December 2015 – Transition Network Newsletter

Inside reports from COP21 and starting our exploration of ways to re-tell the Transition Story headline this month’s newsletter. We also hear of research on Inner Transition in Canada, REconomy goes to Wigan, you can listen to a new Transition song from SWIMBY and recalling the cold winter of 1963. Plus a Training update and book reviews.

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By the time you read this, it is likely that some kind of agreement will have been reached at COP21, although we don’t yet know the details.  Various Transitioners were, and still are, in Paris, and have documented their experiences and insights here.  You can read about being inside COP21, the French launch of ’21 Stories of Transition’, the bizarre spectacle of the ‘Solutions COP21’ event, the Human Chain, the Village of Alternatives, the amazing film Demain, and just what it was like being in Paris over those days, and much more besides. 

 

Rob Hopkins, Chris Bird, Naresh Giangrande and Henry Owen all wrote blogs, with others to come from Sarah Ayech and others.  Over on the Transition Italia blog, Luca Lombroso has also been blogging from COP.  We hope you find them an interesting and useful insights into this unique moment in history.  
www.transitionnetwork.org/cop21

 

21 Stories for Christmas

In case you are stuck wondering what to buy the Transitioner in your life for Christmas, might we suggest the wonderful ’21 Stories of Transition’, our full colour immersion in Transition in 15 countries and what they are up to. It’s selling like hotcakes, but there are some left. Have a look here, and order your copy in English or in French.
https://cop21.transitionnetwork.org/#testimonials

 

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THEME: The Transition Story

Time to stop talking about climate change?
Would Transition benefit from redefining itself as “a movement of communities coming together to reimagine and rebuild our world” and spend less time talking about the issues that drive why we do what we want to do?
www.transitionnetwork.org/blogs/rob-hopkins/2015-11/transition-story-time-stop-talking-about-climate-change

Telling the Transition Story – a workshop
A video of the workshop Sarah McAdam and Rob Hopkins presented at the 2015 Transition Network International Conference. It gives brief overview of the basic idea of a new way of telling the Transition story and suggested story flow. It goes into the discussion in more depth and which includes the questions and debate it generated.
www.transitionnetwork.org/blogs/rob-hopkins/2015-11/new-video-telling-transition-story-workshop

Reflections from Chile
The first Chile National Hub meeting reflected on new ways of telling the Transition story.
www.transitionnetwork.org/blogs/rob-hopkins/2015-12/transition-story-reflections-chile

 On Balance and Burnout

Our theme on the website for January and February is going to be Balance and Burnout, and we’d love to hear from you. Have you suffered from burnout while being involved in Transition? What insights might you have from that that you’d like to share? What strategies have you developed for coping with that? If you would like to share thoughts, or produce something for the website, please contact Rob at robhopkins@transitionnetwork.org. Thanks. 

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INNER TRANSITION

Inner Transition in Canada
Anne Rucchetto and Blake Poland: Lessons from their research into how inner Transition is integrated within initiatives in Canada.
www.transitionnetwork.org/blogs/sophy-banks/2015-11/guest-blog-anne-rucchetto-and-blake-poland-lessons-inner-transition-canada

 

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REconomy 

The Road from Wigan Pier
Delighted to announce the next in the REconomy series of regional events in the UK. This year we have been in Devon, Powys and now looking forward to Wigan. The political idea of a ‘Northern Powerhouse’ is growing. But what is its purpose? What is our response? How do we benefit?
www.reconomy.org/reconomy-north-west-the-road-from-wigan-pier/

 

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THINKING ALOUD

Of Climates Past: 1963, the last time the River Thames froze
2015 looks 97% likely to be the hottest year on record.
www.transitionnetwork.org/blogs/rob-hopkins/2015-12/climates-past-1963-last-time-river-thames-froze

The most beautiful song about Transition yet created?
Songs about Transition, tend to be universally dire. For some time Rob has been on the lookout for a song that somehow captures the essence of what it is that we do, a kind of (inter)national anthem for Transition. As part of SWIMBY, lyricist Matt Harvey, composer Thomas Hewitt-Jones and producer Chloe Uden have created a song called ‘In Our Own Back Yard’ which is as close to that as he has yet found.
https://youtu.be/i6Ebg_5GbTg

 

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BOOK REVIEWS

Austerity Ecology & the Collapse-Porn Addicts by Leigh Phillips.
A tirade which starts out attempting to sound rational and informed, but which as the book goes on, loses the plot entirely.
www.transitionnetwork.org/blogs/rob-hopkins/2015-11/book-review-austerity-ecology-collapse-porn-addicts-leigh-phillips

21 Stories of Transition Reviews 

• Author John Thackara on his Doors of Perception blog agrees that “something brilliant and historic is already underway”  as evidenced by the projects in the book.
  www.transitionnetwork.org/blogs/rob-hopkins/2015-11/john-thackara-reviews-21-stories-transition
• Writer and theatremaker Lucy Neal surveys the fresh fields of imagination mapped by 21 Stories of Transition.  
  www.transitionnetwork.org/blogs/rob-hopkins/2015-11/lucy-neal-reviews-21-stories-transition
• The 21 Stories might provide another watershed moment for Erik Lindberg of Transition Milwaukee
  www.transitionnetwork.org/blogs/rob-hopkins/2015-11/review-21-stories-transition-and-great-imagining-why-transition-matters

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Freelance opportunity – help us build our translation capacities 
Transition Network is looking to establish a freelance contract with an individual (or, potentially, a partnership/small enterprise) with the skills, experience and commitment to design and develop support materials, processes and tools to expand the International Transition movement’s language translation capacities. 

More info here
http://www.transitionnetwork.org/freelance-opportunity-help-us-build-our-translation-capacities

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TRAINING

A range of Transition Trainings are available in the UK and internationally:
www.transitionnetwork.org/events/network-training

Transition Thrive is happening in Wales in the new year. 
www.transitionnetwork.org/events/2016-01-09/transition-thrive 
What is Thrive? www.transitionnetwork.org/training/courses/thrive

And Launch online in English will be starting on January 12th: 
www.transitionnetwork.org/events/2016-01-12/launch-online-january-march-2016 
What is Launch online? 
www.transitionnetwork.org/training/courses/launch-online

 

 

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QUOTE OF THE MONTH

“There is no power for change greater than a community discovering what it cares about”.
Margaret Wheatley 

 

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Events
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Film Reviews
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Resources — Editor’s Picks
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Find previous editions of the newsletter here 
transitionnetwork.org/tags/transition-network-newsletter 

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This newsletter is published on the first Friday of each month. 

Editor: Mike Grenville