JOIN OUR TEAM

We’re looking for volunteers to join our Project MAYA team! We have four fixed-term voluntary positions available to work on our SEEDBALL project, each on a ‘work from home’ basis for a minimum of four hours a week.

THE BEAUTY OF A SWISS PERMACULTURE SYSTEM

By Nina Baumgartner

This summer I spent two months at the permaculture community of Balmeggberg, in the Emmental region of Switzerland. It’s a glorious spot, 1000m up a mountain where six adults and their four children live permanently and hundreds of other people orbit around them.

WHY SWITCH TO AN ELECTRIC VEHICLE?

By Mark Benson 

If you read the motoring press you’ll see snippets of comment about electric cars, electric car technology and battery technology. However, the vast majority of the motoring press is still dominated by gasoline vehicles with many people suggesting that electric cars are something of a gimmick. So, why would you consider switching to an electric vehicle?

TREES ARE PEOPLE TOO

Here at project MAYA we are tree huggers… and proud of it! So, we thought to celebrate our love of trees we would put together a collection of amusing pictures of trees…

We hope these pics convince you that our trees need some hugging!

NEW ARRIVALS!

Yay! In the last week we launched our brand new SEEDBALL packaging ! We can’t believe how wonderful it feels to finally have our lovely new tins with us. We’ve been working on the re-design for quite a while now (since June last year!) and can’t believe the time has finally come to unveil!

WHY NATIVE PLANTS ARE BETTER FOR THE GARDEN

Do you sometimes wonder why our gardens are so full of non-native flowers?

GO GREEN IN 2013!

So, like most of the population, we like to start the New Year with a resolution or two… usually they don’t last past January (giving up cake – what were we thinking?!).  But this year, we suggest a resolution that is easy to keep: do (at least) one thing for the planet in 2013! Where can you have the greatest impact? By focusing on your home. Making your home greener, will help both your health and the health of the planet.

A ‘GO NATIVE’ SHOPPING LIST

As a follow up to our previous blog “We’re dreaming of a green Christmas”, we thought it would be a perfect time to pitch our ‘Native New Year’ idea! 😀

We think we’ve mentioned it before, but it’s definitely worth mentioning again!…Since the Second World War, the UK has lost 97% of its native wildflower habitats. These meadows used to be managed for hay making and grazing, and were hubs of rich biodiversity, bursting with native plants, insects and animals. This once invaluable feature of our countryside is now a rarity, with wildflower abundance now a fraction of what it was 😦

Here at project MAYA we REALLY believe there is hope for these important habitats, and with a little creativity and help from everyone, we could change the British landscape so that it’s once again filled with our native wildflowers.

WE’RE DREAMING OF A GREEN CHRISTMAS

Gosh. So, it’s that time of year again! Can you believe it?

We love Christmas, the festive lights, the sense of cheer, the focus on loved ones; all of which leave us with that warm festive glow. There is however some things about Christmas we don’t like as much. Such as the crazy levels of over consumption and the fact that people seem to forget all about saving the world. At Christmas our usual focus on sustainability can sometimes fly out of the window as we feel the pressure to conform.

So, to help you (and us) out, we’ve put together a little list of how we can enjoy Christmas without costing the earth!

LAUNCH OF NEW TRAINING COURSE ON RESEARCH IMPACT

This week Project MAYA, in collaboration with Dr Mark Reed and Diana Pound (Dialogue Matters), have launched a new training course with support from Living with Environmental Change (LWEC). The training is based on new Knowledge Exchange Guidelines that are being launched by the LWEC partnership at their Annual Assembly in Birmingham. The courses are for anyone who wants to learn how to work collaboratively with those who are likely to use their research to achieve greater impact.