Issue 21

My journey to “Re-Empowering” myself, both outside and in… It was actually not that long ago that I realized how damaging the whole centralized monopolistic power system is. Six years ago I was not buying energy saving globes and did not have solar panels on my roof, or a wind turbine whizzing in the wind, and certainly would never have thought that I would be cooking on bio-gas collected from the ‘poo’ … human and other!

The sun is a solution. 98% of light striking black is absorbed. Light is energy, not heat. Once absorbed it lowers its frequency and becomes heat. It has more than enough energy to cook with. To capture it, use it and enjoy it has been known for a long time. A naturalist by the name of Horace de Saussure designed the first box cooker. He developed it in the 1700’s. This remains the archetype solar cooking device.

Many books are given the epithet ‘groundbreaking’ but The China Study by Dr Colin Campbell and his son Thomas is one that truly deserves the accolade. Based on the biggest survey of the relationship between diet and disease ever done, the book rigorously examines the evidence and reaches several clear, and to many, startling dietary conclusions.

On my return from South Africa to Europe in January 2005 I had a 5-day stopover in Namibia and knew this was my chance. I landed on a Sunday Morning in Windhoek without any idea how to get from there close to the boarder of Angola where the Himba lived, over 1000 miles away. But I had to follow my calling.

A daily scan through the newspapers and TV news gives the impression that the entire world is constantly invaded by new and horrible virus epidemics. Recently, headlines on avian flu and the SARS virus have dominated global reports, but the world is also exposed to horror scenarios about hepatitis C, AIDS, Ebola and BSE (mad cow disease).

The Animal Rights movement is generally misunderstood and occasionally even ridiculed. To a certain extent this perception can be traced to the actions of a few considered a ‘lunatic fringe’. To a larger extent this perception can also be ascribed to the human tendency to ridicule that which one does not fully understand.

Casual observers might consider it a setback for proponents of ethanol and biodiesel now that Europe is planning to ban biofuels made from crops grown on high-value conservation lands. But the truth is, shunning biofuels produced on wetlands, grasslands, and deforested land is good for both critics and supporters.

Just about every magazine today is offering tips on how to live a more “eco-friendly” lifestyle and you can hardly open a newspaper without a reference to the impact of global warming. Even our Finance Minister, Trevor Manuel, has been heard uttering the word “green” when it comes to the national budget. So, it should come as no surprise that that consumer demand for a biodegradable alternative to plastic is becoming hard to ignore.

In this issue, we’re going to tell you how to fix your car! Fix your car? And then we’re going to give you some yummy recipes to keep you in the Raw, or at least part-Raw. As always stories are the way we learn and remember best, so read this one… we’ve swapped out our bodies for cars and the Doctor for the mechanic, but the idea is the same.

All that effort, all that angst, ruined in just ten days’ of hedonistic revelry. And I’d been doing so well, damn it, conscientiously tidying up my life in expectation of a gold star on my enviro homework.

The topic of raw food diets is hot on many people’s lips these days. And, it’s not because of the Eskom debacle and the challenges facing us over power supplies. It’s more about people becoming aware of what is best for their health and well-being.

It is my pleasure and joy to announce that the 12 environmental scientists from the planet Altimar have now arrived on Earth! Their mission is to work on remedying the environmental damage which has occurred in so many of our ecosystems. They also look forward to eventually working with select top Human environmental scientists in a collaborative effort towards environmental clean-up and restoration of Earth.