Month: January 2007

What else to do?

Phil Whittall, 0 comment

Had a conversation with a friend of mine, Dave, today and we wandered into ethical living territory and it seems him and his wife Esther have made huge strides in making their lifestyle more sustainable. I wondered aloud about the options available to me – the basic stuff, the structural stuff has mostly been done, so where do we go from here? Our lightbulbs are low energy, we recycle, compost, have a water meter, only one car (oh ok and a motorbike), we bank with an ethical bank, we try…

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Better…but only just

Phil Whittall1 Comment

I’m continuing my search for good web sites on consumerism or I guess more precisely anti-consumerism. I simply Googled the word and then worked down the page. Sadly site no 1 left a lot to be desired in the attractive web site awards causing me to wonder whether lack of style and ethical living go hand in hand. Check out site 2, the Never Enough Campaign which is better but only just. I think it’s strange because simplicity in design (say as favoured by Apple) is wildly popular but a…

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Anti-consumerist but it looks rubbish

Phil Whittall0 comment

I just did a quick Google on consumerism and top of the pile was this site which does to be fair have some interesting things on it but it looks rubbish. Question is there a link? You have to think there is, after all the green lobby aren’t famous for their style are they? OK so substance is more important but is it impossible to have substance and style? If you know of examples where good design meets ethical living let me know

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Does buying anti-consumerism books count?

Phil Whittall, 0 comment

I’ve just come back from a weekend with my wife’s family (her dad died a year ago) and on the way home we stopped at Booktown (aka Hay-on-Wye) for my annual pilgrimage. On a wet, windy January day on the Wales-England border browsing the shelves of secondhand bookstores is just heaven for me. Here is what I bought:Deuteronomy by Gerhard von RadThe Royal Road to Card Magic by Jean Huggard and Frederick BraueThe Business by Iain BanksThe Darwin Awards by Wendy NorthcuttShopped by Joanna BlythmanBono on Bono by Michka AssayasWho…

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Losing the art of living together

Phil Whittall, 0 comment

I was reading Grand Designs in bed this morning (it was their ‘save the planet in style’ issue) and came across a piece about eco-development BedZED in London. Right at the end Pooran Desai one of the developers who lives there said, “Probably the best thing about BedZED is that it has created a real sense of community, something that many of us feel is missing in modern day life and has contributed to a decrease in wellbeing and happiness.” We have lost the ability to connect and to live…

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