James Samuel

Things are either evolving towards, or devolving into, nothingness and there is only the present moment – so enjoy it, it’s not coming again!

He didn’t leave us with a lot of hope, and understandably. The population growth statistics, and our impact on the life support systems we depend on, are hard arguments to refute, but a little more dialogue would have been great.

Human growth has strained the Earth’s resources, but as Johan Rockstrom reminds us, our advances also give us the science to recognize this and change behavior. His research has found nine “planetary boundaries” that can guide us in protecting our planet’s many overlapping ecosystems.

I put facilitating the buying and selling of land, in the same basket as brokers trading on the stock market. Neither contribute much to the general well-being of the community in which they operate. I don’t believe that any cash benefit to the community, of selling Waiheke land (and homes) to the highest bidder, has outweighed the detrimental effects of the changes that have come about, albeit as unintended consequences.

Having hundreds of protesters hurl abuse at you, make obscene gestures, get in-your-face, make wild accusations, even spit on you, and generally express their frustrations, must seem like an odd way to spend a Saturday morning.

Growth Busters is in production and is likely to be one of the most powerful upcoming films of the moment. The opening words on the trailer read: WARNING: This film contains material which may be offensive to economists, developers, the Pope, politicians, octomoms, wealthy capitalists, envronmentalists, people who leave the lights on, and…well, pretty much [...]

A friend sent me this PDF document last night, with a brief apologetic warning, and asked for my thoughts. This paper (12 pages) took me on a journey into unfamiliar territory, though not uncharted, describing the discoveries made in the Olduvai Gorge and its relevance to us today. It draws on the extensive and combined [...]