Photo by Elena Mozhvilo / Unsplash “A thousand times have I sought to find the element that makes thecharm complete… That I may bid them enter the toys and mannikins.”– The Master Toymaker, Babes in Toyland, by Victor Herbert In Victor Herbert’s Toyland, the Master Toymaker must finish Santa’s toys in time for Christmas and, since each…
In an inescapable prison, with daily torture and probable death looming, one man hashed out a paradoxical approach to survival: see the unwinnable situation exactly as it is; yet never lose faith that, in the end, you will prevail.
Climate watchers are finding that this middle path, a slender slope between optimism and pessimism, is a paradox that applies perfectly to the latter Anthropocene.
Christmas trees are creatures of the forest no more. Saplings and trees by the millions are now carefully tended on dedicated Christmas-tree farms.
But with heat waves becoming more frequent and intense, tree farmers are taking a beating.
Luckily, both farmers and scientists have a few tricks up their sleeves.
In our innocence, we ate Cadbury Eggs, drank hot chocolate, and made S’mores by the campfire without a pang of guilt.
Alas, cacao, the base material for chocolate, has proven incredibly problematic. Issues such as deforestation and child labor have persisted despite various pressure campaigns and commitments.
But there is, finally, progress on both the public and private fronts.
No doubt our favorite bonbons will taste that much better once these issues have been resolved, and at last there’s progress.