Amanda Saint

For a long time, my mindfulness practice was separate from my writing. My writing was very focused on the goals I had for it whereas mindfulness and being present were saved for other times. When I wrote a story, even while I was putting the initial words on the page at first draft, usually from a writing prompt so I hadn’t even discovered yet what it was really about, my mind was already elsewhere thinking about where I could send it.

Two finalists in the 2022 Ray of Hope Prize have turned to nature for innovative ways to transform the sector and improve the environmental impact of urban construction, ultimately making our cities more sustainable.

One of the most important things I have come to realise over the past several years is that what this human experience is really all about is love. When we look around at the world we have created for ourselves, at the war, environmental destruction and general discord and competitiveness among people, it can sometimes seem hard to believe that, but I really do think it is true.

Several companies that aspire to make the world a more sustainable place have shown that mushrooms are more than just fungi and food.

The 2019 documentary ‘Fantastic Fungi’ revealed the pivotal role mycelium networks play in the natural world and how the entire ecosystem on Earth is built on collaboration and support. It highlighted how we have to learn to adopt that ethos rapidly to make human life on this planet more sustainable. In the world of biomimicry, the magic of mushrooms is deliver...

Recently a friend shared a quote with me from the poet, Mary Oliver, and also introduced me to her work at the same time as I hadn’t come across her before. I’m very glad I now have as even though I don’t write poetry, and we don’t publish any here at WestWord or over at Retreat West, what Mary Oliver said really resonated with me.

‘YEARS AGO I set three “rules” for myself. Every poem I write, I said, must have a genuine body, it must have sincere energy, and it must have a spiritual purpose....

If you want to make the world a more sustainable place look no further than the Venus Project, a technology-based Utopia that for two decades has been proposing a radical overhaul to the way we think about the future. Does today’s technology take the dream any closer to reality?
Brainchild of engineer and futurist Jacque Fresco, the Venus Project has some radical ideas about how to make the world a better place. Its ideas are familiar: they should be, it’s been around for two decades now. Get...

While the ‘Cities Race to Resilience’ campaign aims to accelerate action against climate change and ensure commitment to achieving specific goals, many resilience initiatives are already under way in cities all around the world.

Fracking in the UK has been on hold for over a year, but could it be revived as the country seeks to lessen its reliance on imported fuel while ensuring that the lights and the heat stay on for homes and businesses?

Researchers worldwide are coming up with new ideas to make our homes more eco-friendly. For sustainably-minded households, these 2020 innovations could be a good place to start.

Wineries in Europe have been testing a new app to help them manage the effects of climate change on their grapes. Funded by the European Union's Horizons 2020 research and innovation programme, the app aims to help vineyards become more resilient to the impact of changing weather patterns.

Electric vehicles are fast becoming mainstream, and now electric airplanes are becoming more commonplace too. Worldwide there are more than 200 research and development projects in progress to electrify the aviation industry. So how long until we see electric airplanes taking to the skies?
Some small electric planes have already taken test flights, and there are several different versions of electric aircraft in development. But the first commercial passenger planes powered purely by electric...

Scotland is leading the way in moving towards a new circular-economy style of living, where consumption followed by disposal is out and recycling to re-using is in…

Climate change and rising sea levels are already making life in low-lying tropical islands in the Pacific difficult. Increases in global temperatures mean that many of these islands are likely to be completely submerged in the coming years. A report published by The Center for Climate and Security in June 2017 titled “Epicenters of Climate and Security: The New Geostrategic Landscape of the Anthropocene” highlights the plight of the small Pacific island nations ...

Nuclear fusion could become a safe, reliable and convenient energy source.
The Wendelstein 7-X reactor
The Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics in Germany turned on the Wendelstein 7-X nuclear fusion reactor - the largest ‘stellarator’ reactor ever built - in December 2015. Researchers have begun the advanced testing stage with a view to demonstrating that nuclear fusion has the ability to bring about a significant reduction in carbon dioxide emissions and, at the same time, to ensure the ...