Bronte beauty this morning

Bronte pool this morning Generous planet   Aaahh, love it. Thank you lovely, generous planet. Such a way to wake – first, the descent down the hill with a quick lurch of excitement in my heart at the sight of the sea, then the still-tired body’s walk down to the pool, then a dive into the water – brrrrrrr – then . . . bliss, empty mind, flesh-freshened fabbo languid licks of strokes through the water to the other end of Bronte pool there to pause arms... Read More

Random science means the world to me, and you

A friend, Kylie, and former founder of Cosmos science magazine, sent me this transcript: “I sometimes hear people ask, ‘Why should we spend money on space exploration? We should focus on the problems here on Earth first.’ But if it hadn’t been for space exploration we wouldn’t have known about the greenhouse effect or the ozone hole. It was while trying to understand why Venus was so horribly hot that scientists discovered the greenhouse effect and... Read More

We’re taking carbon pollution out of Earth’s air this year

  The drone being used to film installation of the composter   Today was a good day. Waverley Council, wecompost and farmer John Fairley of Country Valley Dairy, along with Bondi businesses are working together to cut food waste, cut business costs and to grow soil on a farm.  wecompost is a joint project involving myself, Jess Miller and Closed Loop. Our project to take carbon pollution out of Earth’s atmosphere started when we installed the big composter at... Read More

ABC Radio – turning food waste into farm soil

ABC Radio 702 Linda Mottram spoke to Mayor Sally Betts of Waverley council and I today about a ‘game-changer’ project at Bondi to turn food waste into farm soil. The 17 minute interview and background is  here: May the food waste, the soil and the hope this project offers bring a smile to your face,   M  Read More

Getting existing carbon out of Earth’s air this November

Getting existing carbon out of Earth’s atmosphere this November – simply, cheaply – gives hope, increases profits. An inspiring project at Bondi Beach will take existing poluting carbon out of Earth’s atmosphere. Food waste will be turned into compost to grow soil on a farm. The why, the hope and the trust that the project embodies is in this article I’ve written, Hope comes to Bondi Beach. Enjoy, Michael    Read More

Native bee attracting plants

Guest Post by Maree McCarthy   NO. 1 RULE: KEEP THEIR ENVIRONMENT POISON-FREE! (Remember – they are insects!) NO. 2 RULE: PRESERVE BUSHLAND (Biodiversity is the key!) Allowing hoofed animals access, and removing dead wood and trees will soon wipe them out.   Here is a list of plants to feed and attract native bees. • Austromyrtus dulcis (Midyim Berry) 30cm x 1m. Shade or Sun. Attractive pink new growth and small fruit that tastes like custard and nutmeg. • Backhousia... Read More

Native Bees, Wildlife and Native Plants . . . so what’s in it for me?

  Teddy Bear Bee Guest Post:      Maree Mc Carthy –  … supporting earth to sing her songs!   In an island continent such as Australia, with soils and organisms evolved distinctly separate from Europe, its great to watch the local ecosystems and see how we can ‘fit in’ and call this place ‘home’. The wonderful part is that native plants, insects and all the other things that have evolved together over an amazingly long time around here are really... Read More

Two beautiful statues bring silence to the moment

Charioteer from Motya, Sicily These are to my eyes two of the most beautiful statues. Dancing satyr of Mazara del Vallo The stone one, The charioteer from Motya, Sicily, is probably of a slave or servant as the free or noble folk typically rode their chariots while naked; the sensuous human form evoked below the sculpted cloth is breathtaking for me. The bronze – Dancing Satyr of Mazara del Vallo – is about 2400 years old and was made before the art of bronze-making... Read More

Too many people, too little oil, too little soil . . .

Does this story sound like us: ” . . . Iran’s population in 1979 when the Islamic Revolution occurred was 37 million; today it’s 75 million. Egypt’s was 40 million; today it’s 85 million. The stresses from more people, climate change and decades of environmental abuse in both countries can no longer be ignored or bought off. On July 9, Iran’s former agriculture minister, Issa Kalantari, an adviser to Iran’s new president, Hassan Rouhani, spoke to this reality... Read More

Solitary bee nesting hives appear in Chippendale street

Solitary bee hive, Myrtle St, Chippendale, NSW Last night two solitary bee hives appeared outside my house on the little pergola built to train up the native raspberry bushes there.  One has a cute metal roof and the other is also cute – a  bundle of sticks. Bundle of sticks hive Solitary bee nesting box The sign  beside it intrigues me, “Solitary bee nesting box”. And, “Please do not move or disturb.  Babies are (hopefully) sleeping inside.” More... Read More