Blogs
For processes and material about Natural Happiness, see Resources.
Natural Happiness Seed 1: Nourish your roots
This is the first in a series of blogs presenting the Seven Seeds of Natural Happiness, a unique way to help people...
Deepening with the Earth
How to nourish yourself with Nature connection Aiding our wellbeing through Nature contact has become a truism, but as...
Co-creativity – dancing with problems
Most people are trying to shape their lives amid more uncertainty than they can handle: co-creative skills make this...
The physiology of joy: how to feel safe
I believe it is stress and related anxious feelings which pull us away from joy, and I have learned a lot about the...
Is Earth a Karmic Enterprise Zone?
An extra-terrestrial view of our perplexities When even slightly plausible explanations fail, it's time to try...
Exploring the Future, some more…
Why organic navigation is better than analytical prescription In recent years, I've spent quite a lot of my time...
Seeing life differently
Raise your spirits by changing your view Can I invite you to take a couple of minutes, and ask what gives you your...
Losing control – the nomad way of living
A different approach to future happiness One of my big life-changing experiences was co-leading a dozen retreats in...
Book blog: The Mountain in the Sea, by Ray Nayler
Communication insights from an octopus If you’d like to appreciate the upsides of present times through a book about a...
Embracing the future – plenty we can do! Insights from new Future Risks report
Insights from new Future Risks report It's hard to make sense of the future outlook: there are so many issues,...
Faith, hope and clarity… in uncertain times
These days, it's easy to be worried, but it takes some skill and conscious choice to stay positive. That's what this...
How devotional movement and chants can help us with climate distress
One of the reactions I bring to my challenges is a search for understanding, and systemic solutions. In recent years,...
How adaptive networks can help future resilience
There’s a widespread view that strengthening local communities will be crucial in the years ahead, to help us all to...
Dreams against Despair: Thomas Berry and the power of myth
Dreams, in the sense of inspiring visions, and myths, in the sense of powerful beliefs, have a huge influence on our...
The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben
Amazingly, this book is an international bestseller. For me and others who have worked with UK woodlands for decades,...
Why magical thinking threatens us all – and how to antidote it
What I mean by magical thinking is an utter disregard for truth and reality, the delusion that I can make facts just...
Book blog: Fairy tales are true, by Claudio Tomaello
A doorway to the subconscious, spirit world This short, readable book opens a doorway to different ways to see...
Feeling our way without a map
Subtle discernment for confusing times Imagine you're in a dream where you're trying to drive somewhere. Your satnav...
The Work that Reconnects: a way to face the future
If you’re working with hazardous materials, you need good methods and equipment. The future really is hard to face: it...
Emergency resilience: why you need it
Learning from Boiled Frog syndrome Climate psychologists tell us that humans aren’t good at dealing with complex,...
Mining for hope in the quarry of gloom
There must be some kind of way outta hereSaid the joker to the thiefThere’s too much confusionI can’t get no relief In...
Deep Adaptation and climate change: an introduction
Back in 2018, the sense of urgency about the climate crisis rose sharply, helped by several key voices, including...
Could a pilgrimage renew you?
As life keeps getting more complex and confusing, I've found that pilgrimages are a good antidote, a way to feel...
Discerning at the end of life
Discerning at the end of life Guest blog from Palden Jenkins Alan Heeks writes: Palden is an old friend, who plays a...
Climate distress: trauma and Nature immersion
I'm a big fan of Bob Doppelt's book, Transformational Resilience, which sees individual and collective trauma as one...
2022 Climate Outlook: pray for miracles
The holiday time around New Year 2022 has been a chance for some of us to reflect on the outlook for the climate...
Community climate responses: co-creative insights
I’m writing this thinks piece in January 2022, to see what I’ve learned from two years’ work in my hometown, and to...
The Book of Joy: Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu
Lasting Happiness in a Changing World This deep and delightful book, published in 2017, became an immediate...
Teach your children well
Teach your children well What do younger generations need to learn? Do you ever wonder how we can help to prepare...
Digging into Regenerative Agriculture
Digging into Regenerative Agriculture A model of de-intensification for humans too! Ever since I co-founded an organic...
An introduction to Soul Resilience
If you hope to thrive and grow through your life, not just cope and survive, how will you do this in the stormier...
Why composting is a skill for our times
Here’s a provocative thought: in a natural system, there is no waste. Anything which seems useless or decayed can be...
For lasting happiness, nourish your roots
Alan has been leading groups on natural happiness and resilience for years. He writes about ‘The Story Behind Natural...
Earth Visit Report from Prostetnic Vogon Jelfs
Your Greatship, I grovel before you as I make this report. This is the scheduled 50-year update on my visit to Earth...
Learning to Unlearn
Yes, it's a paradox, but our ways of thinking, our habitual responses, are so deeply set that a deliberate effort of...