The Railholiday Sustainability Blog

My mother, Frankie Lister, died unexpectedly six years ago, and I usually like to find ways of honouring her at this time of year. She was a teacher and an environmentalist who loved to share knowledge, but one of her most endearing characteristics was her ability to share joy; whether pulling faces, gifting jars of […]

There’s a saying that goes “If you can’t find ten minutes to spend in nature, spend a day.” We need nature; it’s as important as food and water. Without access to nature our mental health suffers and the air we breath is less healthy. Immersing in nature and observing nature will help to reinforce the […]

It’s been a busy time for protests. In late May a friend and I took part in a Surfers Against Sewage protest against water pollution, standing on the pontoon off the Tinside in Plymouth, waving a banner with a simple message; clean oceans. Clean water is enormously important, both from our taps and in the […]

To create change usually requires some sort of financial pressure or incentive. The phrase “put your money where your mouth is” is very apt. In the past mass boycotts of products have been used with success. Money talks. The biggest impact banks make comes from the companies and projects they chose to provide loans, insurance […]

I’ve just come back from a weekend in London, where I, plus my husband and son, took part in a weekend of climate change action organised by Extinction Rebellion, raising the profile of the crisis and talking to people about what we can do. Because Saturday’s action included an Earth Day march, we chose to […]

Although we are often offered pie-in-the-sky carbon capture schemes, the truth is we have only one tool against climate change; ecological growth. Despite this knowledge our natural economy is still taking a battering; trees are felled for little reason, ancient woodland is destroyed for housing estates, HS2 and roads. It’s hard not to despair. There […]

They say the best things in life are free. The truth is there is very little in life that doesn’t come without some sort of cost. The sentiment of this phrase is true though; what we need most of all as social animals is friendship and access to wild places. Quality communication with each other, […]

It would not be possible to write an environment column without making some comment to the terrible destruction of trees in Plymouth city centre, despite a huge public outcry at the council’s plans, despite the fact it is nesting season, despite the fact that city centre’s trees softened the hard landscape, cleaned the air and […]