What I've been reading in July

I'm a big fan of resource sharing, and one type of blog post I like is those that do just as this one is going to do; shares online only articles, posts and news which can be on any number of topics, the writer has come across that month. It's too easy to see the big headlines, and all end up reading the same stuff, but when we all scratch between the surface of whatever we as individuals are interested in, and then share with others that might never have found it, but can still be appreciateive of it, that's awesome. So here is the second one of the year: As I'm not currently travelling on public transport as it's not necessary for me, I've been looking for new places to either cycle or walk to in London, and found this list of parks and gardens and this list of pretty walking routes from Time Out. As it's been super hot and it's looking like it will be in August too, I'm trying my best to decide where to go swimming by researching wild spots and hidden gems in and out of the city. There's lots of lists but I particularly liked this one from Londontheinside.com and this one from thegirloutdoors.com.

This one also probably deserves a shout out for a few names that are lesser known, and if you're looking for beaches, there is a great compilation from Time Out.

There's a self build competition in Hackney for first time buyers - an interesting approach to tackling the housing crisis issues.

A positive news story about an ethical business called Sprout that believes in selling sustainable products and organic materials, based in Bexhill, that flourished during lockdown due to online sales and rising consumer interest in products made to last.

This opinion piece on 'machine mindedness' versus the personal touch and adaptability of 'garden mindedness' and our need to reconsider our place in the world, using teachings from ecological science and horticulture.

Honestly no idea what led me here but I found this great article from 2017 that lists 'short answers to hard questions about climate change', so you can whip those out when you're caught out by the next denier! Greta Thunberg has won a prize worth £1 million, and she's giving it all away to climate change charities. Read more here.

There's some fun and creativity with the theatre group Plasticity using it's shadow puppet art form to look at issues of social justice, having previously highlighted issues to do with the environment. Read more about that here.

A Guardian article from March talks about our relationship with food and agriculture and argues for a new sitopian contract here. Different for me is this information on the Earth's orbital cycles and their role in the changes in climate over thousands of years.

And to end, if you get the chance to jolly out around the UK this summer, here's a list of 9 of the best lavender fields to visit this year.