Welcome to the second issue of SHIFT magazine!

And thank you for helping us to reclaim the discourse and shift the public conversation to the topics that matter most: our converging economic and ecological crises, and peaking resources. Inspiring and empowering people to work toward sustainability, resilience and community is the most important work we feel we can do, and we are immensely grateful for all those who join us on this journey.

Our all-volunteer team has worked countless hours – transcending the treadmill, and multiple time-zones – to put together this second issue of SHIFT magazine on a non-profit shoestring budget. We’ve investigated, interviewed, visioned, scribbled, edited, designed, and printed our way to communicating food for thought, and inspiration to practical action. All this to play our part in a much-needed shift: a shift in attitude, action, and the trajectory our civilization is on.

Each issue of SHIFT presents its own theme relevant to our paradigm-shifting emergency, and this second issue casts the spotlight on our economic system, its flaws and failings, and initiatives that have sprung up to address them. Change-makers from diverse disciplines and backgrounds have collaborated over this issue to deliver fresh material intended to shift our conversations, our ideas, and our actions. There is much scope for inspiration within these pages, despite the sobering realities told.

Free from commercial advertising, SHIFT is fully supported by digital and hard-copy purchases and subscriptions from our readers. This means you get to read only the stuff you want to read, in the format you want it in, and don’t have to leaf through pages and pages of consumer-paradigm junk. We are eternally grateful for your support, your company in these interesting times, and your feedback that goes toward constant improvement of SHIFT.

We hope that you will find SHIFT an inspiring and empowering read, and that you will find information worth sharing. Take care, and have a good read!

Love and solidarity,

The SHIFT team