Clippings Archive
(PDF files unavailable at present)
Ride to Vote
Though not widely known for being a political tool, bikes and their riders have done much to shape the world we live in today. Campaigners of old used it as a tool to argue for women's rational dress while today it's key to demands for more sustainable living. In this piece for HUCK I chart the bicycle's political history. [PDF]
Village Rights
From Kew Bridge to Parliament Square, the Democracy Village protesters got together to raise their concerns about injustice and sustainability. In this piece for HUCK I follow their campaign from the courtroom to their eventual eviction. [PDF]
The Met's apology to journalists is only of value if it acts upon it.
The Met were forced to apologise and give compensation to journalists for the actions of their officers apparently attempting to 'edit' press coverage of a protest by violently removing those journalists. This is all well and good, I argue in this comment piece for The Guardian, however that apology is only of value if it is followed by a change in attitude by officers on the ground. [Link]
The Dream Factory
Championing contemporary cultural innovators The Dream Factory book project marks the launch of Honda's latest car. I profiled Guerrilla Gardening's Richard Reynolds [PDF] and ColaLife's Simon Berry [PDF] for this limited edition publication.
The Dirty Truth
Increasingly desperate to keep the oil-based status quo going, companies are turning to more and more polluting extraction methods. In this piece for HUCK I expose the story of the oil drawn from Canadian tar sands. [PDF]
A Picture of Protest
Renowned photojournalist Marc Vallée documents political dissent and youth culture for worldwide media, and has coauthored several investigations into police surveillance of protesters for The Guardian and The Financial Times. This profile piece examines the man behind the photography, and showcases his series of protest portraiture. [PDF]
Pray for Snow
With the snow season on the way, this opening spread for HUCK looks at the risks the sport might face in the future, if climate change takes hold. [PDF]
Greening the Law
Across the world, we have the toughest set of environmental regulations in history. And yet, our environment is being degraded at an ever increasing rate. In this special feature for New Internationalist I explore why this is the case, examining environmental law making from its inception to the present day. [PDF]
Village Rights
From sprawling suburb to revolutionary hotbed, this reportage charts the early life of an exciting ecovillage project in West London. [PDF]
Police Should Respect Press Freedom
Journalists covering protests are facing an increasingly hostile police presence. In this comment piece for The Guardian I suggest that there is an attempt by officers to 'edit' press coverage of democratic protest and so shift the way it is reported. [Link]
This City Belongs to Me
Cities, almost all of us live in them. Typically they're thought of as liberal spaces of freedom, but perhaps the forces of social control are closer than we think. Is that really the case? And if it is, what can we do? This piece looks at the arguments, and meets the urban creatives whose efforts are redefining our urban areas. [PDF]
Way Up High
New York City has become home to one of the world's most innovative parks. An abandoned railway line which snakes through downtown Manhattan has been transformed into an open space. This article gets the story. [PDF]
You Are Being Watched
Is policing stifling democratic protest? The control of intelligence has always been cat and mouse game between activists and the police, but current tactics are moving into uncharted territory. Pre-emptive arrests are increasing, and intelligence collection has itself become more aggressive. As this piece in New Internationalist suggests, “the act of data gathering is remade as a method of social control.” [PDF]
Copycats and Diamond Skulls
When Damien Hirst threatened teenage graffiti artist Cartrain with court action for including an image of his diamond encrusted skull in an original work, the legitimacy of copyright law as we know it was thrown into question. From the iconic imagery of Obama's presidential campaign, to the ubiquitous screen-print portrait of Che Guevara, the piece explores the wrongs, and rights, of intellectual property law. [PDF]
Political Push
The undercroft, an abandoned patch of land in London's Southbank complex, has been the home of UK skateboarding since the 1970s. Plans to renovate the area, transforming the skate spot into shops, angered its regulars. A campaign, fronted by film maker Winston Whitter, was launched, and the fight began to save the space. [PDF]
Save the Honeybee
Honeybees are under threat, and it's not just honey that we'll lose out on. From agrochemicals to deadly viruses, the insects that pollinate nearly every plant we eat could be on the verge of extinction. How did this happen, what does it mean, and what can we do about it? [PDF]
Into Decay
For most, they're just empty buildings, but for some, they're uncharted territory ripe for investigation. Urban explorers gain entry to abandoned buildings, nose around, and take pictures, exploring the history of our recent and not so recent past. [PDF]
Climate Camp
With the government preferring to suck up to big business than take meaningful action on climate change, a field just a few miles from Kent's Kingsnorth power station became the venue for the 2008 Climate Camp. The campers - activists, intellectuals, ordinary people - gathered to make their voice heard. [PDF]
Guerrillas in the Mist
London's guerrilla gardening head honcho, Richard Reynolds, has been 'fighting the filth with forks and flowers' around his block in Elephant and Castle for a good few years. In this piece for The Ecologist, Richard talks about how it all started, and offers a few tips. [PDF]
Garbage Warrior
Shaggy haired maverick Mike Reynolds lives his own version of the American dream, with a green twist. In Oliver Hodges' documentary Garbage Warrior, we watch as he takes on the system, and comes out trumps. [Built From Crap PDF] [House of Trash PDF]
The Rebirth of Flower Power
Guerrilla gardening is the illicit cultivation of someone else's land. In this piece for Susology, the history and context of guerrilla gardening is examined alongside the day to day experience of its practitioners in London. [PDF]