News and Latest items
from "Downshifting Downunder", and elsewhere
Byron Child: Deep Downshifting, a life of no regrets
From Byron Child Magazine By Kali Wendorf
I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not , when I come to die, discover that I had not lived.
Henry David Thoreau
Everywhere we turn today, if we have our eyes half-open, we are faced with the consequences of our collective actions on the planet. Capitalism, endless war, famine, the disintegration of families, global warming, a mushrooming corporatocracy, skyrocketing debt…the list is long. So long in fact, that few have the courage to really see and acknowledge what is going on. Part of our reluctance is because there are no easy solutions and from the perspective of our singular lives, the task of making a change appears utterly daunting. Just the simple act of recycling my glass becomes an inner battle as I consider the environmental cost of my washing the glass before placing it in my bin. Does anything we do really make a difference? These were my doubts until recognising the collective impact of the downshifting movement.
Continue reading "Byron Child: Deep Downshifting, a life of no regrets"
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The man who wakes up in a ditch... then goes to work at Sotheby's
Anushka Asthana meets Hugh Sawyer, 32, who has taken downsizing to a new level to prove that we can all get by with much less
Sunday September 4, 2005
Observer
At 6am Hugh Sawyer wakes up to the persistent ring of his alarm clock. He rolls over with a grimace and flicks on Radio 4's Today programme. He gets up, has a wash and a shave, grabs some breakfast and rushes down to the bus stop to commute to London.
When he gets to work in the bids department of Sotheby's he is always spotlessly turned out in a Gieves & Hawkes suit, a stylish tie and polished shoes. The Oxford law graduate is a regular at the gym and often meets friends for drinks in the capital's bars.
Continue reading "The man who wakes up in a ditch... then goes to work at Sotheby's"
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IYPF newsletter feature issue on downshifting
Downshifting - Young Professionals who have or who are thinking about
'doing less to do more'. Downshifting is about giving more time to
those things that are important to you and that reinforce your
humanity, such as time with friends and family, doing things you
believe in, participating in social change and sustainability
activites. Join the network here.
See the August 2005 newsletter of the International Young
Professionals Foundation (IYPF) with its Downshifting theme.
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First issue of our newsletter: Simpler Richer Living
Since the conference and the ensuing media attention we have been overwhelmed with response - thank you for your patience in our delays in responding to your interest.
We are proud to announce a range of initiatives we have and will be implementing with the intent of helping people find simpler richer living.
We trust that our first Newsletter, 'Simpler Richer Living' will answer many of your questions. For your copy of the newsletter please click here..
If you have any further questions please don't hesitate to contact Simon Taylor on
simon@downshifting.net.au
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Downshifting Lovers of Oz
Grey Aussie nomads: " On Australia’s highways and byways, under the stars, enjoying the wide open spaces, romance is blossoming all over again, writes sex and relationship counsellor JO-ANNE BAKER.
I recently attended a downshifting conference, organised by Dr Clive Hamilton, executive director of The Australian Institute for a Just Sustainable, Peaceful Future ( www.downshifting.net.au ). His research in this area found that 92 per cent of people were happy with their downshifting decision.
This had a flow-on effect to their primary relationship. As people felt more balanced in their life overall, their intimate relationships blossomed. At the conference I met Jessica, a financier, who made a sea change five years ago when she and her husband moved from the inner city of Sydney to the Gold Coast hinterland.
From Self-sufficiency, mobility, and environment, how to relax and unplug off the grid (feed)
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SMH: Cast off the bourgeois chains, you've nothing to lose but your job
The Sydney Morning Herald had an article yesterday about the conference, and Suzanne Cremen-Davidson who was one of the panelists.
SMH July 23rd 2005 by Nick Galvin
Waking to find a burglar in the bedroom of her Naremburn home was the final straw for Suzanne Cremen-Davidson as she became more disenchanted with city life.
"We were burgled twice in succession," she says. "The second time I awoke at 2am to find an intruder. It was pretty much after that that we thought, 'What are we doing here?' We had to barricade ourselves into our home."
Now Ms Cremen-Davidson, 37, and her husband James Davidson, 52, live on a two-hectare property on Queensland's Sunshine Coast, where security comes from friendly neighbours rather than bars on the windows, and the morning commute involves stepping into the home office.
The couple abandoned high-flying publishing and legal careers for Maleny, slashing their income. Three years on, they couldn't be happier.
Continue reading "SMH: Cast off the bourgeois chains, you've nothing to lose but your job"
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ABC: Downshifting group to help Australians choose life
ABC News 23 July 2005:
A conference in Sydney today will discuss the growing trend of "downshifters", people who sacrifice career progress and income for greater lifestyle and family time.Research in 2002 by the Australia Institute found 23 per cent of Australians fell into this category.
Today's conference will launch a new organisation, Downshifting Downunder, aimed at helping people make such changes to their life.
The Australia Institute's director, Clive Hamilton, says downshifting is popular across age groups and income brackets.
"I think people are just finding the pressures of modern consumer life too intense," he said.
"The endless emphasis on making money and consuming, the overwork and debt that goes with that, the impact on our health and the decline in the quality of our relationships."
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Photos from Downshifting Downunder in Sydney 23 July 2005
Downshifting Downunder's launch conference happened yesterday, 23 July 2005 at UNSW in Sydney. About 100 participants turned up to listen to, and interact with, an interesting line-up of speakers. We'll post more later, but here are some photos of the event.
Continue reading "Photos from Downshifting Downunder in Sydney 23 July 2005"
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ABC: Places in the Sun: The Move to the Coast
ABC Background Briefing: 9 Feb 2003
Mick O'Regan: Small coastal towns in regional Australia used to be better known for dairy products than designer homes. Agriculture is still crucial in many such places, but now farmers are having to contend with another local growth industry: people.
Population grown along the coastal strip is transforming regional communities in a number of ways, and prompting debate about regional development.
Hallo, I’m Mick O'Regan, and this week Background Briefing is heading for the coast to explore what’s going on.
Read the rest of Mick O'Regan's program, from a couple of years ago, which looks at the impact of downshifting and sea-changing on both the people and the communities here.
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ABC: Millionaires can't get no satisfaction
Is there any point really in pursuing great wealth, when even the wealthy aren't content?
ABC News: Wednesday July 6, 2005
A study has found that only 5 per cent of Australian millionaires regard themselves as prosperous.The Australia Institute has surveyed 12,000 people to determine their attitudes towards income and wealth.
It found that for those with household net worth of more than $3 million, only one-in-five regards themselves as prosperous, while 7 per cent say they are poor or "just getting along".
In households with incomes of $100,000, only 5 per cent described themselves as prosperous.
At the other end of the spectrum, only 9 per cent in the lowest income group of less than $25,000 say they are totally satisfied.
The same percentage in the highest income group or more than $100,000 say they are totally satisfied.
Institute executive director Clive Hamilton says the report also examines the relationship between wealth and overall satisfaction with life.
"It seems that the richer that we become, the less satisfied we are with our incomes - it's as if our levels of desire always stay ahead of our actual levels of income," he said.
"The Government says it wants a prosperous nation, but as long as success is measured by money, Australians will always feel deprived."
Mr Hamilton says 21 per cent of people in the lowest income group say they are totally satisfied with life, with only 13 per cent in the highest income group feeling the same way.
"You really have to ask why it is in our society that we pursue financial success more than anything else, when all of the evidence suggests that it is other aspects of life which really contribute to our sense of well being," he said.
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The fisherman's story (a downshifting proverb)
An American businessman was at a pier in a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellowfin tuna.
The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them.
The Mexican replied only a little while.
The American then asked why didn't he stay out longer and catch more fish?
The Mexican said he had enough to support his family's immediate needs.
The American then asked, but what do you do with the rest of your time?
The Mexican fisherman said, "I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos, I have a full and busy life, senor."
The American scoffed, "I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and, with the proceeds, buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat, you could buy several boats, eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually NYC where you will run your expanding enterprise."
The Mexican fisherman asked, "But senor, how long will this all take?"
To which the American replied, "15-20 years."
"But what then, senor?"
The American laughed and said that's the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions. Millions,
"senor? Then what?"
The American said, "Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos."
"But Senor, I am doing that right now !!!!! Why should I waste 15 or 20 of the best years of my life going thru all this ?????"
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Gross National Happiness - Bhutan's story
The following article by Simeon Michaels first appeared in the Australia Institute's Magazine.
GDP vs GNH – through the looking glass
“Gross National Happiness is more important that Gross Domestic Product” said His Majesty Jigme Singye Wangchuck upon his ascension to the throne of Bhutan, a tiny Himalayan nation nestled between India and Chinese Tibet. Simeon Michaels visits Bhutan to investigate
Research on human happiness shows that past a certain point, more wealth does not equal more happiness. We in the developed world, while experiencing levels of wealth unprecedented in human history, are simultaneously experiencing unprecedented rates of suicide, depression and loss of community.
In that context, Bhutan’s focus on Gross National Happiness (GNH) shows a rare willingness to re-think the paradigm of economic growth advocated, and often imposed, by the governments and institutions of the global North.
If more wealth equals does not lead to more happiness, then what does? In the words of Dasho Meghraj Gurung, it is ‘a vision that puts the individual’s self-cultivation at the center of the nation’s developmental goals, a primary priority for Bhutanese society as a whole as well as for the individual concerned’.
Continue reading "Gross National Happiness - Bhutan's story"
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UK: Prudential launches a new guide to downshifting
Even the big institutions, like the UK's Prudential (insurance giant) are starting to notice Downshifting. 50Connect reports on their new guide.
A place in the country, a less stressful job, more time with the kids, or an olive grove in Italy.“Downshifting” is the name given to it, and savings giant Prudential has launched a free guide on the subject after conducting a major new study into the nation's changing work/life patterns that has revealed the extent of Britain’s downshifting dreams.
At a time when our television screens are awash with programmes like downshifting icon - Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's - Tales from River Cottage, Pru’s shocking new research reveals that many people plan to follow suit. Almost one million people in middle age (35-54) are making serious plans to take their foot off the gas with 600,000 of those planning to downshift by 2006.
To help people make the leap – or even just to provoke serious thought about what they are doing - Pru's "Guide to Downshifting" aims to highlight the serious nature of what happens when people face a drop in family income, or plans are made to invest lifetime savings in a brand new rural business venture. The Guide offers helpful tips and advice for people who want to downshift, either now or in the future and is available on the website.
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See the full article.
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SMH: A serious bout of affluenza
The SMH has an article on Affluenza
Read the rest of the article here.Clive Hamilton wants to knock down Westfield Bondi Junction. More controversially, he claims most people would quietly agree with him that this "temple of affluenza" is the ultimate expression of an epidemic of overconsumption, debt and stress that has seen Australian society go to hell in a shopping bag.
"Far more so than the Opera House or Ayers Rock, Westfield Bondi Junction is the quintessential icon of modern Australia," he says.
And Sydney's favourite dinner party moan, mortgage stress? "Self-induced," says Hamilton, claiming no sympathy for families who cry poor at the threat of a quarter of a percentage point rise in interest rates.
"Affluenza has been more intense in Sydney than anywhere else in Australia. Sydney has always had a love affair with money."
Continue reading "SMH: A serious bout of affluenza"
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SMH: It is high time we realized that less is more
The SMH's Heckler section has an appeal for frugality.
SMH 22 May 2005: The human species will only survive if we embrace frugality, says Andrew Dalton.I want my children to have less than I ever had. As chief executive, it's my job to shrink the company. Honey, let's sell the car and buy a smaller one. I'm long overdue for a pay cut.
What's wrong with these statements is why we're in so much trouble - environmentally, socially, politically - and why, unless we change our thinking, it's going to get worse. At the root of our problems is that we can't accept less.
For a few million years it didn't matter. Wanting more meant warmer clothes and sharper spears, things that didn't have much impact on resources. Back then, it was our lust for more that made us the most successful species and defined us as civilised. Yet even with our first, humble desires we were on a road that would lead to our destruction.
See the whole article.
Continue reading "SMH: It is high time we realized that less is more"
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SMH: Frugal consumers make up one of the last great unconquered markets.
The Sydney Morning Herald has an article on "Frugal Consumers" and Voluntary Simplifiers.
See the full article here.
SMH 22 April 2005.When Alan Jones (not the radio jock) shops for clothes, the last place he goes to update his family's wardrobe is a department store.
Instead, he walks into a Salvation Army or St Vincent de Paul second-hand clothing shop. "I can buy decent clothing for $2 or $3 an item," he says.
It's not that he lacks disposable income. Jones, a scientist at the Australian Museum, and his wife, Peggy O'Donnell, also a scientist, earn well in excess of $100,000 between them.
In an effort to reduce their "ecological footprint", the couple and their two children - Rosie, 14, and Brendan, 11 - sprinkle bathwater on their garden in the northern Sydney suburb of Narraweena. They are thrifty "largely for environmental reasons, although I have to admit it does seem ridiculous to spend $70 or $80 on a pair of trousers", Jones says.
Some would call the Joneses penny pinchers. To Sarah Todd, a marketing professor from the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand, they are "frugal consumers".
Continue reading "SMH: Frugal consumers make up one of the last great unconquered markets."
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UK: Thousands more 'downshifters' join exodus from cities
From the UK Telegraph
The number of people apparently "downshifting" was unveiled yesterday as figures showed that more than 260,000 had left London to live elsewhere......
Despite increasing pressure to earn and spend more, about a quarter of adults aged 30 to 59 have voluntarily made a long-term change in their lives that resulted in them earning an average of 40 per cent less, according to an academic study into the phenomenon of downshifting. People are not leaving cities for the idyllic countryside existence promoted on television - the trend is predominantly a suburban phenomenon. The three principal methods of downshifting are reducing working hours, stopping work altogether and changing careers.
The study by Clive Hamilton, a visiting scholar at Cambridge University, and the British Market Research Bureau, measured the reaction to the consumer culture and found women were more likely to change than men and that downshifters were more likely to be in their 30s. The survey dispels the myth that shifting is confined to middle-aged wealthier individuals who have accumulated substantial assets and can afford the financial risk. Downshifters are spread fairly evenly across age groups and social grades, with only a slightly higher proportion being from the highest social grades A and B. More than a quarter surveyed who switched in the past decade did so fairly recently, suggesting a strong rising trend.
The most common reason was to spend more time with family and to recapture control over their time. Dr Hamilton, said the research uncovered a large class of citizens who consciously reject consumerism and material aspirations. "They do it because the excessive pursuit of money and materialism comes at a substantial cost to their lives and those of their families. "This challenges the political parties to question their most fundamental assumptions about what makes for a better society."
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The real secret to happiness: higher taxes
From the Age 14th April 2005
According to monkeys, high taxes can make us work less and live more, writes Ross Gittins.
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I've just been reading a new book - by an economics professor, no less - that argues the exact reverse: we need to keep tax rates high to discourage us from working so hard and, in the process, neglecting more important aspects of life, including leisure.
The prof is Richard Layard - Lord Layard, to you - of the London School of Economics. His book is Happiness: Lessons from a New Science, published in Britain by Allen Lane.
Why on earth could so many of us - particularly those on the top tax rate - be working too hard and neglecting our leisure? At base, because our evolutionary make-up makes us highly rivalrous towards other people, to be always comparing ourselves with others and seeking higher status.
Layard quotes other researchers' studies of vervet monkeys. The researchers manipulated the status of a male monkey by moving him from one group of monkeys to another. In each situation they measured the monkey's level of serotonin, a neuro-transmitter connected with feeling good. "The finding was striking," Layard says, "the higher the monkey's position in the hierarchy, the better the monkey feels.
"When a monkey beats off his rivals, he not only gets more mates and more bananas, he also gets a direct reward: being top makes him feel great. This is a powerful motivator."
...
Continue reading "The real secret to happiness: higher taxes"
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A Shared Journey - Social Planning for the Bega Valley Shire and Beyond
Downshifting is starting to be considered as part of the planning process, this from a Social Planning conference for the Bega Vallay
THE wonderful thing about "A Shared Journey - Social Planning for the Bega Valley Shire and Beyond" is that it happened at all, said chairman, Tim Holt, at the closing session on Friday, and that was a sentiment echoed by many.For two very full days residents of the shire were joined by delegates from Queanbeyan, Euro-bodalla, Wingecarribee, Harden, Goulburn-Mulwaree, Gold Coast, Snowy River, Cooma-Monaro and East Gippsland local government areas to hear top speakers talk on a variety of topics.
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The first keynote speaker, Dr Clive Hamilton, executive director of the Australia Insitute based in Canberra spoke on money and happiness in modern Australia.
He said we are seriously overworked, afflicted with affluenza and that in our search for the biggest and best barbecue we were on a hedonistic treadmill - using money we don't own to buy a barbecue we don't need to impress people we don't like when perhaps we should be considering looking for our bliss, downshifting to find purpose and meaning, and not letting the old man with a microphone hiding in the Emerald City drive change on our behalf.
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British Women downshifting
LONDON, March 10 [UPI]: A British survey says today's 20-something women are telling their mothers, who felt they had to "have it all," that they don't want it all.
New research for New Woman magazine indicates that after the feminist movement told women that they could climb the career ladder, raise a happy family and still have time for themselves today's young women, about to move into their 30s, are tired of aspiring to what they saw as a depressing dream for their mothers.
Just one in 10 women polled said they planned to work full-time and put their children into nursery care.The buzz words among the generation are now "happiness.""downshifting" and "me time," steering away from talk about the glass ceiling and girl power, Western Mail reported.
Nine of 10 young women say they would be happy to wear less expensive clothes, drink less, trade in their car for an older model, eat out less.
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