August 2025
Tuesday 5th August: An unexpected addition to the ‘Not on the Bookshelf’ page
My first geography read of the holiday was Environomics by Dharshini David and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Whilst lots of the information was familiar to a geography teacher, I enjoyed the concept of following an everyday routine and considering how our everyday choices and actions tie us into the bigger picture of the green economy. I also learnt lots of snippets of new information and ended up down a few rabbit holes of research having finished the book.
In contrast, I’m afraid to say that I was very underwhelmed by my second geography read ‘Not the End of the World’. It has therefore ended up on the ‘Not On The Bookshelf’ page as I just didn’t think there was enough for me to say in a review…
I had really high hopes for this book having heard so much about it in the geography community but, to put it bluntly, I just didn’t really learn anything new? I sat with my pencil poised ready to annotate and underline but instead, found myself just wanting to finish it… Perhaps it’s a sign of listening to too many climate podcasts? Perhaps it’s a sign of reading too many climate books? Who knows but whilst the points were superbly articulated using data, I found myself lacking excitement to pick this book up and it became a struggle by the end…
Did I miss something? Did anyone else feel the same? I’d be interested to know if so!
Monday 4th August: Our Story at The Natural History Museum
And the best month of the year for teachers has arrived! Goodness, August is wonderful…
Whilst I personally choose not to do any work over the majority of the holidays, I do engage with geography in a broader sense; reading, watching and listening to bits and bobs for my own subject knowledge and enjoyment. The first full week of the holidays saw me visit the Our Story experience at the Natural History Museum. I very much enjoyed it and the footage was incredible- I also liked the way that the exhibition ended with a message of hope that it is not too late and that we action we take to achieve a more sustainable world is significant and worthwhile.
After finishing at the museum I swung by the Royal Geographical Society to look at their free Earth Photo exhibition which is displayed through August. There are some excellent photographs in the exhibition this year and I recommend popping in if you are passing!
