Whispering in the Giant's Ear

This summer, when I was in Bolivia, I was browsing through a shop to find some reading material related to issues of environmental and social injustice in the region. I ended up buying this book and it was the best £10 I've spent all summer. 

William Powers worked as a development worker in Bolivia, and lived the typical expat life in La Paz: fancy apartment, socialising with other expats, etc. Then he decides to change his life around, move to the tropical lowlands of Bolivia and work for a grassroots NGO aimed at protecting the jungle and its indigenous inhabitants. He manages to bring together local inhabitants and international corporations, who pay to conserve this part of the Amazon forest in order to absorb harmful greenhouse gases. It is an unlikely alliance between two very different partners in order to stop logging in the Bolivian jungle. 

Powers' book is very much a personal account and is as much about his personal relations with the people he meets as it is about local, national and global developments and how they impact the indigenous communities as well as Powers' himself. Furthermore, it is a very interesting read for anyone who is interested in the conservation of nature as well as indigenous cultures, and is currently relevant since land conservation through free market mechanisms are becoming more and more important. 

I'd suggest anyone who thinks indigenous communities = good, international corporations = bad, should read Powers' book, since his inspirational story shows that the picture can be far more complicated than that. 

"A front lines chronicle from Bolivia's war on globalization"

People Tree

I spent a significant part of 2010 researching Fair Trade and its impact on (female) producers for my undergraduate dissertation. What I found was that, although there is still a lot of room for improvement, an important and significant start has been made. Many Fair Trade organisations in developing countries do actually care a lot about their producers and try to improve their lives through higher wages, education opportunities and addressing important social issues. However, one problem is that to a large extent the Fair Trade handicraft and textile market is losing ground and does not seem to be as popular among young and mainstream consumers as for example organic clothing is. Whereas the latter is now widely available from stores such as H&M, Fair Trade clothing is still largely limited to being sold in Fair Trade shops.

Which is why I love People Tree. They show that Fair Trade clothing can be fashionable. Getting Emma Watson involved was great for publicity and will hopefully attract a new range of customers. Although the items are not cheap, you know your money will help to improve someone's life. Finally, for those with big hearts but little money, check out their sale; many items are being sold for half the original price or less. 

Weekend break

I can't help it, I love to travel. I might save some carbon by not driving a car, putting on an extra jumper when its cold rather than putting the thermostat on 23 degrees, etc., only to ruin it all by spending as much time as I can exploring the world. However, despite the attractiveness of £5 Ryanair flights, I'm trying to find alternative means to travel. One of my best short trips from last year was a weekend away to the Shetland Islands. 

The plan was to cycle from my house to the ferry port in Aberdeen (only a 10-minute ride), take the overnight ferry and then cycle around the main island. However, cycling with a large backpack turned out to be less than comfortable, so upon arrival in Lerwick, the bikes were locked up and we hitchhiked around the island instead. 

It was my first multi-day hitchhiking trip and it was great. Sure, every minute spent waiting next to the road seemed like forever, but many great characters were met, from friendly families on holiday to a local farmer who hadn't cleaned out his car since 1996. Hitching and camping created not only a very affordable, eco-friendly trip, but also the ultimate sense of freedom. 

Recipe: Beetroot, butternut squash and lots more salad

I made this recipe the other day, and unfortunately forgot to take a photo of the end result, but believe me when I say, it looks great due to different colours of the vegetables. A lot of these vegetables are now in season, so it's a great time to try this recipe. The ingredients are all natural, and it's completely vegetarian, so if anyone has signed up for Meat Free Mondays then this is a great recipe to try out.

Ingredients (for 4 people):

- a small butternut squash

- approximately 8 beetroots

- one bag of fresh spinach (100-150 grams)

- one tin of chickpeas (or use equivalent in dry chickpeas and soak them beforehand)

- 100-150 grams of goat's cheese

- some dried rosemary

- a little dash of lemon juice 

- a bit of vegetable or olive oil for roasting

Method:

- preheat the oven to 200 degrees

- peel the butternut squash, remove the seeds en cut the rest into small chunks

- wash and peel the beetroot and cut into wedges

- put the butternut squash and beetroot into a roasting tin, pour a bit of oil over the butternut squash and sprinkle some rosemary over both vegetables. Roast for approximately 30-40 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.

- wash spinach if necessary and then divide over three plates. Top with the roasted vegetables, chickpeas and goat's cheese. Finish by adding a dash of lemon juice to all plates.

Serving suggestion:

Serve with warm wholemeal pitabread and hummus on the side. I haven't managed to make good hummus yet (also since I don't have a blender), but there are plenty of recipes online if anyone wants to make their own.

Cycle style

Yakkay's helmet and hat in one

I love cycling. Growing up in The Netherlands there was no one who hadn't learned how to cycle by the time they turned 5. No school buses, no parents in cars blocking the road, no lollipop ladies, just thousands of kids cycling to school through sun and snow. Now, living in the UK things have changed. I still cycle, but am part of only a small minority of students who do so. Cycling here seems to be directly associated with lycra and reflective yellow vests, even though cycling is something anyone can do in any type of clothing (I even cycled to my secondary school's graduation ceremony in my formal dress...).

Thus my favourite new find of the day is Cycle Chic, showing that cycling in style is not impossible.