There isn’t much evidence or proof that I can provide. But I did attend a meet up recently which got me thinking about the reach of an average earthling. Greenups is a popular sustainability meet up group, where people gather and discuss about environment, and their contributions or interests in sustainability. They usually have a topic for each meet up, and invite speakers and experts to share their experiences / projects.

The last month, the theme was – Water. The event took place in the National Maritime Museum Sydney.  I attended the Aqua water exhibit – a thought provoking interactive visual installation, highlighting the importance of water to life – to us, and the consequences of depleting fresh water sources. A Fabulous presentation, raising questions on usage of water, and problems arising when it starts running out.

The highlight of the evening was – John Dee, an environmental campaigner, who won the Australian of the Year 2012 award. His presentation on phasing out bottled water was simply fantastic. He narrates how an entire town of Bundanoon, in NSW managed to ban bottled water! The story is inspiring. It’s not about being a greeny loon, this stuff matters. Being sustainable and eco friendly is actually common sense. Think of it – if you have water pumps, and refillable bottle, why would you pay 3.50$ for a bottle of water? John Dee points this out time and again, makes it more obvious how easy it is to reduce consumption of bottled water. His achievements include installing filter water taps at Manly Beach with the help of Manly Council.

Of course, the above example is only possible in countries which supply drinkable and safe drinking water straight from the taps. In developing countries, the debate stops when you don’t have access to drinking water leading to sanitation issues. Developing countries have to tackle the problem of supplying clean water to their increasing population.

Which brings me to the other discussion – Hot Cities – a documentary running currently on SBS Australia. By far, it’s one of the most practical approach to climate change, covering water and food security issues. In the last episode, the documentary examines the cities of Lima and Adelaide. Both are located in the Southern hemisphere, but the similarities end there.

Lima is crowded South American city, struggling to cope up with the pressures of increasing urban migration, resulting in water shortage. The city traditionally did not have recycling usage, but recently implemented using recycled water for city parks and gardens. And smaller communities have started investing in ‘Fog water catchment’, which is essentially catching the fog precipitation and using it to irrigate the land around.

Adelaide, on the other hand is suffering from dire environmental consequences as the Murray river basin dries up. The city of Adelaide is flourished by the Murray river, and with each passing year the city is facing increasing water restrictions. In a bid to avoid water crisis, Adelaide has resorted to a water desalination plant, which is not just expensive but high on carbon energy consumption. According to academics and environmentalists, the city did not invest and plan in recycling water usage, and is now witnessing the effects of a parched river ecosystem.

It’s clear that water and oil are going to run out soon. With affordable and accessible renewable energy, we could still fix the energy issue, but what about water? Once the fresh water runs out, there is NO substitute to it. We are not giving enough time the Earth to replenish its resources. In fact, we are depleting them, without thinking of the sustainable factor. Think before you use resources – the point is not to stop using them – but to use them effectively – use them in a manner that they last longer, and get a chance to replenish itself – that’s what sustainability is. It’s pure common sense.

Film: Jodaiye Nader az Simin

Director & writer: Asghar Farhadi

Rating: 4.5/5

Iran has churned out bold and compelling cinema in the past few decades. Iranian cinema is the perfect opportunity to explore the supposed authoritarian facade that Iran erects. From films like ‘Colour of Paradise’, ‘A moment of innocence’ and to ‘A Separation’, filmmakers have constantly excelled at portraying every single element that comprises everyday Iranian life.

‘Jodaeiye Nader az Simin’ aka ‘A Separation’ is a tale of two families hailing from different socio-economic classes in modern Tehran. Nader (Peyman Moadi) and Simin (Leila Hatami) represent an average middle class Iranian couple. They have a teenage daughter- Termeh and Nader’s ailing father staying with them. From the beginning of the film, the audience are exposed to the troubled  relationship that Nader and Simin are in.

Enters the other protagonist – Razieh, a god fearing woman, who is a house keeper, and barely manages to get by. She has a young daughter, and an aggressive husband – Hodjat, who is responsible for most of Razieh’s troubles.

What follows is an intricately woven story of two families that crash into each other, and in the process highlighting the political, social, economical aspects of Iranian society. Nader and Simin who are already going through domestic hell, end up in a brawl with Razieh and Hodjat, which could potentially put Nader behind bars.

‘A Separation’ does not directly approach suppression of freedom of speech and expression that most of the world expects to see, but instead narrates an incident that skilfully points out human emotions caught up in a difficult situation. The cultural context of the story is significant and characterises its uniqueness.

While Nader (Moadi) has deep family values, his ego often gets the better of him. Moadi delivers a powerful performance. His face off with Razieh, in particular is an evidence of his involvement in Nader’s character. Simin on the other hand is strong headed, and wants to leave Iran. She expects Nader and Termeh to accompany her, but Nader refuses, creating further blows in their fragile marriage. Leila Hatami playing Simin puts in her hundred percent to portray the plight of almost single mother, who is repeatedly forced to be patient and calm in order to get her family out of tough circumstance.

Razieh and her husband Hodjat are coping with economic crisis. Hodjat is in deep debt, and cannot walk in public without being confronted by debt collectors.

Director and writer Asghar Farhadi flawlessly creates though provoking, engaging and moving cinema. His story telling crosses cultural frontiers and manages to connect with audiences world wide.

I cannot give further details about the plot, as it may spoil your enthusiasm and curiosity to watch this wonderful piece of cinema. It is a must watch, and I hope it can win the Academy for the Best Foreign Film.

Vegetarianism – is it for me or not?

Having been vegetarian all my life, I can say it’s not too hard, but then again most people are not like me (I am not the cringing types when others eat meat with me).

Food is passion, love and habit for many and I respect that. People have been eating meat and fish all their life. It’s a part of their culture, and it’s something they love. It’s not easy to give up something you love. I am a vegetarian and I don’t propagate it. If you want to try it out, go ahead. There are various reasons to give up meat. Many people are clueless about their diet when they veggie. I think it’s important to know what you can eat, and what your body needs when you give up certain kind of food. Some myths about going vegetarian I’d like to bust:

- Veggie food is beyond boiled vegetables and soup

- Being veggie does not involve being vegan

You can try out by slowly going down on your meat consumption, no need to go cold turkey, it may back fire and put you off the process.

Things you could consider:

- Find your reason – It’s important to know your reason. Just like any other task you undertake in life, the results are better if you have an objective. Your reason could be from health issues, animal rights, challenging yourself or even just trying something different. It does not matter what is it, as long as YOU know it. It helps to gain some perspective.

- Experimenting with different cuisines: Sometimes, you are so comfortable in your zone, that you don’t feel the need to experiment, which I completely understand. But it’s worth a try if you’re trying out something different. For example, you may get accustomed to the flavours in Thai food, and can discover some easy Tofu based recipes to supplement your diet. Indian food is a good option for vegetarians, lots of dishes involving lentils, pulses and vegetables.

- Cooking at home – If you’re even 10% the cook-at-home-types, it’s much easier to try vegetarianism. If you like a certain cuisine, you may want to replicate it at home. The best part is even though you follow a recipe, you have absolute liberties to alter the methods to your own taste. So if you’re not fond of hot chilles or ginger in Indian cuisine, you can make it mild and you’d probably like the end product more than the restaurant version

- Know your limits – If you can’t do it, don’t force it. It’s only worth your time if you like it. At any point you think it’s not for you, drop it, rather than hating it. If you miss your pork ribs beyond limits, eat it! I have tried eating meat, but couldn’t get it past my throat, hence I stopped.

- Take the advise but don’t follow it blindly - This is VERY important. You will meet similar people who have converted and will advise you, give tips and get you on the veggie board. Well that’s great, but do not follow others blindly, everyone has a different perspective, and adaptation times. Some things could work for you, others wouldn’t. I have met people with a militant vegetarian ideology, which I find concerning, come on it’s a free world, do what you like!

If you think it’s for you, then I’d love to hear your experiences or efforts! And I’ll post some recipes that are easy and quick for veggies soon.

Enjoy your greens.

]]> http://babblingnomad.com/2012/01/23/should-you-and-if-you-go-vegetarian/feed/ 0 I am http://babblingnomad.com/2012/01/12/melbourne-on-the-mat/ http://babblingnomad.com/2012/01/12/melbourne-on-the-mat/#comments Wed, 11 Jan 2012 13:59:36 +0000 Purple Ink http://babblingnomad.com/?p=286 ]]>

Melbourne on the dining mat!

Antiqued!

Purple n pink

Cups and saucers in the Melbourne suburban op shop

Also, I think I have finally understood the concept of power shopping, in fact what I achieved today was beyond power shopping. Twenty minutes and five items – 1 pair of vintage shoes, one vintage bag, two summer tops, one denim jacket and wait for it – one winter jacket. Now I know what most people will think, buying winter jackets in summer, but hey, if it’s vintage, then what the heck!

Walk review: 10/10

Time: 4.5 hours approximately

Essentials: Comfortable shoes, Water, Sunscreen, camera, snacks (sesame snaps recommended!) and a cap

Walk: The walk begins soon after you cross a sandy patch of beach at the reserve. The walk is well guided with directions, all the way from the Spit to Manly.

Highlights: The first stop was the Clontarf reserve, it was a gorgeous sunny day and the beach and grass was filled with families barbecuing.

Sails and yachts making their way near Clontarf reserve

Wildlife: The walk goes through the Sydney Harbour National Park, simply amazing to see abundant amount of wildlife less than 10 kms radius from the central district! We had a few guests popping up so say hi every now and then:

Lizzie showing up every now and then

Besides the reptiles, there was a large number of birds. I frequently heard an electronic bird call, almost like a ‘boingg’ from a videogame! I tried very hard to spot the bird in the trees, so that I could get a description, but it was very swift, leaving me bewildered with its rather strange call.

Another strange call – a constant ‘moohahahahaha’, thank god is was daytime, other wise I’d be quite freaked out, and run in the opposite direction! Thanks to this amazing site www.birdsinbackyard.net I could search for a bird based on its call! And this one was – Laughing Kookaburra, success!

The walk was long, but saw amazing sights like these:

The last part of the walk was easier, but seemed never ending! This view of the North and South head together is hands down worth the effort! It definitely looks better in real life.

Sunset at Manly was simply an icing on the cake!

Return journey was as simple as it could get – ferry to Circular Quay from Manly wharf. I have been to Manly before a few times, but never experienced it a more beautiful way. The word on the street is – a 9 hour walk from city through national parks, that ends at Linfield station – hmmmm c’est possible?