There are moves towards a carbon aware/global warming initiative in our community. Funding is available, and there is some interest amongst the great and the good. So I have been taking a closer look at 'Transition Towns' and what's been set up in other communities. Wonderful things have been achieved in towns, cities and glens across the world. People are developing the resilience to survive and thrive in a changing climate (environmental, social and economic), and to lessen their impact on an already battered planet. All good stuff, to be applauded, celebrated, and imitated.
What I think a shame is how dry and depressing is so much of the literature. Transition information seems always to begin with gloomy talk of peak oil and climate change. Of course these are very real aspects of our times, which will no doubt have grave effects on us all in the coming years. But to begin this way in persuading people to join in on all the fun of developing their community is surely to preach to the converted and put off all the rest.
Transition developments include local food networks. People are increasingly interested in knowing about where their food comes from, and are proud to know the growers of their carrots and the curers of their bacon. Folks brag about how ethical and locally sourced their eggs are, or their cut flowers. And rightly so!
In our area some thought is going into how we might begin to source firewood from within the community. We live in a wooded glen, yet much of the wood burned here doesn't even come from this county. At the same time many of us would love to get out into the woods and saw, chop and stack. It's fun, it keeps you fit, it is a pleasing set of skills to develop, and a great sense of camaraderie tends to develop among foresters young and old. It is, in short, a grand day out. Harvesting timber for building and cabinet making is also a real possibility. Our new porch is built almost entirely from timber cut 3 miles away. The benches and boot locker within it will be made from ash cut here on the holding. I'm bragging: I'm pleased and proud!
This stuff is pleasing. And through it we develop a greater sense of involvement with and ownership of our lives. Not in a worthy, isn't this world crazy, we're all doomed kind of way. No - in a fun, friendly, active, interesting, learning, enlightening way. Sharing skills, learning from each other, and gaining delicious healthy food or a hearty stack of firewood is likely to precede an evening of shared food, drink and music, even to become the beginning of lifelong friendships...
Another idea here in Strathardle is to create a lift sharing scheme to make trips into town more enjoyable. Yes, it will mean that less cars frighten the road, less fuel is burned, and our cars will last longer. But surely the greatest and most noticeable benefit will be the blether and the bonding. It seems to me that most environmentally beneficial approaches to life are like this. Let's talk about what we can do that is fun, and friendly, and interesting, and begin here.
