I’ve written quite a bit here over the last few years on the Transition Town movement. For those not familiar with the initiative, it involves the preparation and certification of towns attempting to address the duel challenges of climate change and peak oil proactively. It basically involves analyzing local food production, energy use, etc, and then setting about a deliberate course of patching holes and fixing what needs to be fixed before we enter the much scaled down period in human history that’s on the horizon. Well, I’ happy to report that, after a few fits and starts, it looks as though the local Transition Town movement is getting some traction. And, there’s a open meeting here in Ypsi on Monday, February 1 for those who are interested. The meeting will be held at Bombadill’s (217 West Michigan Avenue), and it’s scheduled to begin at 7:00 PM.
Among the things being discussed in this visioning session, according to organizer Lisa Bashert, are affordable alternative energy, native landscaping, energy and water reduction, bee keeping, local eating, urban chickens, gardening, composting, local retail, the possibility of starting a Transition book club (i.e. The Transition Handbook: From Oil Dependency to Local Resilience, Depletion and Abundance: Life on the New Home Front, etc.) and establishing a series of local skills training classes (darning, sewing, canning and preserving, salves, carpentry, fixing & re-use, gardening).
4 Comments
Mark,
Chelsea Green publishes “The Transition Handbook” (and other sustainable living and transition-themed books). A number of Transition Initiatives order directly from us, as we offer both retailer and non-retailer discounts. Feel free to email me if you are interested in the discounts we offer, as well as a complete list of our titles. Thank you.
Darrell Koerner
Midwest Regional Sales Manager
Chelsea Green Publishing
So, is anyone planning to attend? I don’t think I can make it, but I’d love to hear what was covered.
And, thanks for letting us know about your company, Darrell. I’ve been poking around the Chelsea Green site for a few minutes now, and it looks like you’re doing good work…. If you should happen to come back to this thread, I’d be curious to know how well the Transition Handbooks are selling, and whether you see it building? I’m wondering just how popular this movement is getting.
Hi Mark
So pleased to see you have Depletion and Abundance included – Sharon Astyk is one of our most prolific authors. Like Darrell, our books are focused on all aspects of sustainable living, and have been finding their way into a number of book groups – very gratifying for all of us in green publishing to see the message become so widespread.
We’re also happy to offer discounts to book groups.
Keep up the great work,
Ginny Miller
Marketing Coordinator
New Society Publishers
I personally devoured Depletion and Abundance, then went on to read all Sharon Astyk’s books.
I hope that many people will come out — this is about a grassroots approach, because it couldn’t be more clear that government leadership can’t cope with global warming or peak oil. We need, as Sharon Astyk so eloquently writes, to take responsibility for what we CAN control in our individual lives and communities. So that is the kind of actions that Transition Initiatives around the globe are inspiring — to strengthen the resilience and connectedness of our local communities.
List of ideas (gathered from many different people):
*Visioning sessions
*Book group with a Transition theme(ie. Transition Town Handbook,
Depletion and Abundance, etc.
*Classes (through Talk of the Neighborhood):
Re-skilling classes (darning,sewing,canning and preserving, salves,
carpentry, fixing & re-use, gardening)
Sustainability
Understanding climate change/peak oil
energy reduction
alternative energy
Native Landscaping
ABCs of Local Eating
Bee keeping 101 (being offered this Sat!)
Chickens 101
3 and 4 season gardens
Fruit trees
Seed starting
*City beekeeping group
*Pods for sharing gardening tools, skills, childcare among nearby
households
*Storytelling
*Holiday Sing (Dec 2010)
*Potlucks
*Transition Cafe
*Transition Topics on your own block with near neighbors
*Folk School (a giant long-term goal)
*Neighborhood Watch/ self defense class
*Seniors’ storytelling about earlier pre-consumerist times in Ypsi
These are just a few ideas offered by our neighbors. Some are already happening (through individual groups, Growing Hope, etc)
What do you want to see happen in 2010? I hope you will come out tomorrow night and share your ideas!