Recalling two years of radical experiment in participatory democracy, the Stroud Area Assembly wishes you a “Radical Restmas”

A delightful cross post from the Stroud Area Assembly, charting their progress. To begin with: This project is called Stroud Area Assembly. It is a collaboration of governance practitioners, community development leaders and movement builders, and part of the work of Parents for Future Stroud and a national initiative, ‘Lifehouses – Collapse Preparing Communities’. Citizens’. We are also linked…

Tips to tackle food waste this festive

Food waste, composting, 123rf.com Primedia+ – 19 December 2024 It’s revolting how much food we waste over the festive season. Here’s how YOU can help. Festive vibes often mean gatherings where food takes centre stage and sometimes that means waste is in abundance. To reduce food waste, it’s important to be mindful of its impact…

District Six Museum marks 30 years of memories

Joe Schaffers, whose family was evicted from District Six under apartheid, was at the District Six Museum to mark its 30th birthday. (Matthew Hirsch/GroundUp) Matthew Hirsch – 18 December 2024 Joe Schaffers was born in District Six in Cape Town in 1939 and lived there for nearly 30 years before his family and thousands of…

Between a loaf of bread and a book

Jolyn Phillips. (Photo: Brenda Veldtman) Jolyn Phillips – 19 December 2024 What does the landscape and climate for creative writing and freedom of expression look like in five different African countries today? What are some of the issues that affect writers? This year, PEN Afrikaans is participating in the Right to Write project together with…

Artists earn half the minimum wage, while contributing hundreds of billions to the economy. A “smart fund” on digital devices might help them

Photo by Amauri Mejía on Unsplash By Margaret Heffernan Artists are generally thought of as either starving in a garret (La Bohème and all that) or jammy millionaires producing works valued at eye-watering sums (hello Damien Hirst). But the reality of life in the visual arts is more prosaic and a great deal more worrying,…