The Seed Thief was just named one of three books shortlisted for the 2016 Etisalat Prize for Literature. “The fastest growing and Innovative telecommunication company, Etisalat Nigeria, has announced the names of the three shortlisted authors for the 2016 edition of its pan-African flagship literary prize, the Etisalat Prize for Literature. According to this year’s […]
An urgent call to action from the indomitable Dr Vandana Shiva and Seed Freedom 2016. Please watch:
“A poetry-infused whirlwind of Southern Hemisphere mysticism and botanical espionage. An understated triumph.” – Nick Mulgrew on The Seed Thief This past weekend The Sunday Times Book Reviewers choose their Top Reads of the Year. So pleased to be on this list. (And for the chance to recommend some of my own favourites too…)
The dramatic images of Mt Etna’s lightning-inducing eruption made me think of Xangô, the orixa who guides Maddy’s journey through The Seed Thief. (And of course there’s that petulent volcano that keeps her stranded in transit on her way to Brazil…) Click here to view Video
I’ve just been sent this wonderful short film on a community seed banking project in Cape Town by my friends at Seed. It’s an inspiring story of how the art of seed saving and sharing can transform lives. Please share, and visit www.seed.org.za to see the other wonderful work that they do.
One Art By Elizabeth Bishop The art of losing isn’t hard to master; so many things seem filled with the intent to be lost that their loss is no disaster, Lose something every day. Accept the fluster of lost door keys, the hour badly spent. The art of losing isn’t hard to master. Then practice […]
Svalbard Global Seed Vault drafts plans for first ‘return-to-sender’ mission for crop varieties at risk in war-torn Syria http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-08-24/seed-crop-varieties-svalbard-vault-genebank/6720522
I’m hoping that this story will have a happy update, because this statistic dates from 2010. But according to Kew, there were only nine Gladiolus aureus plants left in the wild. Nine. They are hanging on for dear life in the wind-blown part of Cape Town’s south peninsula, near where I live. Luckily these beauties […]
Wonderful news: the WWF just announced that the size of the original Cape Floristic Region Protected Areas (CFRPA) World Heritage Site has been doubled! Read all about it here: http://www.wwf.org.za/media_room/news/?14481/MajorConservationWinForCapeFloralKingdom Then get thee to Cape Town and go for a walk in the flowers.
These astonishing images from Kew provided early inspiration for The Seed Thief. http://www.theguardian.com/science/gallery/2009/apr/06/kew-millennium-seed-bank-pollen