Creating Paradise From Wastelands: LAFARGE Eco Systems

Owen & Mzee: The True Story Of A Remarkable Friendship by Isabella Hatkoff, Craig Hatkoff and Dr. Paula Kahumbu The vision of Lafarge Eco Systems is to create paradise from wastelands. They invented the wheel when it comes to rehabilitation of quarries in Kenya. They have been taking exhausted, barren limestone quarries, and turning them into premier attractions for over three decades. Quarries that they have restored have won international acclaim for best practice. Their parent company has won awards for its stewardship of the environment and Dr Rene Haller, their founder, won recognition from the UN for his outstanding work. After thirty years of experience and repeated successes behind them, they realize it is time to pass on the lessons. They aim to become an internationally recognized reference in tropical ecosystem restoration and the sustainable management of restored landscapes. They are already at the forefront of this cutting edge science and will continue to develop and improve in order to stay there. Lafarge is committed to environmental and social responsibility. Central to its success in the cement business, is an unequivocal understanding that Lafarge’s capacity to repair the damage caused by its mining activities is its license to operate. Lafarge cannot turn its neighbors against it, it cannot soil its own nests, for then Lafarge would have no future. The new ecosystems must be enduring; it would be no good planting trees only for them to die in a few years due to ecosystem weaknesses or financial constraints. Lafarge Eco Systems operates with a keen awareness of the “bottom line”; they must be both environmentally and economically sustainable. They seek to not only to repair the land, but also to improve it, make it better than it was before quarrying begun. The result is more than just a green space, it is a living laboratory that is rich with diversity and shows us much about the way ecosystems function. They are reservoirs of endangered species in a region where biodiversity is shrinking quickly. They are open classrooms, inspiring young and old alike to take an interest in nature and the value of the environment. And they are paradise for the hundreds of thousands of visitors seeking refuge from the chaos of a post-industrial world.

Nature Trails

In restoring the land after quarrying is completed, Lafarge Eco Systems has managed to create a safe haven for the biodiversity from within and around Mombasa. Today, the biggest problem facing any species is the fast loss of habitat due to many reasons, population growth being forefront. Lafarge Eco Systems’ Nature Trails serve three purposes. Firstly, they provide a secure location that allows many and different species to thrive without the threats that otherwise face them outside this sanctuary. Secondly, they allow residents and visitors to Mombasa a space away from the fast growing and extremely busy town to relax. Thirdly, the Forest Trails allow visitors to see the present wildlife and flora thus allowing them appreciate the importance of rehabilitation work Lafarge Eco Systems carries out.

For more information on Creating Paradise from Wastelands, please CLICK HERE .


A Mindful Way: Eight Weeks to Happiness by Jeanie Seward-Magee

| by Donna Baker Church

A Mindful Way is based on the Five Mindfulness Trainings, specific practices established by the Buddha to help people live more peacefully. They include compassion and non-violence, defeating oppression, conscious sexuality, mindful speech and listening, and mindful consumption. These trainings are the essence of the book, the basis of living a life mindfully.

Read More.
Filed Under: ·

The Science of Medical Intuition with Dr. Norman Shealy and Caroline Myss

First presented by Myss and Shealy at a series of influential workshops, The Science of Medical Intuition is designed to help listeners take control of their total health, through intuitive self-diagnosis and healing techniques. Complete on 12 enriching sessions — over 18 hours of learning — and enhanced by a large format workbook developed exclusively for this course, The Science of Medical Intuition covers every phase of Myss’ and Shealy’s groundbreaking approach to self-care.

Read More.
Filed Under:

What The Bleep Do We Know?! by William Arntz, Betsy Chasse, & Mark Vicente

| by Eugene Kelly

“This book was written from so far outside the box, you would need a telescope to actually find it… that is if the box didn’t come back to smack you in the face every half hour or so. That’s right. The most common obstacle in understanding and valuing this book, in my opinion, is keeping yourself from falling back into the world of a comforting yet possibly false reality. “

Read More.

December 2006 Merlian Newsletter

| by Merryn Jose & Team

Season’s Greetings! This holiday month we bring you many new and exciting Podcasts, a new Merryn’s Musings, 10 Ways To Beat The Holiday Blues, a book review and much more! Be sure to check out this newsletter and escape the seasonal madness for a little while!

Read More.
Filed Under:

Shake Your Chakras

| by Ravi Singh & Ana Brett

Once we feel balance we can let go of control. When we dance we allow ourselves to feel what off balance is like. This is the dance of life, falling and falling again. When we accept this pattern of falling and catching ourselves, then we are in accord with the natural pattern of life’s ebb and flow. It is very freeing to let oneself go. There is abundant joy in being grounded and centered and in allowing ourselves to be vulnerable enough to fall and fall again, confident that we will find our equilibrium in the face of uncertainty.

Read More.
Filed Under:

The Divas and Darling Jenny by Kate Elliott

| by Kate Elliott
ID, 'post_img', true)?>

***image1***” A lot has happened to these divas in ten months, but nothing has happened that was not their own idea. There were of course relationship challenges, having been chained in a line for two years, (while waiting to be placed at an “appropriate” facility), there was a lot to work out once they all came face to face… I remind myself every day who these elephants are, and how they used to live, and how long it took to win their release. I wish for each of them much of the boundless joy that dear Jenny found, each and every day at The Elephant Sanctuary.”

Read More.
Filed Under:

Fear Factor, by Sahar Huneidi

How to love the Earth. Does our behaviour have severe r epercussions for our environment? Violence and negative thinking are degrees of the human emotional spectrum that stem out of fear; at the very least, fear of the unknown or the unexpected. Sahar looks into how our actions affect the Earth.

Read More.

JUDE — My Reincarnation from Auschwitz by Jewelle St. James

| by Jewelle St. James

I grew up in a happy place embraced by some of the most spectacular scenery on the planet. Rural British Columbia, with its lush pines poking at the azure sky, and shimmering lakes played host to endless adventures throughout my childhood. Yet at the age of ten, I read a book so scary, it rattled my idyllic world and changed my life forever.

Read More.
Filed Under:

Merlian News Podcast Interview with Jean Luc Lafitte

In this interview Jean Luc discusses with Merryn Jose his approach to Chiropractic treatments, which integrates holistic practices. Jean Luc Lafitte graduated as a Chiropractor in 1995, and since then has gone on to study mineral nutrition and hypnotherapy…Jean Luc’s goal is to educate the person to take care of their life, he is not there to heal them but as a facilitator. He currently practices at the Hale Clinic in London.

Read More.