This week I’m writing from Nairobi. It’s been a bit less than a year since I left, and I needed to get my “shot of Africa.” I arrived early on Sunday morning, and I could soon hear familiar song from a nearby church. Singing and dancing is an important part of African cultures (note the…

Improving the Environment and reversing the decline in Biodiversity is a large business in and of itself.

How do we classify such different types of political speakers as Angela Merkel, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and Margaret Thatcher? Perhaps the Roman classicist, Quintilian, three categories of public speakers can help us out here. He tells us there are three basic styles: the ‘forensic’ one (plain, argumentative and suited to the law courts), the…

I love hanging around markets – although I try not to buy randomly: I always go with my shopping list. When you are in a new country, this is a great way to get a flavor for what life is like for local people. In Kenya, you get a variety of flavors from dusty farmers’…