The Long Emergency
At the Natural Building Colloquium held in Santa Barbara, CA, last October, one of the discussion forums I attended was titled 'The Long Emergency.' I'm sure the name of this forum evolved from Howard Kunstler's famous book by the same title, which addresses surviving the end of oil, climate change and other converging catastrophes of the 21st century.
In this case, a panel was convened that included Michael G. Smith (author of several books about cob construction), Penny Livingston Stark of the Regenerative Design Institute, Janell Kapoor, founder of Kleiwerks International, and Derek Roff, the director of Builders without Borders.
The issues we discussed included climate change, environmental quality, the economy (which included unemployment, home ownership and inflation), and scarcity of resources (water, food, topsoil, building materials, fuel, etc.).
Starting a movement at home
When it came to finding solutions to these persisting problems, many people talked about dealing with these issues at a local level versus at a national level. It was suggested that you should go with the flow of chaos by plugging more into your community. To get more involved locally you can:
• Become acquainted with your neighbors and network with them.
• Connect with your area police departments, so that you are familiar with them in case of an emergency.
• Share your resources with others in your neighborhood when possible.
• Become involved with the creation of a local currency, so that money that is spent and earned in a community stays there.
• Take advantage of new governmental positions related to sustainability.
Another idea that was discussed during this forum was 'passive survivability.' This idea focuses on people becoming more self-sufficient in terms of food and energy. For example:
• Grow some of your own food in personal or communal gardens.
• Participate in community-supported agricultural projects.
• Install renewable energy technology so you can become less reliant on grid power or fossil fuels.
To help create a more sustainable and healthy environment, people can also use natural materials when building or remodeling their home. These materials are generally non-toxic and are biodegradable.
As people decide to become more environmentally active, they should continue to educate themselves on the issues and remain positive and not put down or judge others with differing opinions. The best way to encourage more people to join the eco-movement is to spread the word about solutions through contact with the media and to collaborate with other organizations and groups with similar goals.
Transition towns
Recently, 'transition towns' have begun to pop up throughout the world. These are towns where people have come together to make a commitment to address environmental and sustainable living issues at a local level. Citizens can share experiences and make suggestions for ways to address local issues. In addition, they can take advantage of an increasing awareness through a larger organization. You might take a look at some of the material presented at Transitiontowns.org to find out more about this movement.
If you pay attention to nature, which is beautiful, powerful, and regenerative, you can find many solutions.
Kelly Hart is the producer of GreenHomebuilding.com and DreamGreenhomes.com.
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