Latest
Order the new book by Carol Craig who edits the Postcards series
. . . such a beautifully written and compelling account of a remarkable story of collaborative inquiry into confidence, well-being and the Scottish psyche. Every illuminating chapter is rich with creative initiatives, humane insights, remarkable thinkers and practitioners and honest reflection. . . (a) superb book.
Will Storrar, Director, Center of Theological Inquiry, Princeton, New Jersey
Next Centre Event Ewan Morrison Unleashed: unintended consequences, idealism and dystopia
Tuesday 4th of March, 5.30 - 7.15 pm in St George's Tron Church, Nelson Mandela Place, Glasgow, G1 2JX (the entrance is on Buchanan Street adjacent to Queen Street station).
Tickets for the event are £6 and available from Fundee and Eventbrite.
Ewan Morrison is an award-winning Scottish novelist. Irvine Welsh hails him as 'the eminent fiction writer of our times' and the Times calls him 'a writer of serious intent and prodigious talent'. But Ewan is not simply a novelist. He is also a prolific essayist and undoubtedly Scotland's leading intellectual commentator.
At the end of March 2025 Ewan's latest novel - For Emma- will be published. It's already being described by many first-class writers and producers as 'brilliant', 'astonishing' and a 'masterpiece'.
So the Centre for Confidence and Well-being is delighted that prior to the publication of For Emma, Ewan will speak at the first of the monthly discussion events the Centre is planning for 2025.
Ewan's talk will be wide-ranging but will start with a topic of great interest to the Centre - unintended consequences. As Carol Craig outlines in her new book A Time of Hope: The Story of the Centre for Confidence and Well-being it was the unintended consequences of the self-esteem movement and ultimately positive psychology which greatly affected and ultimately shaped the Centre's thinking and programme of activities.
So, we hope that you will be able to attend on the 4th of March to listen to Ewan Morrison's ground-breaking ideas and participate in a discussion which is guaranteed to challenge preconceptions and offer new ways of thinking.
More information on Ewan Morrison's novels and articles can be found on his website Much of his recent thinking can be accessed on his Substack page Untopia
Ewan is very active on X - @MrEwanMorrison
Blog on why we're organising an event on unintended consequences with Ewan Morrison
Blog on why we're organising an event on unintended consequences with Ewan Morrison
Read Carol Craig's blog on unintended consequences and Ewan Morrison
'Finding hope, meaning and positive feelings amidst the reality of life in 2024 is a challenge for all of us and one that calls for mutual understanding and support.'
NEWS UPDATE
We shall publish our final Postcards book, Born to Play, in the last week in March.
Previous books in the series
The Dear Wild Place
Right from the Start
The Dear Wild Place
The Dear Wild Place:
Green spaces, community and campaigning
Emily Cutts
The Golden Mean
Right from the Start
The Dear Wild Place
The Golden Mean:
Fostering young people’s resilience, confidence and well-being
Morag Kerr (Editor) books non-fiction
Right from the Start
Right from the Start
Hiding in Plain Sight
Right from the Start:
Investing in parents and babies
Alan Sinclair books non-fiction children
Hiding in Plain Sight
Hiding in Plain Sight
Hiding in Plain Sight
Hiding in Plain Sight:
Exploring Scotland’s ill health
Carol Craig books non-fiction publishing
Tears that made the Clyde Scots Crisis of confidence
Knowing and Growing
Hiding in Plain Sight
Knowing and Growing
Knowing and Growing:
Insights for developing ourselves and others
Alan McLean books non-fiction
Conviction
Hiding in Plain Sight
Knowing and Growing
Conviction:
Violence, culture and a shared public service agenda
John Carnochan books non-fiction Glasgow violence reduction unit knife crime
The Great Takeover
The Great Takeover
The Great Takeover
The Great Takeover:
How materialism, the media and markets now dominate our lives
Carol Craig books non-fiction Scotland materialism
Latest book
. . . such a beautifully written and compelling account of a remarkable story of collaborative inquiry into confidence, well-being and the Scottish psyche. Every illuminating chapter is rich with creative initiatives, humane insights, remarkable thinkers and practitioners and honest reflection. . . (a) superb book.
Will Storrar, Director, Center of Theological Inquiry, Princeton, New Jersey
Order a copy of this handsome, hardback book. £35 including p&p anywhere in the UK.
Click here or button below to buy.
Schooling Scotland
Working for Equality
Schooling Scotland
Schooling Scotland:
Education, equity and community
Daniel Murphy books non-fiction
She, He, They
Working for Equality
Schooling Scotland
She, He, They:
Families, gender and coping with transition
Shirley Young
books non-fiction transgender transistioning
Working for Equality
Working for Equality
Working for Equality
Working for Equality:
Policy, politics, people
Richard Freeman, Fiona McHardy, Danny Murphy (Editors) books non-fiction
Raising Spirits
Scotland's Local Food Revolution
Working for Equality
Raising Spirits:
Allotments, well-being and community
Jenny Mollison, Judy Wilkinson and Rona Wilkinson books non-fiction growing
Scotland's Local Food Revolution
Scotland's Local Food Revolution
Scotland's Local Food Revolution
Scotland's Local Food Revolution
Mike Small books non-fiction publishing
Letting Go
Scotland's Local Food Revolution
Scotland's Local Food Revolution
Letting Go:
Breathing new life into organisations
Tony Miller & Gordon Hall books non-fiction
The New Road
Shaping our Global Future
The New Road
The New Road:
Charting Scotland's inspirational communities.
Alf Young and Ewan Young books non-fiction
AfterNow
Shaping our Global Future
The New Road
AfterNow:
What next for a healthy Scotland?
Phil Hanlon and Sandra Carlisle books non-fiction health Scotland
Shaping our Global Future
Shaping our Global Future
The Tears that Made the Clyde
Shaping our Global Future:
A guide for young people
Derek Brown books non-fiction
The Tears that Made the Clyde
The Scots' Crisis of Confidence
The Tears that Made the Clyde
The Tears that Made the Clyde
Well-being in Glasgow
Carol Craig
The Scots' Crisis of Confidence
The Scots' Crisis of Confidence
The Scots' Crisis of Confidence
The Scots' Crisis of Confidence
Carol Craig
Companion volumne to Tears that made the Clyde
About Postcards from Scotland
In the face of huge challenges such as climate change, resource depletion, financial melt-down, globalisation, falling living standards, rising inequality and mental health problems, it is becoming increasingly clear that western societies will have to make huge changes. In short, we cannot go on in the same vein: we need to envision and enact a radically different future.
Scotland is well-placed in some respects to make a significant contribution to this new thinking: we played a major part in the 18th century Enlightenment and many of the factors which facilitated Scotland's leading role are still in place. Namely, we are a small, networked society with strong commitment to social improvement where it is easy to have conversations across subject disciplines.
This period in western culture and Scottish political culture requires outlets for new ideas across a whole range of topics – environmental, social, organisational, political, cultural, psychological, economic and spiritual – as well as new frameworks and ways of conceptualising. Postcards from Scotland aims to help develop this new thinking in a readable and accessible format and publicise, to a much greater audience, some of the projects in Scotland which are already aiming to help bring about a new way of living. books non-fiction.
The Centre also runs some events and advertises them on this site. The blog also sometimes features topics not yet included in our book series.