Something hopeful for once!
Posts archived in Environment & Politics
I don’t want to sound overly preachy, and I know I am not eating the absolute optimal diet myself though I think I can say it’s better than most peoples’ (vegan, hardly anything ready-made, no caffeine, no sugar, hardly any cocoa, hardly any palm oil if I can avoid it). What I could do better is to eat more locally produced, organic and seasonal, and grow more of my own food. And probably other things, because there is so much I do not know yet. I do think that it is my duty to inform myself about what is going on in the world and try to make it better, not worse. And what is absolutely the worst in my opinion is the destruction of environment and the inhumanity of production that comes with industrial meat production. I don’t want to tell people to go diehard vegan but I don’t think it is justified to let anyone suffer through that kind of treatment nor let the environment take what meat and dairy production does to it. (Links are to reports from FAO and members of the European parliament.) There are so many other alternatives, and yes, with that I even I might mean including locally produced meat if that has to be the alternative for other people than myself. Cause I can’t say for sure what is the best alternative ever and I think that everyone should research that for themselves. But then you have to actually do your research and not just go for any company commercials because they’ve crammed the word sustainable into them…
And with that being said,here are some documentaries on food production that I think one should have seen to be able to make up one’s mind about what to do.
1. Earthlings
(Thanks Rebecka for reminding me about this one, it meant a lot to me when I watched it the first time) And it is very depressing, and informative, and important.
2. Our Daily Bread
Our Daily Bread is very beautifully filmed. It has no narration or interviews, it’s just a lot of scenarios from different types of production of food. I read on wikipedia that the director’s goal was just what I was trying to say before, to provide a realistic view of modern society’s food production to let the viewers form their own opinion on it.
3. Food, INC
I haven’t seen all of Food, INC yet but since it was up for an Oscar and is very relevant right now so I am cheating and adding it to this list anyway! Frej has seen it and says it was a bit “too american” but good…
4. Bullshit
Vandana Shiva is awesome! I walked past her in a stair when I was in Copenhagen during COP15, I was like 20 cm away from her and totally star struck.
I’d also recommend “The World According to Monsanto” about GMO plants but I couldn’t find a trailer for that one. If you click the link you will go straight to it on YouTube where the whole documentary is available anyway! Oh and Bananas* is worth your time aswell! And so is The Dark Side of Chocolate. A lot of these documentaries are available for streaming directly on youtube, google videos or their own websites since it’s material that is relevant to be spread! There are probably a few more I have to recommend, but I don’t have my externa hard drive where I’m at right now and can’t check my list of documentaries.
And here’s list I found with the “top 10 Documentary Food Films” of which I’ve seen some and want to see pretty much all of the others!
Outfit:
Hair rose – gift from Johanna
Vintage blouse – From Amelia a few years back
Suspender skirt – thrifted (the brand is Monki) at Röda Korset
Tights – American Apparel
Mary Janes with three straps - bought at the secondhand store Börsen on Första långgatan.
View if you’re me.
*behind the scenes* Frej was making his bed.. haha.
I actually looked like this the whole weekend through because I stayed longer than I expected at Frejs place… as often happens. On Friday I was at Radikalt Forum (my university’s socialist students seminar weekend) to listen to a seminar on Gramsci, then I went to Frej’s place. Saturday I went back to the forum and listened to a few more lectures, one was about the book the Spirit Level and was very interesting, bought Arturo Bareas biography and a book on the spanish civil war, then I went to Pop Boutique’s one year celebration with Johanna & Anton and where Frej later joined up.
Here’s a (sorta annoying) little short film I found on the book the Spirit Level, when I was googling. But yeah.. see it anyway! Then borrow the book, or something. I don’t think I will read it because I got the most of what’s in it from the seminar and might just use it for references once in a while…
Sunday Frej and I watched a few documentarys and made our own pizza.
This one was mine! Ooh so gooood, I want it back again! I think it might have been the most tasty pizza I have ever eaten. I will make it again with vegan cheese some day, then I might die with joy. It contained:
Crushed tomatoes mixed with oregano, chili and garlic.
Asparagus, mushroom, onion, falafels (which was what made it so great) and spinach.
Wish I had taken a picture after it had been in the oven, but I ate it instead.
And then there were the documentaries we watched.
First this one, Flow – for the Love of Water.
After watching this I take back that I don’t think that the Story of Bottled water which I mentioned earlier is that important in correlation to other dietary consumption issues, I didn’t know it (bottled water industry that is) was that bad in other countries,… Kinda spoiled being from Sweden which has relatively very clean water. The film is of course about more than just bottled water and very informative and easy to understand if you’re not into the subject. You can stream the entire documentary here on Documentary Wire.
And then we finally watched Capitalism – a love story.
Can’t give you tips on streaming it anywhere.
Trailer.
I thought it was pretty good too, leaves a few loose endds, wish he would have brought up more of what this has done to developing countries and how the IMF and World Bank have acted with their structural adjustment programs… and I get kinda bothered with the confrontativeness as that always make me really anxious as a person. But yeah it’s an important documentary to see anyway, and then see others on similar subjects.
Ok now I’m gonna go drink tea and love myself for getting the best grade in my course in “the origins of the modern world order” which I finally got my grade in today after nervous waiting… I’ve started sneak in to my global development studies courses aswell again today, haven’t been with them since that course ended four weeks ago… I think I am becoming a total information junkie… I wished again that I could take those courses aswell as the ones I am taking now but you’re not even allowed to be signed up to that many courses at the same time and I don’t think I could do that and keep sane either for that matter.
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(Click to enlarge)
By TD Architects via the very lovely & informative blog Information is Beautiful.
Oh yes I was also going to post this that I found through the always good Effekt magazine blog. Annie Leonard from the Story of Stuff is back with the Story of Bottled Water. It’s informative, easy to get and relevant to everybody just as the Story of Stuff was, so I’d recommend you to watch it! And yes I do think that it’s always bad to focus on just one product when the entire production system is crazy but I think that 1) it’s important to recognize that water is going to be a huge issue in the future and that a lot of countries including the USA already have water shortages in large areas and 2) that you can just apply this way of thinking to heaps of other products aswell…
Then I think you should watch this BBC documentary, Racism – a history. You can stream it directly on google videos here. Part 1, part 2, part 3. Each part is one hour and I think they’re very worthwile, they have been shown as part of the development courses I’m taking. They’re just what the title says; a pretty thorough history from colonialism through slavery and eugenics…
Carin was going to come to Göteborg today and have an adventurous day with me, but she got a cold and had to stay in Jönköping. I was in a cranky mood and tried to make my other friends on facebook do something fun with me but noone complied!!!! Except Suss but we have an adventurous household together everyday so that doesn’t really count! Then I went to town with Suss, thrifted a heap of things and then met up with Frej to try out glasses for him which failed. The things I thrifted were: a long pink 70s floral dress that I will wear when it’s spring. Which should be now. A beige/light orange tulle skirt. A few books, a framed 50s illustration that will go great in our kitchen, and two pairs of stockings. I gave one pair to Frej because it was those with one black and one white leg and they suited him way better than they suited me. I don’t really like wearing black and white sadly, I think it’s really pretty but I always feel uncomfortable in it.
Can’t really say that shopping made me in a better mood though I really really like this long dress, it’s barbie pink with turquoise flowers and buttons all the way up the front. Pink dresses = more comfortable!!!
The stockings I found at Ebbes hörna by Stigbergstorget. I was also at Ebbes hörna by Bellevue yesterday with Frej and there they had more stockings, unopened ones in high opaque for 25 kr each so that’s a tip! Suss explained it’s because Åhléns gives their unsold stuff to Stadsmissionen which I think is very good! Not like crappy H&M destroying things that don’t sell, and then giving swedish second hand store Myrorna their sustainability award?!
Now I’m gonna go back to watching Frej bake bread in his new stockings!
/Karin
Spotify Playlist
1. Det ska bli slut på rumban – Röda Bönor
2. Oh bondage, up yours! – X-ray Spex
3. Beauty Fiend – My Ruin
4. Awful - Hole
5. Gloria – Patti Smith Group
6. Nanny Nanny Boo Boo – Le Tigre
7. Can’t Hold Us Down – Christina Aguilera feat. Lil Kim
8. Down at the Pub – Lunachicks
9. Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien – Edith Piaf
10. To Kill a King – Hungry Lucy
11. That’s Not My Name – The Ting Tings
12. Shake Yer Dix - Peaches
13. Sången om Sexualmyterna – Röda Bönor
14. Då Är Det Inte Kärlek – Tant Strul
Bikini Kill – Rebel Girl
Ani DiFranco – Shameless
Wish I had time to think of more songs to put on the playlist but I have to rush off to school! Tonight I’m going to a demo and then to a party to celebrate the 100th international women’s day!
At the gathering point for the demo on the 16th
Frej had made cloud flags which he handed out to random people.
Frej, Mårten and I
Kenny, Frej and Mårten
McDonalds under police protection
By Bella Center
While economies grow, social justice is unnecessary, as lives can be improved without redistribution. While economies grow, people need not confront their elites. While economies grow, we can keep buying our way out of trouble. But, like the bankers, we stave off trouble today only by multiplying it tomorrow. Through economic growth we are borrowing time at punitive rates of interest. It ensures that any cuts agreed at Copenhagen will eventually be outstripped. Even if we manage to prevent climate breakdown, growth means that it’s only a matter of time before we hit a new constraint, which demands a new global response: oil, water, phosphate, soil. We will lurch from crisis to existential crisis unless we address the underlying cause: perpetual growth cannot be accomodated on a finite planet. - Monbiot
I am back from Copenhagen! Or, we came back Thursday but both Frej and I have had bad colds and also I’m writing an essay for school so I’m really busy. I’ll write about Copenhagen when I have the time, for now, let’s just say that being there was fantastical & sad at the same time and that I am as convinced as ever that change and real solutions does not come from above.
- i'm Karin, I'm 23 & live in Göteborg in Sweden. (grew up in Jönköping.) I run an online vintage shop called Lily of the Valley.
I like antique things, I buy way too many books with the last cash I own, I am interested in body modification, art, knowledge and Frej. I am a vegan and pretty involved in environmental issues. I've studied human ecology and CSR, going on to environmental revisioning this fall..
You will also find me on:
last.fm
The first time you comment here, I will have to approve the comment, after that it will get published instantly. It's just a precaution since I get a lot of spam comments. 
Lily of the Valley
