Isabel Losada is a British author of narrative non-fiction. Her most recent full-length books (''The Battersea Park Road to Paradise'', ''Sensation'' and ''The Joyful Environmentalist'') combine humour with a serious look at their subject matters and are true-life accounts of her own experiences.Isabel Losada. From NLP to Enlightenment
Rapport magazine, Issue 15, Spring 2009. She has one daughter and lives in

Battersea Battersea is a large district in south London, part of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross and extends along the south bank of the River Thames. It includes the Battersea Park. History Batter ...

, London.Writer goes to work in bookshop window
London Evening Standard, 21 September 2011

Books

''New Habits''

''New Habits'' ( Hodder) examines happiness among

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

nuns. When a friend announced that she was going to become a nun (or more correctly a 'religious'), the author decided to interview ten more young women who were making the same choice to join a range of different Christian communities ranging from enclosed contemplative communities to

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

communities. The interviews cover the women's feelings about the vows of poverty, celibacy and obedience as well as describing other details of the daily life of a religious sister. The book is included in the Diocesan Directors of Ordinands recommended reading list for those exploring vocation.

''The Battersea Park Road to Enlightenment''

''The Battersea Park Road to Enlightenment'' (Bloomsbury) is an exploration of the subject of happiness. In it she tries out many of the 'New Age' courses available in the UK that claim to offer routes to inner peace and personal fulfilment. The book explores

Insight Seminars Insight Seminars is an international non-profit organization headquartered in Santa Monica, California. The first seminar was led in 1978 by founders John-Roger and Russell Bishop under the name Insight Training Seminars. Insight has held seminars ...

tai chi Tai chi (), short for Tai chi ch'üan ( zh, s=太极拳, t=太極拳, first=t, p=Tàijíquán, labels=no), sometimes called "shadowboxing", is an neijia, internal Chinese martial art practiced for defense training, health benefits and medita ...

, a retreat in an Anglican convent,

astrology Astrology is a range of Divination, divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of Celestial o ...

Tantric sexuality Neotantra, navatantra (Sanskrit: नव, ''nava'' 'new') or tantric sexuality, is the modern, Western misinterpretation of Tantra associated with new religious movements. This includes both New Age and modern Western interpretations of traditional ...

,Truly, slowly, deeply
Guardian, 24 March 2001. Co-Dependent's Anonymous,

colonic irrigation Colon cleansing, also known as colon therapy, or colon hydrotherapy, or a colonic, or colonic irrigation encompasses a number of alternative medical therapies claimed to remove unspecified toxins from the colon and intestinal tract by remo ...

rebirthing-breathwork Breathwork is a New Age term for various breathing practices in which the conscious control of breathing is said to influence a person's mental, emotional or physical state, with a claimed therapeutic effect. There is limited evidence that breathw ...

past life regression Past life regression is a method that uses hypnosis to recover what practitioners believe are memories of past lives or incarnations. The practice is widely considered discredited and unscientific by medical practitioners, and experts generally re ...

with Roger Woolger various forms of massage including stone massage and

Kahuna ''Kahuna'' is a Hawaiian language, Hawaiian word that refers to an expert in any field. Historically, it has been used to refer to doctors, surgeons and dentists, as well as priests, ministers, and sorcerers. Background A ''kahuna'' may be ver ...

Hawaiian massage,

neuro-linguistic programming Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) is a pseudoscientific approach to communication, personal development and psychotherapy, that first appeared in Richard Bandler and John Grinder's 1975 book ''The Structure of Magic I''. NLP claims that th ...

, an

anger management Anger management is a psycho-therapeutic program for anger prevention and control. It has been described as deploying anger successfully.Schwarts, Gil. July 2006. Anger Management', July 2006 The Office Politic. Men's Health magazine. Emmaus, PA: ...

workshop, and a workshop on

angels In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...

with

William Bloom William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

. The book was chosen as Radio 4's ''

Book of the Week ''Book of the Week'' is a BBC Radio 4 series that is broadcast daily on week days. Each week, extracts from the selected book, usually a non-fiction work, are read over five episodes; each fifteen-minute episode is broadcast in the morning (9:45a ...

'' and Isabel performed it herself for the series. The book went on to become a bestseller in the UK and has been translated into 15 languages including Japanese and Russian.

Oprah Radio Oprah Radio was a talk radio channel programmed by Harpo Productions' radio division, and was signed exclusively for Sirius XM Satellite Radio. The channel left satellite radio on December 31, 2014. Oprah Radio included regular programming on ...

host

Mehmet Oz Mehmet Cengiz Öz (; born June 11, 1960), known professionally as Dr. Oz (), is an Turkish American former professor of cardiothoracic surgery at Columbia University, television presenter, author and former political candidate. The son of Tur ...

called the book "a fantastically cool endeavour".

''For Tibet, with Love. A Beginner's Guide to Changing the World''

''For Tibet, with Love. A Beginner's Guide to Changing the World'' (Bloomsbury) explores what one person can do to make a difference, in this case to the

sinicization of Tibet Sinicization of Tibet includes the programs and laws of the Chinese government and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) which force "cultural unity" in Tibetan areas of China, including the Tibet Autonomous Region and surrounding Tibetan-designated ...

. The book was republished in 2005 reversing the title and subtitle so became 'A Beginner's Guide to Changing the World' (which was also the title of the US edition). This second UK edition also had a different

ISBN The International Standard Book Number (ISBN) is a numeric commercial book identifier that is intended to be unique. Publishers purchase ISBNs from an affiliate of the International ISBN Agency. An ISBN is assigned to each separate edition and ...

. In 2010 Bloomsbury brought out a new third edition, with a new preface under the original title. In this book Isabel travels to

Lhasa Lhasa (; Lhasa dialect: ; bo, text=ལྷ་ས, translation=Place of Gods) is the urban center of the prefecture-level city, prefecture-level Lhasa (prefecture-level city), Lhasa City and the administrative capital of Tibet Autonomous Regio ...

explores how individuals and groups can use the media to raise awareness and influence public opinion and finally travels to

Dharamsala Dharamshala (; also spelled Dharamsala) is the winter capital of Himachal Pradesh, India. It serves as administrative headquarters of the Kangra district after being relocated from Kangra, a city located away from Dharamshala, in 1855. The ...

to interview the

14th Dalai Lama The 14th Dalai Lama (spiritual name Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, known as Tenzin Gyatso (Tibetan: བསྟན་འཛིན་རྒྱ་མཚོ་, Wylie: ''bsTan-'dzin rgya-mtsho''); né Lhamo Thondup), known as ...

''Men''

''Men'' (Virgin / Random House) is a humorous examination of the widely experienced sociological phenomenon of there being many more single and available women over the age of 40 in our cities than men and answers the question "Where are all the interesting and available men?" The book considers the many factors that have produced this discrepancy including an interview with

Simon Baron-Cohen Sir Simon Philip Baron-Cohen (born 15 August 1958) is a British clinical psychologist and professor of developmental psychopathology at the University of Cambridge. He is the director of the university's Autism Research Centre and a Fellow of ...

, which details the differences between the male and the female brain.

''The Battersea Park Road to Paradise''

''The Battersea Park Road to Paradise'', (Five Adventures in Being and Doing) (Watkins) explores Feng Shui, Anthony Robbins,

Vipassana ''Samatha'' (Pāli; sa, शमथ ''śamatha''; ), "calm," "serenity," "tranquillity of awareness," and ''vipassanā'' (Pāli; Sanskrit ''vipaśyanā''), literally "special, super (''vi-''), seeing (''-passanā'')", are two qualities of the ...

Advaita ''Advaita Vedanta'' (; sa, अद्वैत वेदान्त, ) is a Hindu sādhanā, a path of spiritual discipline and experience, and the oldest extant tradition of the orthodox Hindu school Vedānta. The term ''Advaita'' (lit ...

and

Shamanism Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a Spirit world (Spiritualism), spirit world through Altered state of consciousness, altered states of consciousness, such as tranc ...

was published in 2011. This book begins by exploring the impact of our environment and ends with an exploration of the nature of consciousness itself through the teacher Mooji and ends with an experience of taking Ayawaska with the Ashaninka in the Amazonian Rainforest.

''Sensation''

''Sensation'' ( Watkins) is Losada's account of a year spent exploring the subject of sex between

heterosexual Heterosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction or sexual behavior between people of the opposite sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, heterosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to ...

couples, and in particular what makes sex into good sex in long term and loving relationships. The research for the book involved participation in various courses, couple workshops, women-only weekends and attending the first international conference on Orgasmic Meditation. The book, part memoir and part manifesto in the cause for better relationships between men and women, has been praised for its honesty about a subject often shrouded in fear and

shame Shame is an unpleasant self-conscious emotion often associated with negative self-evaluation; motivation to quit; and feelings of pain, exposure, distrust, powerlessness, and worthlessness. Definition Shame is a discrete, basic emotion, d ...

despite the so-called

sexual revolution The sexual revolution, also known as the sexual liberation, was a social movement that challenged traditional codes of behavior related to sexuality and interpersonal relationships throughout the United States and the developed world from the 1 ...

. Sensation was also chosen as the 'Non-Fiction Book of the Month' by ''

The Bookseller ''The Bookseller'' is a British magazine reporting news on the publishing industry. Philip Jones is editor-in-chief of the weekly print edition of the magazine and the website. The magazine is home to the ''Bookseller''/Diagram Prize for Oddest ...

'' magazine.

''The Joyful Environmentalist''

''The Joyful Environmentalist. How to Practice Without Preaching'' ( Watkins) is Losada's collection of stories, reflections and ideas about the steps that an individual can take to help save the environment and the planet. As well as tips to reduce the use of

plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptab ...

, switching to renewable energy,

ethical banking An ethical bank, also known as a social, alternative, civic, or sustainable bank, is a bank concerned with the social and environmental impacts of its investments and loans. The ethical banking movement includes: ethical investment, Impact invest ...

, sustainable clothing choices, and gardening for

biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...

, Losada recounts her personal experiences of planting native trees in the Highlands of Scotland, playing Samba drums with

Extinction Rebellion Extinction Rebellion (abbreviated as XR) is a global environmental movement, with the stated aim of using nonviolent civil disobedience to compel government action to avoid tipping points in the climate system, biodiversity loss, and the risk o ...

and visiting

Knepp Wildland Knepp Wildland is the first major lowland rewilding project in England. It comprises of former arable and dairy farmland in the grounds of Knepp Castle, in West Sussex, England. Since 2000 when the conversion from intensive agriculture start ...

(a pioneering rewilding project). The environmental and political activist

George Monbiot George Joshua Richard Monbiot ( ; born 27 January 1963) is a British writer known for his environmental and political activism. He writes a regular column for ''The Guardian'' and is the author of a number of books. Monbiot grew up in Oxfordsh ...

is quoted as saying about the book, "this is the joy we need in our lives". A short extract from the book, which lists ten recommended trees and shrubs for the garden to attract birds, was reproduced in the Gardens Illustrated magazine. The book was awarded "Best overall

sustainability Specific definitions of sustainability are difficult to agree on and have varied in the literature and over time. The concept of sustainability can be used to guide decisions at the global, national, and individual levels (e.g. sustainable livi ...

book for 2022". According to the reviewers, it takes the reader on Losada's "own inspiring, and often hilarious, eco journey ... it's a genuinely enjoyable read for anyone who is feeling eco anxious". In advance of the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27), Losada draws on her ideas in the book to offer some "specific actions" that "fellow environmentalists" can take.

Awards and nominations

In 2019 Isabel was awarded 'Author of the Year' by ''Kindred Spirit'' magazine. The magazine selected Isabel for the body of her work in the Mind Body Spirit sector and the award was secured by her popularity in a reader vote. In 2024, she was nominated as a "climate hero" by Down to Earth readers of

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

newspaper.

Talks and journalism

Isabel gives comedy talks and presentations about her work, particularly at literary and arts festivals such as, for example, the

Brighton Festival Brighton Festival is a large, annual, curated multi-arts festival in England. It includes music, theatre, dance, circus, art, film, literature, debate, outdoor and family events, and takes place in venues in the city of Brighton and Hove in Engla ...

, The Edinburgh International Book Festival, Ways With Words (Dartington) and the South Asian Literature Festival. As part of the 2011 SW11 Literary Festival she was "Author in Residence", which also involved spending nine days sat in the window of a

Waterstone's Waterstones, formerly Waterstone's, is a British book retailer that operates 311 shops, mainly in the United Kingdom and also other nearby countries. As of February 2014, it employs around 3,500 staff in the UK and Europe. An average-sized Wa ...

bookshop! She has been interviewed about her work on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

's Midweek, Start the Week,

Woman's Hour ''Woman's Hour'' is a radio magazine programme broadcast in the United Kingdom on the BBC Light Programme, BBC Radio 2, and later BBC Radio 4. It has been on the air since 1946. History Created by Norman Collins and originally presented by A ...

(several times) and Excess Baggage as well as for

Jeremy Vine Jeremy Guy Vine (born 17 May 1965) is an English television and radio personality, presenter, broadcaster and journalist. He is best known as the host of his BBC Radio 2 lunchtime programme which presents news, views, interviews with live guest ...

and Steve Wright on

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...

. She writes regularly for newspapers and journals,Isabel Losada's top 10 books about the Dalai Lama and Tibet
Guardian, Tuesday 1 June 2004 and the occasional blog. A short article on the "importance of knowing nothing" was published by the prestigious

Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...

in 2011. In May 2022 she gave a talk at the

Hay Festival The Hay Festival of Literature & Arts, better known as the Hay Festival ( cy, Gŵyl Y Gelli), is an annual literature festival held in Hay-on-Wye, Powys, Wales, for 10 days from May to June. Devised by Norman, Rhoda and Peter Florence in 1988, t ...

on ''The Joyful Environmentalist: How to Practise Without Preaching''.

Tibet

She has been a supporter of and active campaigner for the Tibetan cause for many years, and a founding member o
Act for Tibet
In 2003, during the writing of the book ''For Tibet, with Love '', she organised a stunt in

Trafalgar square Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster, Central London, laid out in the early 19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. At its centre is a high column bearing a statue of Admiral Nelson commemo ...

— a banner depicting the

Dalai Lama Dalai Lama (, ; ) is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The 14th and current Dal ...

was unfurled from the top of

Nelson's Column Nelson's Column is a monument in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, Central London, built to commemorate Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson's decisive victory at the Battle of Trafalgar over the combined French and Spanish navies, during whic ...

and a pro-Tibet campaigner made a parachute jump. Her list of 'top 10' books about the

and

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...

appeared in the Guardian.

The Battersea Literature Festival

In 2014 Isabel was invited to become the artistic director of The Battersea Literature Festival. A Festival that takes place in the first two weeks of September in various locations in Battersea which include The Battersea Arts Centre, The Battersea Power Station and local bookshops. Isabel described being given this opportunity as 'The dream job for an author between books.'

Patronage

Isabel is the Patron of the Charity 'Centrepieces'.

Bibliography

*''New Habits: Today's Women Who Choose to Become Nuns'' (1999) *''Battersea Park Road to Enlightenment'' (2001) *''For Tibet, with Love. A Beginner's Guide to Changing the World'' (2004) *''A Beginner's Guide to Changing the World: For Tibet, with Love'' (2005) *''100 Reasons to Be Glad'' (2006) *''Men! Where the **** Are They?'' (2007) *''The Battersea Park Road to Paradise'' (April 2011) *''Sensation'' (2017) *''The Joyful Environmentalist: How to Practise without Preaching'' (2020)

References

External links

Isabel Losada's Official website

Twitter