The Monday Mix (11/07/2022)
Hey friends,
A second full week back in the UK after my trip away. The weather in Italy is starting to follow me back as it’s been roasting here today and is expected to get hotter in the next few days.
I have a further trip planned in August to watch the start of the Vuelta a España in Utrecht, which is the Spanish version of the Tour de France, an event I’m riveted by so far! The bad thing about the Tour is that I don’t get much work done while it’s on but that’s the only bad thing about it!
It’s an incredible event full of drama and showcases some of the best landscapes you’ll ever see. It also reminds me just how bad cycling infrastructure is here in the UK. Cycling to and from the gym here, for example, is not fun. I have to navigate roads that make no sense for the pedestrian or cyclist. This might be unique to where I live but the UK isn’t the best place for cyclists in general.
Building walkable and cyclable cities is a priority considering the challenges we face from climate change, which have been only too evident this past week.
Cycling in The Netherlands
To emphasise just how much better cycling is in the Netherlands than perhaps anywhere else, here’s a YouTube video to explain why. In a small but densely populated country, the Dutch have made cycling accessible for everyone and reduced the dependency on cars. Obviously, cycling from part of the country to another can be impractical but they have an excellent public transport system to compensate. When you make it easier to get around your city and nearby areas, while also making it easier to travel between cities without needing to use a car, you make cities much more liveable and enjoyable. Something we need to appreciate here in the UK.
Quiet Flows The Po
Sticking with the theme around climate change, here’s an interesting piece on the drought affecting the Po, Italy’s biggest river. The Po cuts across almost the whole of northern Italy from near Turin to the Adriatic and has played a key role in the country’s history. Cities and settlements form near rivers as they provide a plentiful source of water. While that need isn’t as important as it was, they also play a key role in our psyche too. A reminder of the power of nature. The retreat of the Po is a warning about the challenges and consequences of climate change and a reminder of the human loss that could accompany it too.
Good Ancestors
I read the book that this article is promoting two years ago during the pandemic. Maybe it was the book or maybe it was the enforced quarantine, but it really hit me hard. The concept proposed in the book is simple. Climate change is damaging the planet and will likely leave it in a worse state for our children and grandchildren and their children and grandchildren etc. As custodians of the planet, we have a responsibility to look after it. Yet, we’re more focused on short-term squabbles than long-term planning. Since I’ve read the book and this article, I’ve come to the conclusion that part of the problem is that the future seems to have vanished. By this I mean, that no one has a clear concept of the future and how it might look apart from more of the same.
Think back 100 years, 50 years and even 20 years and this was not the case. We had vivid ideas of what the future might be and what it could hold. Today, the most prominent image of the future is a burning planet. Perhaps the most optimistic vision of the future is the one proposed by Elon Musk and that doesn’t involve our planet but colonising another, Mars. This is a topic I’d like to eventually write a few pieces on, but it does feel like the future is on hold and, perhaps, even dead. The beauty of this article is that it shows there is an alternative that can benefit us and our ancestors too.
Book I’m reading - Poverty Safari by Darren McGarvey
An excellent account of life in Britain that you don’t often see. Despite being one of the wealthiest countries in the world, there are pockets of severe poverty across the country. This can manifest itself in a variety and Darren McGarvey, a resident of Glasgow, explains how. This is the book Orwell might have written were he alive today. The Road To Wigan Pier for the 21st century.
Quote I’m pondering: “A human lifespan is less than a thousand months long. You need to make some time to think how to live it.” – A.C. Grayling
That’s all for this week.
Until next time,
Tom