An end-of-year round up of the best fiction and non-fiction books - and podcasts - of 2020.  All are my opinion and this is only a tiny selection of the really good stuff out there - but it's good.  Enjoy!  We have to stop consuming stuff... but we never stop imbibing ideas. So here are some to choose from - all links to Blackwells. For obvious reasons. Non-Fiction 'From what is to what if' by Rob HopkinsThe Trembling Warrior and others by Gill Coombs'The Best of Times, the Worst of Times' by Paul Behrens'How to Be More Pirate' by Alex Barker'Doughnut Economics' by Kate Raworth (also Doughnut Economics Action Lab) 'Less is More' by Jason Hickel'The Ocean is Alive' by Glenn Edney'The Tao of Revolution' by Chris TaylorFiction: 'This is How You Lose The Time War' by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone'The Border Keeper' by Kerstin Hall 'Slough House' by Mick Herron'Agent Running in the Field' by John le Carré'Attack Surface' by Cory Doctorow'Call Down the Hawk' by Maggie Stiefvater'The Timekeeper' by Tara Sim'In Other Lands' by Sarah Rees Brennan'The Ten Thousand Doors of January' by Alix E Harrow'The Left Handed Booksellers of London' by Garth Nix.'A Deadly Education' by Naomi Novak'Fallible Justice' by Laura Laakso'Poison in Paris' by Robert Wilton'The Last Protector' by Andrew Taylor'The Angel of the Crows' by Katherine AddisonPodcasts: Upstream hosted by Della DuncanThe Hive hosted by Nathalie NahaiThe Sustainable Futures Report by Anthony Day A New and Ancient Story by Charles Eisenstein'Your Undivided Attention' by Tristan Harris'Regenerative Agriculture Podcast' by John KempfFarm Gate hosted by Ffinlo Costain'Equiosity' by Alex Kurland'Horses For Future' by Alex KurlandDrinking from the Toilet by Hannah BranniganLink to Dreaming the Year Awake

It's our Birthday... and it's the December Solstice, the time of transition and potential transformation .  In honour of which, we are crafting a new tradition: a PodBoom shared with Della Duncan of UPSTREAM podcast and Nathalie Nahai of THE HIVE.   So, it's our Birthday - and it's that time of year when every pundit endeavours to look back at the year just gone and ahead to the one that is coming. And we thought we'd like to establish a parallel tradition, where we bring together our favourite podcasting-friends and explore the ways we think.  So we set up a structure that will be repeatable in future years... where we give each other gifts of a book, podcast or something else that has brought us real insight, and then we explore each other's existential questions.  And we have fun. So that you can have fun too. Della Duncan is a  Renegade Economist who hosts the UPSTREAM podcast challenging traditional economic thinking and uplifting stories of sustainable, just, and equitable economic systems-change around the world. Della is also a Right Livelihood Coach, a Senior Fellow of Social and Economic Equity at the International Inequalities Institute in the London School of Economics, the Course Development Manager of Fritjof Capra’s Capra Course on the Systems View of Life, and an Alternative Economics Consultant.Nathalie Nahai is host of THE HIVE podcast.   Nathalie is an international speaker and author of the best-selling book, Webs of Influence: The Psychology of Online Persuasion, which has been translated into seven languages.Her work explores the intersection between persuasive technology, ethics and the psychology of online behaviour, and clients include Google, Accenture, Unilever and Harvard Business Review, among others.Nathalie gives keynotes, workshops and webinars on the psychological dynamics behind evolving consumer behaviours, teaching people how to ethically apply behavioural science principles to enhance their website, content marketing, product design and customer experience.A member of the BIMA Human Insights Council, she also hosts The Hive Podcast, Seeking The Self and several Guardian podcasts, and contributes to national publications, television (BBC, Sky, CNN), and radio (BBC Radio 4) on the impact of technology in our lives.From Nathalie:BooksBraiding Sweetgrass - Robin Wall KimmererWomen Who Run with the Wolves - Clarissa Pinkola EstésFoxfire Wolfskin - Sharon BlackieThe Abundant Earth - Eileen CristPodcast: Eco Civ Podcast From Della: BooksThe Dangerous Old Woman: Myths and Stories of the Wise Woman Archetype - Clarissa Pinkola EstésBuilding Bridges, Not Walking on Backs: A Feminist Economic Recovery Plan for COVID-19 - Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women The Sickness is the System: When Capitalism Fails to Save Us from Pandemics or Itself  - Richard WolffPodcast: Upstream Conversations that I mentioned From Manda: BooksEnglish Pastoral - James Rebanks Less is More - Jason HickelSlow Horses - Mick Herron 

How can we make learning a genuinely transformational experience? One that's fun, and inspiring and that teaches us HOW to think, not WHAT to think? Rachel Musson had given her life to asking this question and ThoughtBox is her answer. Suppose we all learned three things at school: empathy, critical thinking and systems thinking... imagine how different the world would be. Suppose we learned how to think clearly, how to communicate, how to understand our own feelings and express them without feeling the need to trash other people just because we were hurt, or angry. Rachel Musson, founder and educational director of ThoughtBox, a radical, new co-learning programme speaks of her journey to create the system, and how it's working - in over a thousand schools and fifty four nations across the world.   Rachel believes in co-learning: no more lesson plans, but a classroom of peers who take the core of a topic and build on it together.  The result is a flexible learning environment where everyone thrives, where each individual is given space and encouragement to grow to be the best of themselves. Imagine a world where this is possible. Where it is happening. Where it is growing... About Rachel Rachel Musson is a teacher, trainer, writer and thought-leader onsustainable education and wellbeing in schools.Working for 13 years as a Secondary English teacher, Rachel has taughtstudents and trained teachers in schools across the world including the UK,Ireland, Australia, Nepal and Tanzania. She is the Founding Director ofThoughtBox Education – a social enterprise fostering triple wellbeing byhelping young people deepen relationships with themselves, society and thenatural world. She is the pioneer behind Changing Climates: a free climatechange curriculum currently being used in 1500+ schools across 56 countries.Rachel is currently working with industry leaders on education reform policyand standing as an international thought-leader on climate-change educationand triple-wellbeing in schools.ThoughtBox: https://www.thoughtboxeducation.comThoughtBox Community Network: www.thoughtboxeducation.com/communityNew free membership for global educators: https://www.thoughtboxeducation.com/teaching-for-a-better-worldFreedom to Think:  Blog on the new anti-capitalist ban in UK schools: https://www.thoughtboxeducation.com/blog/freedom-to-think

How bad are things really? Is it too late to avert the climate and ecological catastrophe? And if not, how do we pull ourselves back from the brink? Exploring answers with Paul Behrens, author of 'The Best of Times, The Worst of Times'. We live on the edge of change - the facts can be terrifying, but the creative potential of our times is inspiring and just as jaw-dropping as the horrors of the reality we inhabit.  Paul Behrens is Assistant Professor of Energy and Environmental Change at Leiden University in the Netherlands. He has advised governments and his work on climate change has appeared in leading scientific journals, as well as on the BBC, in the New York Times and Scientific American.  He's got a clear, un-sensational view of the way things are - and how we can bring ourselves back from the brink. In our conversation, we explore the realities and the possibilities  - and where we might go from here. Pauls Book: https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/The-Best-of-Times-The-Worst-of-Times-by-Paul-Behrens-author/9781911648093

How can we take the radical, renegade, rule-breaking, revolutionary ideals of the golden age of Pirates and transmute them to gold in our world? Alex Barker, author of 'How to be More Pirate' lays out the maps to the treasure of change. The concept of radical, renegade, revolutionary insurgency based on the model created in the Golden Age of Pirates was given wings by Sam Conniff's best selling book, BE MORE PIRATE.  In the wake of its success, Sam needed to find ways to help the many people the book inspired. And for that he needed help. Enter Alex Barker, Primary Pirate, visionary, breaker of rules and maker of gatherings on and offline. Alex and Sam between them have steered Pirate groups from industries as far apart as car manufacturing (Mercedes), Social Media Mega-Giants (Google) and nationally owned health care providers (the UK's NHS).  But we can go deeper than simply breaking the old, fossilised structures of industries... we can change the entire system. Because, as Sam says, 'problems will not be fixed by fixing the problems... what's really needed is an overhaul of the engine that's causing the problems. In other words, the business model.' And, as Alex says, 'I want to see many more new crews forming outside of formal structures, so that while the old models fall, new ones are already emerging.'  Accidental Gods seeks to be part of that emerging eco-system of new ways of being.  And to get there, we need new ways of thinking - and ways we can each break out of the moulds that have cast us.   Alex Barker offers a map to the treasure of change.  Follow us! The book: https://www.bemorepirate.com/the-bookThe Workshops: https://www.bemorepirate.com/the-workshopRethink Humanity Paper: https://www.rethinkx.com/humanity As we said at the end of the podcast, Mike Raven and Ross Thornley of AQAI have kindly agreed to let Accidental Gods subscribers and members access their Adaptability Quotient test.  The link is here: DISCOUNT CODE FOR AQAI: https://app.aqai.io/signup/aqme?discount_code=ACCGODS

In the midst of nonviolent direct action, is a red thread, holding the liminal space between the old and the new, between action and re-action, between hope and extinction.  The Red Rebel Brigade is a distinctive feature of XR Actions and here we have a glimpse from the inside. More at Red is the colour of our life blood. It joins us to the land and all the web of life.  It was chosen as the original colour of the silent life-dancers of Extinction Rebellion as an explicit symbol of this life blood - and although other colours have been used, notably black for oil and blue for the sea - the  feature of a red line of silent individuals threading between police and activists has become a key component of XR Actions across the world.  For those not involved in the Red Rebel Brigades, their presence can feel transformative.   To understand better the deep, shamanic connection with the land and the sensing-into-spirit that is an integral part of Red Rebel actions, we interviewed Sophie Miller, founder of the Cornish Red Rebels in the UK and key activist in many other actions over the past eighteen months. Anyone who is interested in becoming part of the world wide movement of Red Rebels can find out more on their web page:  http://redrebelbrigade.com

Greta Thunberg says that ‘We cannot save the planet by playing by the rules, so the rules have to be changed’.  This is self-evidently true, but that leaves us with the question of what rules could we create that we could all live by. Polly Higgins has the Earth Protector law, but Shelley Ostroff has gone one step further with her Codes for a Healthy Earth and the World Water law.  Together, these rules spell out our connection with the More than Human world, and leave us with agency, initiative, and a sense of genuine flourishing. Shelley Ostroff (PhD) is a planetary activist, leadership consultant, social architect, mystic and writer. She is the founder of www.togetherincreation.org, www.7days-of-rest.org, www.codes.earth and other initiatives dedicated to the healing and replenishment of the planet and all its inhabitants. Concerned by the suffering and devastation humans cause each other, other species and the planet, she dedicated herself to exploring whole-system systems dynamics and integrative healing wisdom from diverse disciplines and traditions. She has worked with people from all walks of life, from different sectors of society and across continents as a therapist, consultant, mentor, and creative partner in cultivating individual, collective and whole-system wellness. Through ongoing research and practice, she has developed a unique holistic approach to human and whole-system healing and transformation that includes evolving blueprints for a new form of holistic health-oriented global Eco-Governance.Links:Codes for a Healthy Earth https://www.codes.earthTogether in Creation: www.togetherincreation.orgSeven Days of Rest https://www.7days-of-rest.org/Accidental Gods: https://accidentalgods.life/

How do we shift the narratives of business so that it becomes part of the solution, not the core of the problem? Mike Raven of AQAI explores the ways business can adapt - and become part of a genuinely regenerative future. Mike  is a Radical collaborator, rapid researcher, speaker, facilitator and entrepreneur.He's a holistic business graduate and practitioner. He's a qualified Naturopath, who has studied at Schumacher College and been a UN Global Goals Ambassador.  He's co-Founder of LEAPS - which accelerates Innovation for the Sustainable Development Goals using design-style sprints.And most recently, he's co-Founder of AQai, whose mission is to improve humanity's adaptability at speed and scale, to help ensure no one gets left behind, in the fastest period of change we, or any human, has ever experienced in this, and the next decade.Above all, he is a Husband, Son, Brother, Friend, former digital nomad and passionate Futurist.Links: Decoding AQ: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/decoding-aq-adaptability-confidence-with-ross-thornley/id1517421415AQAI.io: https://www.aqai.ioThe Squiggly Career: https://www.thesquigglycareer.comGlobal Goals. www.globalgoals.orgHolocracy" www.holocracy.orgRemote Year: www.remoteyear.comBiology of Belief: https://www.brucelipton.com/books/biology-of-belief

How can we rebuild our cities to become place of community, connection and coherence? How can we build multi-generational tribes that thrive and support each other in the hearts of our urban areas? Mark Lakeman of the City Repair project explains the changes he has made - and continues to make. Mark Lakeman is the founder of the City Repair Project, as well as the founder and Design Director at communitecture, architecture & planning. Both organizations are Portland, Oregon-based world-changing initiatives that transform social, political, and physical infrastructure in order to embed permanent transformative effects. He has also been lead instructor for the Planet Repair Institute’s Urban Permaculture Design Course for a decade. Mark’s work has been published by El Mundo, Dwell, Architecture Magazine, New Village Journal, Sotokoto, The Utne Reader, Permaculture Activist and many more. With City Repair, in 2003 Mark was awarded the National Lewis Mumford Award, and his collaborative work has been featured at the Global Venice Biennale Exhibition. Additionally, in 2017, Mark’s work in City Repair was awarded “Social Design Circle” global recognition by the Curry Stone Design Prize.Here, he talks to Accidental Gods podcast about his life's extraordinary journey from city architect to city repair - and how the world might look in 2030 if we got it all right. Links: City Repair Project: https://cityrepair.orgBuilding Convergence: https://www.buildingconvergence.com/about/Creative Mornings: https://creativemornings.com/talks/mark-lakemanCommunitecture.net: www.communitecture.netVillage Building Convergence: www.villagebuildingconvergence.comMark Lakeman: www.marklakeman.netPlanet Repair: www.planetrepair.org

Gill Coombs is a writer, coach, and facilitator. Her approach is rooted in her own long, colourful journey towards fulfilling work.  In 2010, Gill left a corporate Learning and Development career to travel around the country on foot and public transport, leading workshops for communities on living in harmony with self, people and planet. She is now an elder visionary with Extinction Rebellion and her own experiences of street-level non violent direct action led to the writing of her newly updated, and newly re-published book, 'The Trembling Warrior: A Guide for Reluctant Activists" - building on interviews and conversations with activists of all kinds, she has created a resource for anyone involved in action of any sort - direct or indirect.  With her help, we find the levels of activism that feel safe for us, learn how to build tribe and -crucially -learn how to resource ourselves, to avoid burnout and breakdown so common in the progressive activist movement. In this podcast, we explore, deepen and expand on the themes of the book, to create our own resource for Trembling Warriors. Gill's Website book page: https://www.gillcoombs.co.uk/thetremblingwarriorEarth Protector Communities https://earthprotectorcommunities.net/Embercombe - Dreaming the Wildfire: https://embercombe.org/dreaming-the-wildfire/Byline Times: https://bylinetimes.comDouble Down News: https://www.doubledown.newsNovara Media: https://novaramedia.comThomas Moore: Dark Nights of the Soul: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/291596/dark-nights-of-the-soul-by-thomas-moore/George Monbiot Article on Government Corruption: https://www.monbiot.com/2020/10/23/without-trace/The Alternative: https://www.thealternative.org.ukCompass Think Tank: https://www.compassonline.org.ukMore in Common: https://www.moreincommon.comLed By Donkeys: https://www.ledbydonkeys.org