A cloth bag

My friends Kim and Matt tell me that one of the things they are doing to “save the world” is taking a cloth bag to the supermarket. This is such a simple step that we could all take and that would do so much for the environment. As Kim says “Think of how much less plastic that is in a year!” I know most of us reuse the plastic bags we get at shops, but as I said in this post, reducing waste is much better than reusing it. This is the perfect example that to save the world we don’t always need big acts, but simple, small changes in our lives.

Behind the book

Behind the book is a literary arts nonprofit organization that promotes literacy among students in schools in poor neighbourhoods of New York City.
I think organizations like this do such an important job. We often forget that the best thing we may do for children in hard situations is to help them and encourage them to use their imagination and be more creative. That way, we´ll be giving them the tools they need to escape the world they live in and imagine a better life. Because, how would they work on a better life for themselves if they can´t even imagine it?
Do you know any similar organization in England?

Behind the book

Behind the book es una organización que realiza actividades para estimular a los alumnos de escuelas pobres de Nueva York a leer, escribir y ser más creativos. Organiza, sobre todo, charlas de escritores e ilustradores en las escuelas de los barrios pobres de la ciudad. Me parece una labor importantísima la que llevan a cabo. Muchas veces nos olvidamos de que promover la imaginacion y la creatividad de estos niños puede ser lo mejor que hagamos por ellos. Les estamos dando las herramientas que necesitan para escapar del mundo en el que viven e imaginar una vida mejor. ¿Cómo van a luchar por una vida mejor si ni siquiera pueden imaginársela?
¿Conocéis alguna organización similar en España o Sudamérica?

Ricas fresas...

Aunque ya debería estar acostumbrada, no para de sorprenderme el hecho de que ahora ya no existen las frutas de temporada. Tenemos de todo en cualquier momento del año. Me llama la atención sobre todo en septiembre. Recuerdo los veranos de mi niñez; los solía pasar en “el pueblo”, en casa de mi abuela, que tenia una pequeña plantación de fresas. Todo el verano soñaba con las deliciosas fresas que saldrían en septiembre. Cuando las fresas de temporada llegan ahora a los supermercados no tienen nada de especial porque no tuve que esperarlas, comí fresas durante todo el año.

Ya hace un tiempo me compré el libro de Nigel Slater, The kitchen diaries. Es un libro bastante poético, que es mitad libro de cocina y mitad diario, en el que el autor nos da recetas para realizar con productos de temporada y nos cuenta la comida que le gusta y lo que significa para él cocinar con productos frescos. Aunque los que me conocen saben que yo no cocino demasiado, pienso usarlo el año que viene para redescubrir lo que cada estación me trae de especial, y poder así elegir productos frescos en el supermercado.

De esta forma, estaré ayudando a los agricultores locales, y contribuiré a que no se contamine tanto transportando fruta desde lugares remotos. Además, estaré comiendo mejor, ya que la fruta cultivada naturalmente tiene más vitaminas y nutrientes que la artificial. Todo el mundo gana!!!

Strawberries

Although I should be used to it, I am still amazed when I realize that we don’t have seasonal products anymore. We now have everything all year round. It makes me sad in September. I remember those childhood summers spent at my grandmother’s, who had a small planting of strawberries. All summer I would dream of the delicious strawberries that would come in September. When the seasonal strawberries hit supermarkets now… Sure, they taste good, but they are not the special treat they use to be when I had to wait for them.
Some time ago I bought the Nigel Slater’s book, The kitchen diaries, a part cookbook and part diary where the author tells us about the food he loves and offers us recipes with seasonal produce for every month of the year. Those who know me know that I do not cook much, but I’m going to use the book next year to rediscover what each season brings me, so I can get seasonal products at the supermarket.
That way, I’ll be helping local farmers, saving on air miles and eating "more natural" fruit and vegetables.This will also mean eating healthier, as seasonal fruit and vegetables grown naturally are richer in vitamins than those grown artificially.

The crisis

Some people have suggested that I write about the benefits of the crisis. I know that, unfortunately, many people have lost their jobs, their homes, their savings... I don´t want to be disrespectful to these people, but I do believe that the crisis can bring us good things. As with everything, we just need to learn from it.
I hope that this crisis make us realize that greed does not lead us anywhere good and that sometimes in life, less is, indeed, more. We should learn to live with less and still be happier.
The crisis may mean cutting down on how many times you go out for dinner. Let´s enjoy a home-cooked meal with family or friends. If we cannot use the car as often, let´s enjoy a walk around our neighbourhood and discover it all over again. If we cannot buy so many clothes, let´s alter some we already have so we enjoy them for longer.
These are just some examples (very simple, perhaps silly) of what we can learn from a bad time.

La crisis

Varias personas me sugieren que escriba sobre los beneficios de la crisis. Eh... sí, beneficios! Sin faltarle al respeto a tantas pesonas que, por desgracia, han perdido sus trabajos, sus casas, sus ahorros... creo que la crisis puede traernos cosas buenas si sabemos cómo enfrentarla y aprendemos de lo que está pasando. A veces (casi siempre), los humanos necesitamos tocar fondo antes de reaccionar y cambiar aquello que nos perjudica.
Que esta crisis valga para darnos cuenta de que la avaricia no nos lleva a ninguna parte y de que, a veces, en la vida, menos es más. Aprendamos a vivir con menos y a ser más felices.
Si, por culpa de la crisis, no podemos salir a cenar o a tomar algo tan a menudo como antes, disfrutemos de una comida casera con nuestra familia o amigos. Si no podemos usar el coche para todo, disfrutemos de paseos por nuestro bario y redescubrámoslo. Si no podemos comprar tantas prendas de ropa, cambiemos algo de las que ya tenemos para volver a disfrutarlas como si fueran nuevas.
Son solo algunos ejemplos (muy simples, quizás tontos) de lo que podemos aprender de este mal momento.

Reducing is better than reusing or recycling

I have decided to switch to paperless bills from my bank. Instead of getting my bills in the post, I'll only get them in my email (at least HSBC offers this service). With this simple step, I'll be reducing paper use.
I thought about this after reading The Complete Idiot's Guide to Saving the Environment, a very interesting book that provides a basic overview on the environment, global warming and other threats and, more importantly, ideas on what we can all do to help. The author says something very obvious but that I have never thought about (sometimes, I'm a bit slow...) It's much better to reduce, than reuse or recycle something. If we reduce the amount of paper (or plastic, or whatever) that we use, then it won't be necessary to reuse it or recycle it.
Why is recycling more popular then? First, because it's easier for everyone to recycle something after using it than stop using it. Also, it would obvioulsy be a disaster for some companies if we all decided to stop using some of their products, rather than still buying and later recycle them.
Of course, for things that we need (or really want), reusing and recycling are the next best options!