Society

How Do We Stay Open-Minded? 5 Tips and 6 Benefits

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How Do We Stay Open-Minded? 5 Tips and 6 Benefits

How do we stay open-minded? It never seemed very important to me until I started to listen to music. With the little transistor radio I received for my birthday I listened to the radio pirates that transmitted the music I preferred from their boats off the Dutch coast.

But how did I know I preferred the ‘pirate’ music over classical music from the state-sanctioned post-war distribution radio? Through my friends. They shared their excitement about the music they loved with me. And through the newspaper, I read every morning. 

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Is Happiness the Key to be Successful or Vice Versa?

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Is Happiness the Key to be Successful or Vice Versa?

Is happiness the key to be successful or is success the key to be happy? It probably depends on who you ask this question. If you ask me, I say happiness comes first. But if you would have asked my Dad he would have said success is the main thing.

The mother of my father had to raise 6 children on her own during the crisis of the 30s because my grandfather died young. So my father had a job from age 12.

He was determined to study and work himself up to a better position. He went to night school and became a very skilled metalworker. During World War II he was imprisoned in an Arbeitslager in Germany. My father always claimed this hadn’t been too bad because he found refuge in his profession and could perfect his skill there.

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What Does Sustainability Mean in Art?

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What Does Sustainability Mean in Art?

When I was studying at the Art Academies, it was hardly a question we asked ourselves – what does sustainability mean in art? 

On the contrary. It was the 70s and 80s. Freedom was more important than thorough craftsmanship. Many of the works of art created during that time have not survived the test of time.

In my present opinion, there are 3 ways to look at sustainability in art. The first is what materials are used, the second is how those materials are applied, and the third is what the effect of the artwork on the spectators is.

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Where to Find Sustainable Communities to Our Liking?

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Where to Find Sustainable Communities to Our Liking?

Where to find sustainable communities if you have recently moved to another country? It was complicated for Tom and me to find like-minded people and companies to our liking when we had just moved.

Fortunately, the internet exists. It’s easy to search on a few keywords. We started with organic and markets. Other words we have looked for are ecological, biological, sustainable event, local activities.

We then visited the promising found addresses. When you’re focused like this, it’s easy to get in touch with people. You can ask about their products or ask if they know of other people who are interested in ‘keyword’.

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Why is Contribution and Reciprocity in Society Important and Sustainable?

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Why is Contribution and Reciprocity in Society Important and Sustainable?

Both Tom and I talk a lot about contributing and reciprocity in society. With our friends. In our blog posts. In our Facebook posts. Most of the time this is about volunteering in some way or another. But there are many other ways.

Reciprocity in society is a common gesture. A neighbor smiles at us and next time when they are not at home, we collect their delivered goods from the courier.

Society is built on written and unwritten laws. Some are evident. You do not enter another person’s house without an invitation. Others are less obvious. For example, when you borrow your neighbors’ chainsaw, they might expect you to be extra careful when you use it.

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How can we Live a Minimalist Lifestyle? Less is More!

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How can we Live a Minimalist Lifestyle? Less is More!

One of the ways to sustainable living can mean we live a minimalist lifestyle. I have to admit that although I am truly trying to have a sustainable lifestyle, I am not good (yet) at being a minimalist.

As an artist, I see value in almost everything. A piece of package paper can be used in collages; leftovers of fabric will probably come in handy as a pillow cover; a beautiful stone or crooked branch is beautiful in itself.

And so things pile up.

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Working from Home is more and more Favored as Essential

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Working from Home is more and more Favored as Essential

Working from home wasn’t exactly how my paid career started. At the age of 15, I delivered the local newspaper to people’s homes. The day started at 06:00 hours. Through rain, snow, and sometimes sunshine.

I very much enjoyed the freedom and the exercise. In fact, I never stopped walking after that. Never stopped working either.

In those days, my newspaper route was just the beginning of a very long day. First the newspaper delivery, a quick breakfast at home, to school for the remainder of the day. Back from school, homework until late at night. At 06:00 hours the routine started all over again.

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What are Personal Risk Factors and how to Cope with them?

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What are Personal Risk Factors and how to Cope with them?

What are personal risk factors and how do I cope with them? This is a recurring question in most comments people write in response to our articles. When someone asks what personal risks are, the word virus does wonders these days.

However, in our articles, we often write about totally different risks. Most of us are very familiar with these risks: the pollution of the air, the water, the soil, our food, and the destruction of biodiversity and ecosystems. Unfortunately, not everybody understands the link between these so-called impersonal risks, and the risks we think are more personal, such as a virus.

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