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HomePens of the Earth

Pens of the Earth

Fiction

Pens of the Earth: A Year of Lily’s Sunflowers

15th November 2019

By Annie Kirby On her sixteenth birthday, Lily Shah opens her front door and stands at the top of the steps leading down to the street. She can’t remember the last time she felt brave [… read more ]

Fiction

Pens of the Earth: A Celebration

14th November 2019

By Richard Salsbury She could go down to Canoe Lake, or sit on the esplanade with views all the way out to the Isle of Wight and the sounds of the swashing of the sea. [… read more ]

Fiction

Pens of the Earth: Walk of Shame

13th November 2019

By Helen Salsbury Day 1 That first day, he’s still half asleep. It’s raining, and he plods from lamppost to lamppost – nicotine light and dirty grey pavements – as fast as his banjaxed knee [… read more ]

Social Issues

Streets for People: How We Can Solve the Climate Crisis

12th November 2019

Our society faces some profound challenges, argues Megan Howson of Portsmouth Friends of the Earth. Climate breakdown is the major issue now but there are also other pressing issues such as poor air quality, obesity, [… read more ]

Fiction

Pens of the Earth: The Street Party

12th November 2019

By Christine Lawrence I’ve lived here for fifty years, brought my dear wife back here after we wed, watched children grow up and leave, saw them come back with their own little ones to visit [… read more ]

Social Issues

Pens of the Earth: Streets for People

11th November 2019

At Pens of the Earth’s launch night Helen Salsbury talked about rethinking the way our streets are used, and not just assuming they should exist for motorised traffic. Reclaiming streets for people can have an [… read more ]

Social Issues

Pens of the Earth: Trees and the City

1st November 2019

November sees the start of tree planting season, and the culmination of the Woodland Trust’s ‘Big Climate Fightback’ campaign which encourages everyone to pledge to plant a tree. But what might this mean in Portsmouth? [… read more ]

Fiction

Pens of the Earth: Drowning, Not Waving

31st October 2019

By “SC” She was meandering along the shore between water and strand line – the littoral, the Queen’s land. The beauty of the evening bypassed her, eyes at her feet, not the horizon. I wouldn’t [… read more ]

Poetry

Pens of the Earth: Southsea but Plastic-free

30th October 2019

by Alison Habens When the archaeologists of the future find the layers of flip-flop yoghurt pots our people left behind will they wonder what we wanted, how we got it, who we knew suntan bottle, [… read more ]

Fiction

Pens of the Earth: Fish of the Sea

30th October 2019

by Eileen Phyall ‘Plastic free,’ he said scornfully. ‘Don’t be ridiculous. You’d put us back to the 1940s.’ ‘When there were no cars parked on this road and you played in the streets,’ Moira said. [… read more ]

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Latest News

Events

Planetbuilding Blues: A Letter to My Dead Parents

24th September 2026

Writer and planetary modeller David Angus recalls recent global and personal events in a letter to his dead parents, from anti-vaxxers to flying a Spitfire. By now Jill Mole should be with you and Arthur [… read more ]

News

Portsmouth Union Branch Calls on University to Address Pension Inequality

10th September 2026

The Portsmouth branch of the UCU (University and College Union) has passed a motion calling on the management of the University of Portsmouth (UoP) to address pension inequality. The Branch contends that UoP has been [… read more ]

News

Portsmouth Constituents Urge Stephen Morgan to Protest Oil Drilling and Support Fair Energy Transition

21st August 2026

Portsmouth constituents have sent a clear message to their MP Stephen Morgan demanding urgent action to help bring our energy bills down and increase energy security for our communities. The UK government is set to [… read more ]

News

Green Open Homes Week: How Portsmouth Residents are Taking on the Energy Crisis

26th June 2026

Energy prices are a growing concern – but for some, getting ahead of the crisis has paid off. Local residents have been opening their doors to Nicholas Sebley of Portsmouth Climate Action to reveal how they [… read more ]

News

Portsmouth UCU Branch Condemns Iran War and Calls for University Ethics Review

27th May 2026

The Portsmouth branch of the UCU (University and College Union) has passed a motion condemning the US and Israel’s illegal wars against Iran and Lebanon, and calling for an ethical review of the University of [… read more ]

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