The Guardian • 4th September 2025

‘Crafts are like medicine!’: Gen Z and the rapid rise of cosy hobbies

In a bright cafe just off Leith Walk in Edinburgh, a group of young people gather around a table strewn with fabric scraps, beads and crochet hooks. Each session brings a new theme: one week it’s crochet, the next jewellery-making, the week after that they learn latte-art. Coffees are sipped, biscuits are passed around and chatter fills the room.This is the Girls Craft Club, founded earlier this year by art history graduate Gabby after a diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder left...

The Guardian • 1st September 2025

The one change that worked: I got a period cup – and saved £120 a year

I was 18 when I tried a menstrual cup for the first time. I was studying at the University of Edinburgh and Scotland had just become the first country in the world to make period products free to those who need them. The university health service was offering menstrual cups alongside the usual sanitary pads and tampons. I picked one up out of curiosity and because I just couldn’t resist a freebie.I was used to spending £10 to £15 a month on period products, more if I was caught short and had to...

The Guardian • 20th August 2025

UK wasp numbers soar after unusually warm and dry spring

If dodging swooping gulls trying to steal your chips wasn’t already enough, you might be spending your bank holiday trying to keep wasps away from your ice cream too.Britain is in the middle of a wasp boom. Not only have they arrived earlier than expected, but there are more of them than in recent summers. Experts say 2025 is an excellent year for them.Populations have soared across the UK thanks to an unusually warm and dry spring. The UK had its warmest spring for mean temperature on record, a...

The Guardian • 15th August 2025

‘I thought no one would believe me’: wallaby sightings reported in Suffolk

At first glance Steven Ellis thought the small creature in the distance was a deer, but he soon realised he was witnessing something far more unusual.Ellis was near the village of Ilketshall St Andrew in Suffolk when he took out his camera and took a photograph of the animal, which turned out to be a wallaby.“We’ve got quite a few deer around, so I thought I must be mistaken,” he said. “But then I thought it was a kangaroo. I don’t think they’re far off. I stood there thinking: ‘Who do I ring to...

Journo Resources • 12th August 2025

Decolonising Journalism: Lessons from Indigenous Storytelling

“Nothing about us, without us,” says Māori journalist Jamie Tahana, whose writing on Indigenous affairs has been published by The Guardian and New Zealand Herald. As journalism reckons with ongoing imbalances in representation and colonial legacies, Jamie’s statement encapsulates deeper questions at the heart of journalism today: whose voices are centred, whose voices are excluded, and who has the authority to tell a community’s story? 
Indigenous people have long been spoken about, rather than...

The Indiependent • 30th April 2025

What To Do When The World Stops Working: Blackout across the Iberian Peninsula  : The Indiependent

It began at 12:13 with a flicker. The lights in the staffroom blinked off, then just as politely, back on. Odd.Classroom to ChaosThirty minutes later, mid-class with thirty eight-year-olds, the power cut out again. Lights, the whiteboard, internet. Gone. At first, I assumed it was just our classroom. Maybe the school? But as we changed class, another teacher came in, whispering like she was delivering state secrets:“It’s all of Spain and Portugal.”Well. That’s… larger than expected.The rumour mi...

The Indiependent • 6th May 2025

Travelling To: Porto, Portugal : The Indiependent

Porto is a city that stays with you, long after you’ve departed. The Douro River winds through its heart, separating it from Vila Nova de Gaia, resting peacefully across the river. The Dom Luís I Bridge, an elegant iron and steel marvel with its graceful two-tiered arches, stretches across the water like an unspoken welcome, uniting two cities that, while distinct in character, are bound by the river’s timeless flow. Despite their differences, Porto and Gaia coexist in a seamless harmony, their...

The Indiependent • 14th September 2024

Overtourism In The Age Of Social Media: How Instagram Is Shaping Travel Trends : The Indiependent

As a child, I would spend hours engrossed in Lonely Planet books, dreaming of exploration, and sharing these experiences through carefully crafting guidebooks. Yet, in today’s digital age, Instagram and TikTok dictate travel trends; the path to a successful career in travel writing has shifted dramatically. Travel influencers now lead the way, profoundly impacting travellers and their destinations. For previous generations, choosing a travel destination was a process grounded in research and per...

Shout Out UK • 21st April 2025

Class Bias at UK Universities: 'You Speak Remarkably Well for a State-Educated Person'

It was a casual conversation, at a house party during my final year of university, when after being asked what school I attended, someone turned to me and said, ‘You speak remarkably well for a state-educated person.’ The comment was delivered with an air of innocent surprise, but beneath it lay a stark assumption: that articulacy, intelligence, and academic success are unexpected from those who did not attend private school. This moment encapsulated the classist attitudes I had so often encount...

The Indiependent • 22nd April 2025

The Camino: The Walking Adventure You Didn't Know You Needed : The Indiependent

When people talk about the Camino de Santiago, they often imagine a singular path such as the iconic Camino Francés which stretches 800 kilometres over northern Spain. In reality, the Camino is a vast network of pilgrimage routes, represented by the shell symbol, where all roads lead to Santiago de Compostela.From the rugged coastlines of the Camino del Norte to the ancient mountains of the Primitivo or spiritual way of the Camino Portugués, there’s a path for everyone. I walked the Camino Inglé...