Summer inspiration
Find new inspiration with our pop-culture tips!
Summer break is an opportunity for many Centre employees to rest and find new inspiration. Photo: Jens Olof Lasthein
We asked our staff for recommendations on what to get inspired by during the upcoming Swedish summer months. Here is their full list!
Swedish summer means that many of our colleagues here at the Centre take an extended break from their regular work to relax and do other things – and get inspiration from somewhere else.
And for much of that, popular culture can be an excellent entry point. Below, our staff list tips on what books to read, what podcasts to listen to, and which catchy song about pulses to dance to. Enjoy!
Reading tips
“The history of bees”, “Blue”, “Przewalski’s Horse” and “The dream of a tree” by Maja Lunde
Norwegian novelist Maja Lunde has written a series on people and environmental change that encompasses four volumes. The novels highlight the impacts humans have on nature, and how that in turn can impact us. The latest publication “The dream of a tree” is a “fantastic book”, says our Centre director Line Gordon.
Read more about Maja Lunde’s books »
“How to do nothing” by Jenny Odell
Nothing is harder to do these days than nothing. But doing nothing might be the most important thing you can do, according to Jenny Odell. It’s an act of resistance. Curious? Well, according to our comms colleague Marcus Lundstedt, the book “makes readers re-imagine humankind's role in the environment”.
“The gospel of the eels” and “The blue marble” by Patrik Svensson
How much do you know about eels? Well, how much is there to know? Apparently, quite a lot. Patrik Svensson calls it the most mysterious fish in his book in which he weaves a thrilling science story, sprinkled with personal memories.
If you read Swedish, Svensson’s latest release “The Blue Marble” might also be something for you. In this collection of essays, he deep-dives into the last remaining mystery on Earth: the sea.
Read more about “The gospel of the eels” »
Read more about “The blue marble” »
“Bright unbearable reality” by Anna Badkhen
“A book about humans, resilience, and the Earth we live on and with.” That’s how our colleague Henrik Österblom summarises this essay collection by Anna Badkhen. Bright Unbearable Reality contains eleven essays set on four continents and united by a common thread of communion and longing.
“How to speak whale” by Tom Mustill
“Imagine being able to really communicate with other species. It’s a thought that could take the idea of planetary stewardship to a whole new level,” says our colleague Stefan Daume.
This book explores the subject of animal communication, specifically how AI might help to understand whale sounds. It is a fascinating read, written in a very engaging style and leaves you with a profound fascination and awe for these wonderful creatures.
“Bewilderment” by Richard Powers
“A novel that feels very close to the bone in setting a moving father-son relationship in the context of democratic backsliding, anti-science, biodiversity loss and medical advances.” That’s centre researcher Tim Daw’s reflections after reading Bewilderment by Richard Powers.
“Kings of the Yukon” by Adam Weymouth
Every summer, hundreds of thousands of King salmon migrate 2 000 miles up the Yukon River to their spawning grounds, where they breed and die, in what is the longest salmon run in the world. Adam Weymouth travelled with it. He paddled in a canoe up the river as the salmon migrated. Along the way, he traces the profound interconnectedness of the people and the fish through searing portraits of the individuals he encounters.
“Under the Sea Wind” by Rachel Carson
In her first book marine biologist Rachel Carson describes the behaviour of organisms living in and on the sea on the Atlantic coast. In the book, we get to follow different organisms in three parts from their respective perspectives. Each organism becomes personified and we get to meet their habits and lives over the span of a year.
“Living as a bird” by Vinciane Despret
The Belgian philosopher of science follows ethologists and biologists working with birds to understand birds´ ways of inhabiting and being in the territory. This way they can raise awareness of what we lose when we lose bird species.
“The overstory” by Richard Powers
A “wonderful, thought-provoking novel,” according to centre researcher Anna Woodhead. The Overstory follows nine Americans and their relations to and experiences with trees around them.
“Creating Worlds Otherwise: Art, Collective Action, and (Post)Extractivism” by Paula Serafini
Paula Serafini explores the importance of art, artistic practice, and artistic movements in the struggle for social, environmental, and cultural justice in Latin America. This is one for anyone who wants to learn how art can change and possibly save the world.
“Pollution is colonialism” by Max Liboiron
This book lays out a framework for how research methods can amplify or break down colonialist structures. With a focus on plastic pollution, the book models an anticolonial scientific practice aligned with Indigenous concepts of land, ethics, and relations.
“All we can save” edited by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson
The Rolling Stone magazine calls this anthology a “mosaic that honours the complexity of the climate crisis like few, if any, books on the topic have done yet.” Intermixing essays with poetry and art, this book is a guide for knowing what has been done to the world.
Listening tips
The plastisphere (podcast)
Plastics, people and planet – that’s what this podcast is all about. Plastics have become the basis for our modern lives, but they also pollute the planet. Will we be able to develop a healthy relationship with these materials we’ve created? Each episode explores the issue from a different angle, and features a diverse set of voices and viewpoints.
I tolfte timmen (podcast, in Swedish)
The climate crisis from an addiction perspective – does that sound interesting? If you speak Swedish, this is an excellent choice for a new perspective on climate change and humanity.
P3 Dystopia (podcast, in Swedish)
What happens if the worst happens? That’s the big questions behind this dystopian podcast idea. The program is a mix of science and philosophy and discusses today’s most crucial questions.
Systemskiftet (podcast, in Swedish)
Greenpeace's very own podcast goes beyond daily political debates about climate and the environment. Instead, we get to listen to scientists, activists, philosophers, entrepreneurs, psychologists and visionaries in a quest for ways to achieve real transformations.
Hvad fuck er en bælgfrugt by Danish Veterinary and Food Administration ft. Kølner Dom (song, in Danish)
If you’re just looking for an extremely catchy summer song that also is informative (if you understand Danish) and highlights the importance of eating better for planet and people, this is it! The Danish Veterinary and Food Administration decided to release their dietary guidelines as a song, so now you can sing and dance about the importance of eating pulses (bælgfrugt in Danish).
