Please don’t think for a second that I «have time» to write this. I am struggling in a multitude of ways with parenting, a heatwave, a sore throat (COVID? – everyone has it since Primavera Sound) and interrupted sleep. In fact these crazy entries are part of a wider project to try and highlight how hard it is to be a parent of a child under 5.

Dear Kate,

I want to thank you so very much for coming to Barcelona. I see so much in what you do – props, visuals, knowledge, perfect presentation, involving the audience. A perfect holistic design of how to engage and inspire – and you are changing the world with your work. You had the sun in your face during the talk, on a scorching hot day in Barcelona and then you still stayed behind to say hello and take this photo. I’m happy to be one of the people singing along with you – and your dancing just shows how well you understand the real world. Doing the best thing, instead of the expected thing (in the world of Economics anyway). I agree and value the way that you promote everything from a positive place. After many years around the climate movement I also concluded that yes, the collapse exists and it’s something to grasp and manage (see Joanna Macy to dive into this) but that from an EDUCATIONAL place, and to get people moving, the most effective tool is just finding love and beauty, singing, feeling economics like part of the beating heart of our world. I wonder if you have read the Braiding Sweetgrass chapter on Economics, which I absolutely LOVE. Maybe that could be a help for us here, to design, now that Barcelona loves the Doughnut model. 

After meeting you last week I went to the Aliance of the Donut Economics (our DEAL) meeting with Ona Riera and Marta Cuixart from the ayuntamiento. The group exists, and I hope it can grow in strength and make connections to become an important citizens voice in the application of «Doughnut Economics» in the city. I will support them where I can. I will also continue to teach the ideas of Doughnut Economics wherever I can to get this model out there and really start replacing the awful ones, and driving the paradigm shift we need. 

I wonder about your background –  I wonder how you found your holistic, intersectional vision. There’s not many British economics students I know who would stand up and sing and dance. I found it through many many years of nature connection and then connection with permaculture via the Boodaville adventure. 

Oh, and if you can share the presentation from last Saturday please that would be great, I want to get the graph of all the countries’ donuts, and the hospital image printed out to take them to the festival. Well everywhere I go. 

I look forward to your reply in the comments! (imagine that!!)

Anna Gurney (mainly know as Lou Boodaville)

here is a video of us singing the doughnut in barcelona!

(Correct use of apostrophe this week???? I have two corrections from the last two weeks posts —- 1) both apostrophes last week are WRONG!! 2) I wrote about Kae Tempest refering to them as «she». This is the whole freaking point, and I initally missed it. We have to make changes too. Non-binary people take their place in the world and we all need to adapt a bit. 

project stuff and crazy ideas this week

Well… I’m still 15 mins away from finishing the Jordi post, and haven’t got the post ready to share the planting 7th May. I have found a new accountant which is amazing news and fundamental to everything else. The food forest productivity study should be happening as I write –  but the heatwave has crashed things. We are excited to start collaborating more formally with the Can MasDeu garden volunteer project and thrilled that they will be inspiring our Barcelona volunteers this year and in the future. 

I hope we pull together the event for 1st July in the garden Hort Font Trobada. We are still just about managing to share the Food Forest story three times a week on Instagram.

So let’s see where we all are next week!

I know—-

¡¡¡¡We’ll be at Maranya Festival!!

I apologise for there being no links at all this week, you can use «Ecosia» to find what you are looking for. I need to get ready to excape Barcelona for the weekend now. 

See you at Maranya!! Happy Sant Joan!! I won’t write next week.