Kindness and Coronavirus

Published in DW, December 2020

We can’t allow the pandemic to break the circle of hospitality.

Why the Fate of Scotland’s Salmon Depends on its Forests

Published in DW, December 2020

Scotland’s wild salmon are in decline, but its forests vanished centuries ago. Could planting trees be the key to turning salmon numbers around?

Taking Back the Land

Published in Resurgence, November 2020

A review of ‘The Book of Trespass’ by Nick Hayes.

Survivors

Published in Granta, November 2020

As wild salmon numbers decline in Britain, a journey through the country to look at some of the livelihoods that are vanishing along with the fish.

Reshaping the World

Published in Resurgence, May 2020

A review of ‘This Land is Our Land’ by Jedediah Purdy.

Six Kilometres

Published in Granta, November 2019

The island of Lesvos is only six kilometres from the Turkish mainland. But this narrow body of water has been shaping the lives of those on both sides of it for centuries.

The Bond of Memory

Published in Resurgence, November 2019

A review of ‘Surfacing’ by Kathleen Jamie.

Why Big Banks are Accused of Funding the Climate Crisis

Published in Huffington Post, October 2019

As the climate strikes spread across the world, a look at why protestors are targeting the finance sector as a way of tackling emissions head on.

Depth and Breadth

Published in Dark Mountain, May 2019

A review of ‘Underland’ by Robert Macfarlane and ‘Horizon’ by Barry Lopez.

Ex-cons for Conservation: Can prison actors save Malawi’s national tree from extinction

Published in DW, April 2019

A theatre group comprised entirely of ex-prisoners devise a play about the Mulanje cedar, in one final attempt to save it from extinction.

Meet The Island Communities Fighting Back Against Wealthy, Absent Landlords

Published in the Huffington Post, August 2018

Following the recent buyout on Ulva, a look at how more and more communities in Scotland are taking on centuries of history and fighting for land reform.

Fairbourne

Published in Granta, February 2016

How the community of Fairbourne is coping with the news that the council will no longer defend them from rising sea-levels in 40 years time

 

Climate Change and the Paris Conference: Seeing Hope in Activism

Published in Lacuna, February 2016

The growing movement for climate justice at COP21, as activists struggle to find space to demonstrate in a city under a state of emergency.

 

Who's Afraid of Reintroducing the Wolf?

Published in Lacuna, November/ December 2015

An in depth account, published over three parts, looking at my 200 mile walk across Scotland, trying to uncover the history of the wolf and what it's future might be.

 

The Place Where Wolves Could Soon Return

Published in the BBC News Magazine, October 2015

In 2014 I walked 200 miles across the Highlands to see how people would feel about a reintroduction of the wolf. This story is a result of that journey.

 

The Taboo of Sex and Age

Published in Lacuna, September 2015

In discussion with Lois Weaver about her alter ego Tammy WhyNot, looking at how she breaks down the taboo of sex in later life through her performances.

 

The Taboo of Sex in Care Homes for Older People

Published in the BBC News Magazine, June 2015

Examining the reasons for the all pervading silence surrounding sex and old age, and discussing some of the problems the taboo could be perpetuating.

 

Cast Adrift

Published in The Land, Summer 2015

A look at the history of those who have lived and worked on the canals of Britain, and why that lifestyle is looking increasingly precarious.

 

What Tammy Needs to Know About Getting Old and Having Sex

Published in QX, June 2015

Why is there still a taboo around sex and ageing? In the role of her alter ego Tammy WhyNot, Lois Weaver's new show uncovers uncomfortable truths.

 

My Free-floating Life on the Waterways of London

Published in Narratively, May 2015

As part of the Narratively Off-Grid series, a look at living on the waterways of London, and the growing pressures we are under.

 

The Divestment Movement Gathering Pace in Cities

Published in CityMetric, April 2015

Oslo has joined the dozens of other cities pledging to divest their holdings in the fossil fuel industry.

 

Benediction Bankers

Published in Third Way, March 2015

The Prior in charge of Britain's most unlikely novitiates

 

Europe, The Very Very Long Way

Published in Narratively, March 2015

It takes four hours to fly the 3,500 miles from England to Istanbul. It took me 247 days to walk.

 

Boaters Increasingly Under Threat From Eviction

Published in CityMetric, March 2015

More and more Londoners are living on boats, but their lifestyle is under threat.

 

We Didn't Know It Couldn't Be Done

Published in Arena, February/ March 2015

The legacy of the Exxon Valdez oil spill, 25 years on.

 

What's the Hitch?

Published in The Land, January 2015

Does hitchhiking have a place in modern Britain?

 

Protest As a Way of Life

Published in Lacuna, January 2015

An interview with the Indian activist Rajagopal.

 

Churches Turn Up The Heat On Climate Changers

Published in Resurgence, November/ December 2014

Looking at the growing number of faith groups that are divesting from fossil fuels.

 

Into the Wilderness

Published in Dark Mountain, October 2014

Chris McCandless and the Alaskan wilderness are more complicated than they seem.

 

The Human Ecology Behind the Feral Dream

Speaking to 21st Century Permaculture, October 2014

Talking about the reintroduction of wolves into Scotland.

 

The Alaskan Town Where People Still Pan For Gold

Published in The Atlantic, September 2014

Alaska’s modern gold rush. The latest in a long line of the state’s booms, and its subsequent, inevitable, busts.

 

Point Hope

Published in Lacuna, September 2014

Peak oil and peak whale in America’s oldest settlement: Point Hope, Alaska.

 

Have You Seen This Wolf?

Published in The Guardian, July 2014

My search for the last wolf in Great Britain.

 

When Global Warming Kills Your God

Published in The Atlantic, June 2014

Twenty-three Alaskan tribesmen broke the law when they overfished King Salmon, but they claim their faith gave them no other choice.

 

The Winter Pilgrim

Published in Third Way, January 2014

Ann Sieben, the Winter Pilgrim, has taken more than twenty million steps in her epic journeys across the globe. This article looks at her motivations.

 

Divesting In The Future

Published in Positive News, January 2014

An interview with Bill McKibben about 350.org’s fossil fuel divestment campaign.

 

The Mary Michael Pilgrims’ Way

Published in Resurgence, November 2012

A walk across Dartmoor following the newly opened Long Distance Footpath.

 

Redemption Road

Published in New Internationalist, July 2012

A look at the Belgian organisation Oikoten, who take young offenders out of prison and offer them freedom if they complete the four month walk to Santiago de Compostela.

 

Giving Power To Strangers

TEDxLSE, 17th March 2012

Some reflections on the hospitality I received on an eight month walk to Istanbul.

 

The Lessons of Pilgrimage

Published in Resurgence, November 2011

What pilgrimage can teach us about the importance of the return.

 

The Rime of the Modern Mariner

Published in Third Way, November 2011

By Nick Hayes

 

Man vs Machine

Published in Third Way, October 2011

Looking at the Ratcliffe-on-Soar trial in 2010, and suggesting that direct action needs to think more carefully about the stories that it tells.

 

Hitchhiking: The Greenest Form of Transport That Nobody Uses?

Published in The Ecologist, September 2011

With petrol prices on the rise, as well as youth unemployment, and an urgent need to cut carbon emissions, why aren’t more people hitchhiking?

 

Le Quattro Volte

Published in Third Way, July 2011

Directed by Michelangelo Frammartino

 

Love of Strangers is a Vital, Open Act, and a Risk Worth Taking

Published in The Guardian, May 2011

Looking at the hospitality encountered on a walk from England to Istanbul.

 

Moving at the Speed of Life

Published in Positive News, May 2011

Walking 3,500 miles from England to Istanbul in 2010.

 

In Sacred Footsteps

Published in Third Way, April 2011

Discussing the role that walking and pilgrimage can play in restoring ecological values.

 

Where Spirit Lies

Published in Resurgence, March 2009

The direct action movement in the UK, and some of the core values that drive it.