By Malcolm Kerr, doctor, writer, political campaigner and Arran resident. “If a man were to make all the ballads, he need not care who should make the laws of a nation.” Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun It is a warm summer evening at the house of friends in Pont-l’Abbé in the Pays Bigouden of West Brittany. …
Last month people across Scotland received invitations to join Scotland’s Climate Assembly Similar to jury service, this citizens assembly will bring 100 randomly-selected representative individuals together over several weekends to discuss one of the biggest challenges of our time; how Scotland should change to tackle the climate emergency in an effective and fair way. It …
By Sally Campbell Sir David Attenborough in closing the Programme “Extinction: The Facts” said with heartfelt conviction: “I do truly believe that together we can create a better future. I might not be here to see it. If we make the right decisions at this critical moment, we can safeguard the planet’s ecosystems, its extraordinary …
By Sarah Deas, WEAll Scotland Trustee Imagine an economic system which delivers social justice on a healthy planet: a system in which the economy works for the people, not the other way around. This is a wellbeing economy. At WEAll (Wellbeing Economy Alliance) Scotland, our goal is to work with governments, organisations, and individuals to …
In the following article, Ruth McLaren, Project Coordinator at Eco Savvy, writes about the online workshop on Black Lives and Climate Justice which was organised by Scottish Communities Climate Action Network last month: In May when the videos of George Floyd’s brutal murder started leaking out on social media, triggering global protests about racial injustice …
A book review by Alice Maxwell Finding Freedom – How Death Row broke and opened my heart by Jarvis Jay Masters When Jarvis Jay Masters was incarcerated in San Quentin prison at the age of 19 he was illiterate. Fellow prisoners taught him to read and write, whereupon his talent as an author and poet …
This wonderful article by Rowan Paton recounts the Paton family’s history on Arran, and was first published at the Arran Arts Heritage Trail website. It is reprinted here with kind permission from the author and the Arran Arts Heritage Trail team. Featured image shows Windows in the West by Avril Paton. I grew up looking …
The following blog was first published at Community Land Scotland In his new book, Riders on the Storm: Climate Change and the Survival of Being, the Isle of Lewis raised author, Alastair McIntosh, sums up the science of climate change science that will lead into the United Nations conference of world leaders, COP26, to be …
Here is a round up of the latest news from Arran Eco Savvy: Savvy Film Club This week: Eco Savvy are trialling a new Savvy Film Club format as they realised there might be a small scheduling clash with the Great British Bake Off. Therefore, this week’s film, Public Trust, is available to watch online …
On 17th September, author, director and beekeeper Bill Anderson, gave a fascinating online presentation on natural beekeeping following the recent publication of his book ‘The Idle Beekeeper: The low-effort natural way to keep bees’. As Bill was visiting Arran recently, the event was organised so that interested beekeepers on the island may benefit from these …