Organisms, real, imagined, extinct and extant
The city of the future
How would you design the city of the future? My city of the future would be designed to facilitate ongoing and sensible growth within the planet’s ecological boundaries. It would use recycled water and make use of solar and wind energy instead of fossil fuels. People’s innovation using AI and biotechnology would mean we manufacture…
Travel: Koishikawa Korakuen Gardens
In the Koishikawa Korakuen Gardens is an Edo era (Tokyo) garden of hushed quiet contemplation amidst the bombastic, rushing and striving modern world
Beach walking and native birds
What do you love about where you live? I love living right next to the beach and being able to walk there each day. There are egrets, rosellas, cocakatoos, gallahs, Australian crows, rainbow lorikeets, tawny frogmouths, dusky moorhens, superb fairy wrens. All flitter and flirt through the brush and low lying bushes near the beach with…
Tree spirits, ghost gums and animal familiars
What’s the one luxury you can’t live without? If you ever find yourself in a time of great stress and upsetting circumstances, the natural world wants to calm and sooth you, if you get outside and start to observe things yourself, you will see. In parks, large trunked trees swing and sway in the wind.…
Travel: The Enchanting Ogród Botaniczny of Kraków
The Ogród Botaniczny of Kraków has a long scientific heritage that dates back to 1783. They are the oldest scientific gardens in Poland and were established by Professor Józef Bogumił Rogaliński.
Throughout this time many inquisitive and curious minds have peered into the depths of floral wonders and the garden was pivotal during the…
The quirky origins of Australia’s native animal names
In Australia there are more than 250 Indigenous languages including around 800 dialects. Languages are living things that connect people to Country, culture and ancestors. Many words for Australian native animals come from these languages. ‘Keriba gesep agiakar dikwarda keriba mir. Ableglam keriba Mir pako Tonar nole atakemurkak.’ — The land actually gave birth to…
Book Review: ‘Industrial Scars’ The Beautiful Toxic Scars of the Earth
What happens when humans burn too much waste and destroy the planet? Modern Art. Photographs of the aftermath of environmental devastation aren’t normally considered art. However photographer J Henry Fair has reimagined the decaying and suffering environmental landscape in the aftermath of human abuse in his mesmerising book entitled Industrial Scars. Fair wanted to poignantly…
Exploring the Spiritual Wisdom of Japanese Wildlife: A Journey Through Shinto and Zen Buddhism
The fauna of Japan, rich in diversity, is intricately woven into the tapestry of Shinto and Zen Buddhist traditions. Each animal is not just a part of the ecosystem but a bearer of profound spiritual messages and teachings. This article delves deeply into the shamanic symbolism of eight Japanese animals, revealing their roles in folklore,…
What is your favourite animal? Crows and ravens
What is your favorite animal? Their iridescent black and purple feathers are like midnight sky cloaks given by impatient gods. Their glances from electrifying ice blue eyes that cut like a knife through my soul. I pay tribute in the form of grapes and old bread and they grace me with their presence and it’s…
Ancient Word of the Day: Adsum
From Latin: “Adsum” – be here now
The life, in a form, that we all live. Adsum abandons hopelessness and blind hope and even rational hope.
Hope is that virtue by which we take responsibility for the future and a quality that gives our actions special urgency.
Embracing the Shamanic Spirit of Australian Wildlife: A Journey Through Australian Power Animals of Land, Sky, and Sea
Australia’s diverse wildlife offers a rich tapestry of shamanic wisdom, insight and power, with each animal embodying unique spiritual teachings. Recognising these creatures as sentient beings of unique intelligences and lives quite apart from our own, in this article we will explore the profound spiritual symbolism and strengths of eight iconic Australian animals. These represent…
Short Story: Awhiina finds her orb
In the heart of the Pacific, there lies an island so remote it is whispered about like a myth. This island, cloaked in lush greenery and bordered by the endless blue, is home to Awhiina, a woman of quiet strength and profound connection to the natural world around her. Awhiina lived in a small village,…
Short Story: Bunjil’s Blessing on Summer Solstice Eve
On the eve of the Summer Solstice, as the sun dipped low over the horizon, casting a golden hue across the sands, the beach was alive with anticipation. Families, friends, and solitary wanderers alike had gathered, drawn by the promise of the longest day, and the magic that it held. Among them was a young…
Summer Travel: Mushroom Reef Sanctuary, Flinders, Mornington Peninsula
The Mushroom Reef Sanctuary is home to a gigantic mushroom shaped basalt reef near Flinders in Westernport Bay. Located 86 km from central Melbourne, it’s a fantastic day trip for beach-combing, sunbathing, snorkelling or bushwalking. As an added bonus it’s hidden away from the hoards that gather on popular beaches on the opposite side of…
Ancient Word of the Day: Kairos
When you walk with ‘Kairos’ you learn how to tip yourself out of chronological time and are able to decommodify your footsteps to walk in sacred time and to the rhythm of your creative mind.
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