The Search for Beauty “Some things to try before you die” Education for Sustainability July 2009 Henry Liebling

What are you thinking as you look at this image? Write a comment if you wish for any of the images.

What time is it? Dare to be different 04:06!? 03:02?? Energy descent plan Abundant Living

NOW this moment the most exciting time to be alive Blue sky thinking Think outside the box Change something Dare to be different Experiment Take risks Be creative Forget the goal Be playful Try not to confuse cleverness with wisdom

Toomuchclutterinourhe ads,thecurriculum&the shops Consumerism&rubbish poisoningtheplanet

Slow down each sense. Try softer and slower thinking, eating … It doesn’t matter where you start. All things are connectedAll things are connected, the air you breathe, the water you drink, the food you eat, the place you live, the clothes you wear. Try to smile. Breathe in, breathe out and smile. Go on, do it now! Try being rather than doing Live a little slower, give away your watch. Try Slow Food, Slow Travel …Slow FoodSlow Travel BUT try to be-come more aware, more awake.

Start from where you are, the place where you live. Go and explore your favourite outdoor place. Discover parks, playgrounds, urban orchards, shared spaces, woods, beaches… Bio-regional wisdom Sense of place

Uncover the stories & history behind paths, bridleways, chimneys, doorways, hedges. Ask or interview older wiser folk about local culture, its origins, myths, stories, folk tales, crafts, music, dances, art & poetry.

Try to find out about ANCIENT WISDOMS.ANCIENT WISDOMS We are all brothers and sisters sharing the same DNA.

Life as a seaside holiday? Fancy a 14 hour working week?

Stones, Trees and Bones. Stone tools, Wooden handles, Bone needle years of sustainability

Try to find out about other indigenous cultures Kenneth Little Hawk Learn another language, find out about a culture different from your own. Go and work in another country on a teacher exchange or as a volunteer.

Grow a tree, perhaps from seed, cutting or sapling. Watch it grow, care for it, use it.

Share ideas, advice, seeds, seedlings, cuttings and produce Use “Landshare” to find or offer landLandshare Permaculture Forest garden Eat seasonally Reduce food miles Grow your food Eat the whole thing Eat less meat Find food for free Plant a tree every year of your life Fruit, nuts, wood Notice the seasons When to plant and harvest Companion planting Grow herbs Flowers for bees Have a wild area Encourage diversity A pond for frogs...

Finding a niche

Notice, observe, study & draw patterns in plants

DiversityDiversity in my garden

Try to make baskets from local material which you collect and dry. Learn a craft so you can make things for yourself and others. Collect good quality simple tools and learn how to use them.

Simple tools

Try watching & waiting CREATE rather than REACT Try something different Listen to a friend Watch your feelings arise

Be the change Be the change you wish to see in the world Be open hearted Try small kind actionssmall kind actions Give without a second thought Be happy, especially for others

What Curriculum?

Pedro the Magnificent or Pedro the Terrible? Trying to re-unite Islam & Christianity. Tiled wall in Alcazar palace, Seville. A lost art?

What really matters in education? One project a year. Butterfly garden, Elizabethan Herb garden, Playground Games, Re-cycling Zone, Footwear Planters, Mini-beast Area, Rock & Mineral trail, Pond, Building materials and brick patterns. Keith Loze at Pilgrim Primary, Plymouth 1990s

“There is no away.”There is no away RETHINK, REFUSE, REDUCE, REUSE, REPAIR, RECYCLE Try to reuse or recycle ALL your rubbish? Try to live for a day without producing any rubbish.

Technological fixes Convergence of technologies Try to make a box full of your ideas as a present to the planet. Mashing software Most technology creates more rubbish and ends up as rubbish. Benefits of sharing, negotiating, creating More for less ipod appsipod apps, Diigo, Twine Open SoftwareDiigoTwineOpen Software

We cannot know the future, but we can dream, envision and back-cast. We are in a state of constant change. Everything changes, nothing lasts for ever. Our world is unpredictable. Nearly everything is space.

Air, Earth, Fire, Water How can we sense, feel, appreciate, respect, come to know, CONNECT with, each of these elements? We are a part of all this. It is a part of us.

We are “a part of” NOT “apart from” all that surrounds us.

Thank you for listening