Ecotourism as Economic Development

On August 1, 2025

Throughout the Global South, agriculture plays a major role in the economy. As agriculture has become mechanized and controlled by multi-national corporations, production occurs at a more massive scale so commodity crops can be produced cheaply for transport to other parts of the world. In the process, local ecosystems are often ploughed under and local […]

Kudos to Civity!

On July 18, 2025

Civity is “a national nonprofit organization that works with people to build the relational infrastructure necessary for communities in which everyone has what they need to thrive”. It defines ‘civity’ as “a culture of deliberately engaging in relationships of respect and empathy with others who are different”. By assisting communities and organizations, and training local […]

Finland – The Happiest Country in the World

On June 9, 2025

Last year, Finland ranked as the happiest country in the world for the 7th time, according to the UN’s “World Happiness Report”. Why is that? And what does it mean, anyway? Let’s take a look. I visited Finland in May and June of 2025. A big part of the trip was a tour to see […]

Anna Broberg and Maptionnaire

On June 5, 2025

Whenever I visit a major foreign city, I try to learn about it from the people who live there. As we were preparing to travel to Finland, I decided to see if I could locate people in Helsinki who could tell me about their city’s planning, design, culture and current challenges. Through APA, I connected […]

The Cool City of Oaxaca

On April 12, 2025

If being sustainable means you thrive and remain a desirable community over time, then Oaxaca certainly fits the bill! The historic origin of Oaxaca, Monte Alban, is on a mountaintop adjacent to the current city and developed areas. It was first settled around 500 B.C. The settlement on that plateau lasted at least 1,000 years […]

A Big Bird Year

On February 27, 2025

Each year, Terry sets ambitious goals as far as the number of bird species and families he hopes to see, and every year’s goals seem to be higher than the last. It turns out that 2024 was in fact a big birding year for us. Terry (who keeps the more detailed records) totaled 1,817 bird […]

Tantalizing Thailand

On February 27, 2025

We’ve spent less time in Asia than in other major regions of the world, so this was the year to get better acquainted. Thailand is a country with a very rich history and very diverse natural areas. It has about 72 million residents who speak 51 indigenous and 24 non-indigenous languages. The official language, Central […]

Enjoying the KT Ranch

On February 27, 2025

Believe it or not, we have finished the major improvements at the KT Ranch! It’s taken a really long time but we are very happy with the results. This year we were able to enjoy them (at least most of the time) and share them with family and friends. We didn’t get out to the […]

California Family and Friends

On February 27, 2025

The San Francisco Bay Area is always a touchstone for us. We love the natural areas and enjoy the cities, restaurants and wineries. We’re also fortunate to have much of Karen’s family and many friends from all parts of our lives here. Each trip is full of great times and never seems long enough! Karen […]

Unexpected Medical Encounters

On February 27, 2025

Terry had his share of medical surprises this year. The first was a freak fall in Thailand that resulted in a badly torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder. He had to put up with it for 3 weeks until the termination of the tour. Surgery in March and 6 months of physical therapy, however, […]