Sheherazade Goldsmith

Sheherazade Goldsmith (born 14 March 1974) is an English environmentalist, author, columnist and a jeweller.

During the 1990s, Goldsmith worked in the fashion industry. In the 21st century, she has been an environmental activist who has undertaken a variety of green initiatives, starting with an organic food business that she ran in London from 2000 to 2002. In 2007, she edited a guide to eco-friendly living, A Slice of Organic Life: Get Closer to the Soil Without Going the Whole Hog, which she followed a year later by publishing a how-to guide for celebrating Christmas in an environmentally friendly way, called A Greener Christmas.

In June 2013, Sheherazade launched concept jewellery label Loquet London in collaboration with her friend, model and writer Laura Bailey.

Goldsmith frequently contributed as a columnist to various national newspapers and other publications in the United Kingdom, . She is divorced from her husband, Zac Goldsmith, the Conservative MP for Richmond Park, with whom she has three children.

Career

Professionally, before her marriage, Goldsmith was identified as Sheherazade Bentley, the name she used as the byline for her columns in newspapers such as The Sunday Times.^[1] Since then, she has been most prominent as a writer and spokesperson for environmental issues and causes.

Business

In 2000, while pregnant with her first child, she and her friend Serena Cook opened Deli'Organic, an organic delicatessen in Battersea’s so-called "Nappy Valley". The cafe also soon became one of the first of its kind to set up what W magazine called a "thriving business delivering fresh, organic baby food" to interested mothers.^[2] Goldsmith cooked children's food from the shop's kitchen and served customers for almost two years. The best seller at the deli was the full English breakfast. Restaurant critic A.A. Gill said in his review, "The Deli'Organic is, despite everything, quite fun in a homespun, uncomfortable... way."^[3] Though the place was always full, according to Goldsmith's business partner, "It is almost impossible to survive in London if you stick to being 100 per cent organic... [as] the profit margins on organic food is too small."^[4] After the birth of her second child in 2002, Goldsmith closed the shop.

Journalism

Goldsmith has contributed writings on environmental concerns, organic food and products, style and beauty, and other topics to a variety of national newspapers and publications. She wrote a regular column for The Sunday Times on Organic food and dining from October 2002 to March 2003. She has also written columns for The Telegraph^[5][6] and has been a food contributor to Harpers Bazaar magazine. In 2006, she became an eco-columnist for YOU Magazine, writing a weekly column entitled "Green Scene with Sheherazade Goldsmith".^[7] Goldsmith has also contributed columns and recipes to various media organizations and brand names such as Sophie Grigson's The Fairtrade Everyday Cookbook,^[8][9] Waitrose,^[10] and the UKTV Food channel.^[11]

Books

Goldsmith is the editor-in-chief of A Slice of Organic Life: Get Closer to the Soil Without Going the Whole Hog, which was published by Dorling Kindersley in 2007 and became a best seller ^[12] The book offers more than 90 self-contained projects to grow food organically, cook homegrown produce, and keep specific livestock, with different applications for city dwellers, suburban populations and homeowners with vast lands. The book's projects range from growing strawberries in a hanging basket to keeping chickens or energy saving tips for home. BookPage called the book "an earnest, friendly manual that'll entice you into the kitchen to make jam, even if you've never before successfully boiled water.

The book's central aim is to illustrate "that you can live anywhere and still make a contribution to the environment without actually making any sacrifices."^[13] Upon the book's publication, Goldsmith said, "There is a huge misconception that being green is more labour-intensive, more expensive and means giving up all your creature comforts."

Goldsmith's second book, called A Greener Christmas, was published by Dorling Kindersley in September 2008.^[14] A Greener Christmas is a collection of various projects that can help families celebrate an environmentally friendly Christmas.

Activism

Goldsmith's interest in environmental issues was sparked by motherhood. "I became interested when I became pregnant with Uma, and then suddenly became very concerned with what I was eating, what I was washing with and so on, and the effect it would have on the baby. When your child is born you start to worry about a zillion other aspects too, such as toys, food and toiletries," she told Health and Organic Living magazine.^[15] She is an admirer of David Attenborough, whose "love, passion and also his understanding of nature and what she can offer" she has praised.^[16] She is a longstanding event organiser and donor of the Soil Association, for which she also served as a spokesperson during its Organic Fortnight from 6 to 21 September 2008.^[12][17]

Philanthropy

Goldsmith often supports London-based charities. She has been a committee member for the HOPING foundation.^[18] She is also a supporter of Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity,^[19] for which she helped organize a fund-raising fashion show with the designers Valentine Robinson, who also designed her wedding dress.^[20]

Bibliography

• A Slice of Organic Life: Get Closer to the Soil Without Going the Whole Hog. Dorling Kindersley. 2007. 
• A Greener Christmas. Dorling Kindersley. 2008. 

References