It’s not that we don’t know how to determine if a project is sustainable. More often it’s that we fail to apply the tests that exist. This issue of Alternatives describes the many ways that we can test the sustainability of a project, a product or a service. It features […]

Number 5 – Education for the Planet (Special pullout!) This year’s environmental education directory is bigger and better than ever — 50 universities, 150 programs and lots more inspiring student-driven initiatives and ideas worth stealing. Check out what universities fit your educational goals and what creative student initiatives are worth […]

This issue of Alternatives takes readers into a realm where the actions of government, corporations, citizens and middle institutions such as schools converge to transform society as we know it. It’s a place where the environment receives its due respect. Where, as peace activist Ursula Franklin suggested in a 1994 […]

Please note, the print copy you receive of this issue may be a black and white reprint. Counting money is easy – but how do we place a value on a healthy body, a vibrant neighbourhood or a flourishing environment? Measuring Progress goes beyond the GDP to explore ways of […]

Editorial: Reversing the Flow This issue of Alternatives focuses on water soft paths. For most people this statement invites the question: What are water soft paths? Though noun and adjective have been reversed, water soft paths share a common heritage with the soft energy paths developed in the 1970s by […]

Buy this issue in print or digital format to read the rest: Editorial:Take It Down to Zero Hope in Wasteland – Helen SpiegelmanA radical but reachable departure from current practice will put product waste back in the hands of producers, and allow cities to follow their zero-waste dreams.

Informed participation in open, accountable and effective governance: that’s a pretty good working definition of development. Governments have been using foreign aid for many purposes over the decades, and their first purpose is not always development or alleviation of poverty, as Ian Smillie points out in this issue of Alternatives. […]

Dragon boat racers, soccer teams and choirs have it. The People’s Food Commission and its report, The Land of Milk and Money, had it too. Team members often display a go-for-it passion that is rooted in a powerful tradition: to believe in tomorrow, we must appreciate yesterday. To become a […]

Buy this issue in print or digital format to read the rest: Editorial: Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner Launching street festivals. Planting watermelon. Doling out fake traffic tickets. If you’re wondering what these have in common, read on. They’re ingenious ways of handling issues, prying open the box.

Editorial: Fixing the Economy Raising Funds – Shannon StaplesSalt Spring Island gives national currency a run for its money.Other Canadian Alternative Currencies Revolving Funds – Gabriella Kalapos and Philip JessupMunicipalities can turn their energy costs into gold.