I’ve been doing a lot of talking lately. That seems to be what happens when you write a book. First, (obviously) you do a lot of writing, then as soon as you’ve finished, you start talking. And talking. Trying to sum up what it was you just wrote about. Not that I’m complaining – far from it. I am of course delighted that so many people are interested in what I have to say, and very happy to say it in whichever medium they prefer. And the great thing about talking is that you also get to listen. You get to meet people, not just sit there in your pyjamas with a computer for company.

Over the past few weeks I’ve given talks at Cabe (the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment), Arup (the leading international interdisciplinary design firm), the Design Council, the Domus Academy in Milan, a group of international fresh food producers, and the Landscape Institute annual conference. What is exciting for me in all this is the huge range of people and territories that represents. Hungry City is a multi-disciplinary, ‘horizontal’ book, which made publishers wary of it and confused some reviewers, but what I am finding now is that it allows me to talk to many disparate groups in a common language – one they can relate to. As a result, it seems to be widening horizons and forging new connections, which makes me a very happy bunny indeed. With my sincere apologies to the donkey.