Welcome to Growing Good Lives
the back story
For as long as I can remember I have been interested in what brings out the best – and the worst – in us and how we can create a world in which humans can thrive in harmony with each other and the living Earth. Thirteen years ago that interest led me to the work of Chilean economist Manfred Max-Neef and for the last decade I have been sharing his Human Scale Development (HSD) approach with people of all ages and walks of life – from students to community groups to business leaders.
It is becoming clear to most of us that all our systems need rethinking. The financial crises, Corona virus and the climate emergency are demanding that we do things differently from now on.
My experience as an artist, storyteller and improvisation teacher tells me that we need to address not only the physical practicalities of changing our systems, but actively cultivate our ‘radical collective imagination’. This vital capacity will allow us to vision a socially, ecologically and economically just future together. Educating ourselves about the myriad regenerative social and economic alternatives, existing and emerging, will give us the tools to make it happen.
Growing Good Lives is my contribution to this radical collective re-imagining.
Inez Aponte – Founder
what this work is about
Growing Good Lives seeks to reclaim economics as the ‘Art of Living Well’. Working in collaboration with community groups, organisations and institutions Inez delivers training, talks and events which aim to upend conventional notions of economic value, to open our imaginations to ways of living that meets human needs in harmony with all of life.
Please also see the MEDIA page.
Inspiring projects
All across the world people are working courageously to grow good lives. We highlight this work in all our courses and talks.
Ocean rewilding: England’s largest seagrass restoration project begins
Boats laden with seagrass seeds are setting off from the south coast today as part of a four-year project to restore underwater meadows
The rice of the sea: how a tiny grain could change the way humanity eats
Ángel León made his name serving innovative seafood. But then he discovered something in the seagrass that could transform our understanding of the sea itself – as a vast garden
Birds make you as happy as money, study finds
It turns out, being around 14 more bird species was the equivalent to the participants earning an extra $190 a month, based on a monthly income of $1,837
"Imagine everyone in the Netherlands eating fresh produce from the land every day. Seventeen million people healthier and more alive than they are now, and experiencing the difference themselves. Imagine living in a country with fresh air and a beautiful, productive, enjoyable, liveable landscape; not just for us humans, but for animals as well. Godwits? Flocks of them, flying all around. At Herenboeren, we do imagine it. Because it can be done." https://www.farmingcommunities.org/
Farming Communities – Our Theory of Change
Imagine everyone in the Netherlands eating fresh produce from the land every day. Seventeen million people healthier and more alive than they are now, and experiencing the difference themselves. Imagine living in a country with fresh air and a beautiful, productive, enjoyable, liveable landscape; no...
"Restoring human dignity to its central place has the potential to set off a profound rethinking of economic priorities and the ways in which societies care for their members, particularly when they are in need." https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/oct/30/changing-world-better-economics-honest-humane
If we’re serious about changing the world, we need a better kind of economics to do it | Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee
The pursuit of rapid growth won’t solve the huge challenges we face. A more honest, humane approach is the answer, say Nobel laureates Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee
Californians on universal basic income paid off debt and got full-time jobs
A program, financed by private donations, gave $500 per month for two years to Stockton residents who earned less than the median income
Once called crazy, Indonesian eco-warrior turns arid hills green
Once considered crazy by fellow villagers, Indonesian eco-warrior Sadiman has turned barren hills green after 24 years of effort, making water resources available in the drought-prone mountainous region where he lives.
Farmer to grow largest woodland approved by Scottish Forestry this century
A Sutherland-based farmer is set to grow the largest woodland to be approved by Scottish Forestry this century.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/27/us/man-knitting-group-addiction-trnd/index.html
A man started a knitting group to help people like himself recover from drug addiction
For more than 20 years, Nelson Mendonca struggled with an addiction to drugs that saw him in and out of prison.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-01-05/a-tiny-twist-on-street-design-the-one-minute-city
Make Way for the ‘One-Minute City’
While the “15-minute city” model promotes neighborhood-level urban planning, Sweden is pursuing a hyper-local twist: a scheme to redesign every street in the nation.
Cancellation of Fracking Project in Texas Shows Power of Grassroots Organizing
The project was one of three proposed fracked natural gas terminals in the Rio Grande Valley.
It's Not So Hard to Build Quality Housing, Just Follow the Recipe
A project in a Climate Innovation District in Leeds by White Arkitekter shows how it's done.