on Earth are officially obese as more countries adopt Western lifestyles - levels double what they were 30 years ago.  As people in the UK eat 3.5 times more meat than that recommended by the World Health Organisation, contributing to cancer, diabetes, and obesity.
• All this as globally meat production is set to double from 2001 to 2050.
• Yet in the UK, for example, 8.3 millions tons of food is thrown away by households every year.
• And about 1.5 tons of rubbish is thrown away by an average UK family - that’s like throwing half an elephant into a landfill.
• Little wonder then that a UN report out today warns that the world’s population growth must slow significantly to avoid reaching unsustainable levels, which means fertility must fall below replacement level.  Numbers are expected to reach 7 billion later this year and 14 billion by 2,100.
• More people to do more consuming - in its State of the World 2010 report the Worldwatch Institute found the world consumed $350 trillion goods and services in a year - up by nearly 30% on the previous decade.  The world now digs up the equivalent of 112 Empire State buildings in materials every day.  The average American consumes about 144 pounds of goods every day, more than the average weight of a US male. The Institute warns that without a shift from consumerism to sustainablity humanity will face hazardous environmental and climate risks.

This isn’t us being pessimistic or doom mongers - these are facts, not signs. We can’t go on like this - like a plague of locusts devouring all before us.  Someone needs to stand up and say, “Enough”. Time for International Rescue…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2K9rVRuehGU

Posted in Q76 Are you going to take action now to save our world?, Q51a How many people does it take to fill up the Earth?, Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q36 Should a good life cost the Earth?, Q34 Have you ever restored something?, Q15 Do you sometimes fear the worst?, Q22 Do you love our Earth?, Q12 Is our Earth enchanted? | No Comments »

17/01/2011 by admin.

As foretold by Malachi the messenger in our story, we have another bold example of a rodent making a guest appearance before the media at the HQ of one of the world leaders.  Last year we reported how a rodent was caught on camera scurring outside the Whitehoue beneath the feet of the USA president.  Now during a live coverage by the BBC a large rat was caught on camera scurring across the steps of No 10, the famous home of the UK Prime Minister.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9ID0awW3jU&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZbockdYBao

Is this more than a mere coincidence? Our novel warns that when we are on the tipping point of an unsustainable lifestyle we will experience, “The cat, the rat, and Lovell the dog, rule all England under a hog.”  It comes at a time when the Government is about to launch a highly controversial consultation document to sell off large swathes of Britain’s forests. Oh the perils of the rat race.  Need we say more?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTOajyzvIjE&feature=related

Posted in Q60 Have you ever experienced deja vu?, Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q57 Have you ever spied on anyone?, Q36 Should a good life cost the Earth?, Q20 Have your eyes ever deceived you?, Q35 Do you trust your instincts?, Q12 Is our Earth enchanted? | No Comments »

26/12/2010 by admin.

Today’s media are reporting a shopping frenzy in Britain with ‘phenomenal’ trading at shopping centres as people rush to grab their bargains. Here’s some of the headlines:

“It’s difficult to get into the shops because of the sheer number of people”

“People were screaming with relief when the doors opened”

“Millions of shoppers have spent hundreds of millions of pounds”

The hunt for bargains was driven by huge discounts and the prospect of a 2% increase in VAT.  The whole jamboree has been described as Good News by the press. 

But there’s another side to this coin. The Haymakers Survey is named thus partly because of the boxer Bill Richmond. He features in our story as the fighter who teaches Charles Lamb to toughen up to prepare for the challenges ahead. A Haymaker is another term for a boxer.  Our tale also has a scene of a traditional Boxing Day hunt. There is no fox. The target is Mother Nature and she reveals how the eco-system of planet earth is on the brink.  We cannot continue to live in this shallow unsustainable fashion - consuming mass produced throw away goods like there’s no tomorrow. Well people - as the Duke of Wellington states clearly at the Boxing Day hunt (page 356). “When Mother Nature calls I must answer.”

Are we ready to do the same?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3vTBiOsSGY

Posted in Q71 Is there something missing in your life?, Q36 Should a good life cost the Earth?, Q.8 Do you crave a better life?, Q.1 Does your life have a purpose? | No Comments »