Don't go to Lausanne without dropping into the gardens - Lausanne's botanical gardens are free and central, and just a short walk from the train station.  Despite being by the centre of town, they extend to over 4 acres and they house hundreds of plants from around the world and from across Switzerland. They call it a "living museum" and there are actually 4,000 species growing here by Lake Geneva - in rockeries, in the arboretum and in the large greenhouse.  Though when I was there,  the greenhouse was being used as a recording studio for a band - but that sort of thing is typical of Lausanne - arty, impromptu and using their space well. Read more...

“Fragments are not enough,” says Peter Cairns, the project director of "Scotland: the Big Picture."  This was the overarching theme of the recent rewilding conference I took part in.   Listeners and speakers converged on Stirling last month from all over the UK to discuss topics of rewilding.  Rewilding is not just a tree-hugging campaign to bring back wolves and let the wilderness go wild, although habitat restoration, endangered species protection, the logistics of free-ranging large herbivores and the reintroduction of their natural predators are all valuable points for consideration. Read more...