The October 2010 Transition Network Newsletter

Reports this month come from countries including the Netherlands, Italy, Sweden, Canada, USA, New Zealand, Australia as well as around the UK. 

 

This new Transition book by Alexis Rowell is designed to inform and inspire councils and councillors, as well as local environmental activists, community groups and Transition Initiatives. While central government is busy setting targets they know they will never have to meet, local government can break the logjam of helplessness, denial and despair over climate change and peak oil. 

 

You can read the Forward to the book by Rob  Hopkins here

 

And order copies here

 

Plus enter a competition to win a copy 

Thanks to those good people at Green Books, we have 5 copies to give away in our easy-to-enter competition.  So get your thinking cap on, and here we go… As you have hopefully noticed, we have now published 4 books in this ‘Transition Books’ ‘local’ series: Local Food, Local Money, Local Sustainable Homes and now this one (which line up beautifully next to each other on a bookshelf … you should try it…)  What do you think should be the next title in the series?   Every entry, whatever the suggestion, will go in a hat, and the winners drawn out at midday on Friday 15th October 2010. (UK delivery only). To enter, simply email an idea, however well thought out, silly or throwaway, to rob [at] transitionculture.org. 

 

 

The Conservative party in the UK have announced a flagship initiative called the Big Society. The stated aim is “to create a climate that empowers local people and communities, building a big society that will ‘take power away from politicians and give it to people’.

 

At the end of September, an invited group met in Bristol to examine from a Transition perspective Big Society’s implications and associated threats and opportunities and discuss how we might shape its future development.

 

With a forward by Transition Network Chair Pete Lipman and written by two of the driving forces behind Transtion Tooting, Lucy Neal and Hilary Jennings, a new report from Sustainable Ability explores the importance of the arts in behavioural change.

 

The report firstly makes a start to map the growing response to both resource scarcity and climate change by individuals and organisations in the UK arts and cultural sector. It also begins to assemble information, which might help deepen our understanding of the practical and behavioural barriers preventing greater breadth and depth of response to both issues.

 

You can view the report online and download the pdf here:

 

 

Earlier this year Transition Town West Kirby did a survey of allotment waiting lists in England. They found that the average waiting list has increased from 49 to 59 people waiting per 100 plots (a 20% increase) and there is no sign that the increase in demand for allotments is slowing down. This amounts to a total number of people waiting for allotments around England is 94,124.  

 

An MP has submitted an Early Day Motion (EDM 687) for debate. To-date 28 MPs have signed the Motion and author of the report, Margaret Campbell, is asking Transition groups around the England to check if their MP has signed the motion and if they have have, thank them for their support and offer to meet with them to discuss the situation in their constituency and if they haven’t, to seek their support.

 

 

Is “critical thinking” the only reliable way of knowing? A group from Totnes met to explore the following four questions:

 

 

Since Transition US was founded just two years ago, 75 Transition Communities have formed — in rural areas like Hay River, Wisconsin; cities like Houston, Texas; and even the largest metropolitan area in the US: Los Angeles, California. Now, Transition US is taking a bold step and seeking to raise $200,000 by the end of the year, to give this burgeoning movement a big boost at a critical time. 

 

Here’s the best part: every dollar you contribute will be matched through a challenge grant going through The Post Carbon Institute, if we hit our $100,000 Challenge Goal. 

 

The Findhorn Ecovillage in Scotland have made a short film intended to inspire and empower Transition Initiatives called The Turning Point. As well as practical examples of low carbon enterprise, the 40 min film features inspiring commentary from Joanna Macy, Richard Heinberg, Rob Hopkins and Dorothy Maclean, among others. They are willing to send a free DVD of the film to up to 200 Transition groups anywhere in the world that are interested in showing the film at an awareness-raising event (offer open up to the end of October). 

 

 

 

Braziers Park, December 1st-3rd

Calling all facilitators and trainers who have expertise in group process. This is an an exciting, experimental opportunity to become part of a collaborative training community!

 

We are experimenting with how to evolve the next generation of training we offer to Transition Initiatives. Our intention is to develop the next generation of training for Transition Initiatives, and to widen the group of people who are involved in creating and delivering training and make this process open and collaborative.

 

The idea is to set up a dreaming circle, where ideas and practice can be shared and explored. Because group work is crucial to Transition, we’ll be focusing on how to set up and sustain fun and effective groups as the first in what we hope will be a series of Dreaming Circles.

 

19-21st November, Hanover

Participants are expected from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Benelux, and other places. It will be primarily a German-speaking conference

 

20 – 21st November,  Edinburgh 

This conference is a truly international feast and will be a fantastic opportunity to see how Transition can make new alliances and work with the other movements and initiatives which are all aiming at reclaiming our creative, collaborative, place-based way of living.

 

 

 

 

We’re moving off the old wiki at the end of 2010. This is an update for all those initiatives using the old wiki for their website, and those newly interested in the ‘Community Microsites’.

 

Ever wondered what was happening transition-wise near you? Ever wondered what that those other two transition towns in your vicinity were up to? Ever needed to find another like-minded person you could actually spend some face-to-face time with to discuss your transition efforts/successes/woes?

 

No, it’s not as weird as it sounds. Twibbons are little ‘badges’ you add to your twitter profile to show your support. it takes a couple of moments to do, doesn’t do any harm, and is a bit of fun, as well as saying ‘Yup, I’m a transitioner’.

 

 

---

Newsletter planned to be on the first Friday of the month.

 

Newsletter Editor: Mike Grenville, from Transition Forest Row

Contact: transitionnetworknews@googlemail.com

+44 (0)1342 825169

 

Read the October 2010 newsletter online here