Finally realised a childhood dream of making my way up Maiden Castle. We walked around the ramparts in a haze, but the experience was spellbinding. Several times we bumped into a delightful couple, once by the pit that held a series of much-the-worse-for-wear skeletons that Sir Mortimer Wheeler dubbed long-ago war victims. Whatever the truth, there was a sense of generations of lives lived out here, through thick and thin, and the spearpoint found in one spine was graphic evidence of the distress caused by the Romans turning up in the neighbourhood. In the distance, Poundbury shimmered through the haze, like something out of that old TV series, The Prisoner.
Journal
Trill Farm
Janet and Elaine walking down to Trill Farm
Drove down to Frampton, Dorset, to drop our bags at a rather grand B&B, before heading further west to Trill Farm, near Musbury, Devon, for a celebration of the launch of the Trill Farm Trust, This has been set up by Romy Fraser, who founded Neal’s Yard Remedies – and recently sold a majority holding to Peter Kindersley. Wonderful dancing to ceilidh band as the sun set.
Apart from Romy and Amrit Ahluwalia, who used to work with SustainAbility many, many moons ago and then worked with Romy, we bumped into people like Ed Posey of the Gaia Foundation, Richard St George (who used to work at the Centre of Alternative Technology) and Schumacher, Jude Smith Rachele of Abundant Sun, nd Sue Clifford and Angela King, who run one of my very favourite NGOs, Common Ground.
Driving back to Frampton very late, we found all the petrol stations closed and ourselves almost running on vapours – but found a station just about to close after some 25 minutes of heightening anxiety.
Reflection Dancing Sue, Angela and Elaine Stilts 1 Stilts 2 Old man puppet chases a bottle of gin Vine
Video of ITT watermark panel
A video of the panel session I took part in as part of the launch of the launch of the ITT watermark initiative in Stockholm (see 24 August blog entry) can be found at http://www.ittwatermark.com/.
Riders for Health
Andrea and Barry Coleman Pamela and Charmian
Day started with a brainstorm session at SustainAbility on the future of our accountability, reporting and stakeholder engagement work – a timely and vibrant discussion. Then, after drafting an article or two, walked across to Volans for a session with Andrea and Barry Coleman of Riders for Health. They updated our team on some of the stuff they are now doing and on their plans for the future. I really love what they do – and it was interesting that at last night’s dinner someone from a major mainstream organisation waxed lyrical about them, without initially knowing that we knew them.
Environment Foundation, woodpecker and Melody
A fairly energetic day, starting with a train trip down to Newdigate for a meeting of the Trustees of the Environment Foundation, hosted by (Sir) Geoffrey Chandler. Others there were Malcolm Aickin, Ian Christie, John Lotherington (of the 21st Century Trust), Tim O’Donovan and Halina Ward. A key decision was to push forward with the theme of ‘Democracy & Sustainability’. Geoffrey’s wife Lucy and their dog Pickles ducked in and out during the day, as did a Great Spotted Woodpecker.
Later, Tim drove me across to Dorking station for the trip back to London, where I met Elaine in Berkeley Square, before heading to the Lansdowne Club, to meet Melody Haller (who I first encountered at a Wall Street Journal conference in Santa Barbara, California) earlier this year, and her husband Michael (Tyler). A fascinating group of people, working in areas as diverse as advanced silicon technologies and neuroscience.
I have always had antibodies to the world of clubs, but was fascimated when Michael noted that Britain had conceded independence to the United States in the Treaty of Paris, drawn up with Benjamin Franklin in this building’s Round Room. Sadly, we were all too busy talking to take up his offer of a guided tour.
Malcolm and Foundation files dating back to the Year Dot Halina and Pickles Some Chandler trees Posted at 11:45:00 p.m. on Wednesday, 27 August 2008 by John Elkington. Digg | Permalink
Comments
Your name:
Your email address (optional)
Organization (optional):
Your website – Publish link with this comment – Yes No:
Country (optional):
Your privacy:
Your email address and organization will not be published on this site. You can choose to publish your website address with your comment.
Any information you provide will not be shared with any other person or organization. Your comment:
Spam blocking: Type the letters and numbers you see in the image below: