An excellent example of how ecological farm tourism can help revive the real, local economy in Greece. We want more of this, and not at all pharaonic mega-tourism & real estate projects or oil platforms in the Aegean or Ionian.  

  While the E.U. is pressing airlines to cut carbon emissions, and the US and China traditionally trying to block any global climate action measure, an online debate on the burning (literally) and usually swept-under-the-carpet issue of "whether 'sustainable' tourism can include flying" is being held at the University of Central Lancashire, UK on 30th March. Valere Tjolle and Dr Davina Stanford will defend the sustainability of flying while Professor Les Lumsdon and Paul Peeters will oppose it. Details can be found at http://www.uclan.ac.uk/schools/ssto/research/itt/debate_can_sustainable_tourism_include_flying.php and http://www.2343ec78a04c6ea9d80806345d31fd78-gdprlock/FlyingDebateUCLan   For anyone who approaches and understands ecotourism as ecological tourism and not just as elitist nature travel, it is clear that flying is problematic to say the least. I prefer bikes, trains, hiking, public transport, social tourism, accessible for all. Jetting off to a luxury award-winning pseudo-eco resort at the other end of the planet has little to do with ecological principles. But "sustainability" is a different ball...

  When we first read it we thought it was a holiday joke, no it is serious. In one more victory of “The Markets” over common sense, airlines have been cleared by America’s aviation regulators to use twin-jet aircraft (notably the Boeing 777 and 787) over the North Pole, supposedly saving fuel costs and the environment and allowing non-stop flights from Europe to Pacific destinations such as Fiji or Hawaii. It is easy to comprehend the joy of the airlines and of the aircraft manufacturer oligopoly, but what about the effects on passenger and crew safety: there increased ultraviolet radiation in the polar regions, not to mention how many will survive an emergency landing even if it is successful. And how would frequent crossing of the poles impact on the already decreased ozone concentration in the Arctic, which by the way also suffers from radioactive contamination from the tests of the...

Uncontrolled and ever-expanding packaged tourism and coastal development, along with overfishing in the Mediterranean is taking its toll on resources and what still survives of the marine wildlife.  [video:http://www.14dd5266c70789bdc806364df4586335-gdprlock/watch?v=jm_Uf0vNh84 640x360] Above is a pleasant to watch, yet informative video aimed at resort staff (but also suitable for schools) in coastal resorts popular with nesting sea turtles, so that the adverse impact of mass tourism can be somewhat reduced. It was produced by the Travel Foundation (UK) and distributed in Greece through the Mediterranean Association to Save the Sea Turtles (MEDASSET). The NGO carries yearly assessment of major nesting areas such as Zakynthos, Kefalonia and Kyparissia in Greece, Akamas in Cyprus and Akyata, Dalyan, Kazanli Patara and Samandag in Turkey, and submits these to the standing committee of the Bern Convention at the Council of Europe, so that respective governments are forced to respond and take action. In their annual assessment on...

A very interesting video on the 99% movement presenting the underlying income inequality statistics can be found at http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/video/2011/nov/16/99-v-1-occupy-data-animation.       The Vision of Humanity website also has very interesting statistical data nicely presented, the following is on income inequality worldwide: http://www.visionofhumanity.org/gpi-data/#/2011/gini/ Income inequality is increasing worldwide with more people falling below the poverty line. The statistics may be fixed by lowering the line however in terms of solving real problems patience is running out. Time may actually have already run out for the current global economic system, although it may be proven as just one more periodic crisis of capitalism (it is quite protracted though).   Whatever the case, it is important is that it does not collapse on peoples heads, but they start exiting the crumbling structure now, and joining or forming alternatives - local exchange systems, collectives, urban farms, soup kitchens and so on, millions of tiny holes in the...

Deceitful King Sisyphus was condemned by Zeus to eternally carry a boulder to a top of the hill with the boulder rolling down again. Sisyphus has been interpreted as representing vain politicians, aspiring for eternal glory and eternally failing. Epicurus on the other hand praised the virtues of a pleasant, just and detached - including from politics - life. On the second day of a general strike in Greece, it seems we have to choose whether to follow Sisyphus and the illusion of capitalist abundance, or Epicurus and his doctrine that "natural wealth is both limited and easily obtained, but vanity is insatiable". Compared to what lies ahead, life in Greece until 5 years ago seemed quite good for the vast majority of the population (with the exception of immigrants), reflected in us reaching the top 20 of the Human Development Index at the time. However not all was well however, as...

Remembering the way tabloids were treating Athens in the run up to the 2004 Olympics (which always are, like all mega-events, a mega-waste)  a certain schadenfreude could be expected from Athenians, but on the contrary they feel a sense of solidarity with Londoners and the UK tourism sector who seem to be experiencing the same effects of neoliberal globalisation - high youth unemployment, social injustice, racism, police brutality, increased crime, all leading, mathematically, to riots. I have found the reaction of the London Greens (here and here) interesting and measured, while a post in Red Pepper also seems to put the finger in the wounds. Let us hope that neoliberal government policies will be reversed soon, both in UK and in Greece.

"Invisible wall" a short documentary about tourists, refugees and immigrants in Agathonissi, Greece, a tiny, formerly sleepy, island close to the Turkish coast.    

Unfortunately the non-violent, colorful, pluralistic, direct democratic 'indignados' ("aganaktismenoi") assembly protesting neoliberal IMF recipes in Athens' main Syntagma Sq., already in its 3rd week, has been attacked by the infamous riot police 'MAT' units on 15 June, following a large demonstration on a day of general strike. In a city already plagued by air pollution, the police, besides batons, insist on using carcinogenic tear gas (banned under various treaties) despite repeated promises by the government that it will be phased out. Still it took only an hour for the people to return to the square. Let us hope that the direct democratic experiment, in the city that gave birth to the concept, with popular assemblies being held every night in Athens and other major greek cities, will continue. The tear gas seems to have mostly affected the government, which nearly resigned later on the day, a reshuffle is expected today 16.6 and elections cannot...

Hot summer ahead, and not just speaking about climate change...some days it seems that the world is spinning out of control. While the Mediterranean peoples are revolting in violent and non-violent ways, rightly demanding real democracy (although somewhat ironically on Facebook), the great powers-empires are extinguishing and imprisoning real and perceived foes from dissident Nobel laureates, to environmental activists, to IMF heads, and doing everything, as always, they can so that popular movements are manipulated and/ore discredited. Over here in post-Athens-what-a-waste-Olympics-2004-Greece, geographically and culturally situated somewhere between the 1st world and the rest world, we may be experiencing early signs of Germany in 1920 (rapidly rising unemployment, bankruptcy in slow motion, rise of the far right which exploits the ever growing tide of refugees from Asia and Africa, but also a vibrant art scene - as misery & art always go together) while our post-modern socialdemocratic government, wearing a neoliberal straitjacket and following IMF recipes which have devastated many countries,...