Transition US Newsletter - Scaling Up Community Resilience, Just Monetary Systems, TUS Service Opportunities, and More...

February 2016 E-Newsletter

Scaling Up Community Resilience in the Shadow of Chevron

Transition US is offering some exciting online events this month, including a conversation with Doria Robinson from Urban Tilth. Register here and check out our full calendar.

What's Happening in Transition...

New Academic Book on Transition Offers Interesting Perspective on the Movement
There is a paradox at the very heart of global governance. Explore it in this excerpt from Climate, Commons, and Hope: The Transition Movement in Global Perspective, via Resilience.org.

Transition is Inevitable. Justice is Not.
How can you be sure your work in Transition is not further marginalizing working-class communities and people of color? Check out the recording and transcripts of this provocative discussion on transition and social justice, with Movement Generation's Mateo Nube.

Transition Streets Earns Honorable Mention in OpenIDEO Design Challenge
In an international open-source collaborative design challenge through OpenIDEO, Transition Streets has has received honorable mention as a 'Climate Innovator.' Transition Streets brings neighbors together to implement practical actions that reduce waste and save resources. Learn more about Transition Streets here.

Transition US: Opportunities to Serve!
As we continue growing the Transition Movement in 2016, Transition US is asking for community support (and not only in the form of financial contributions). Our staff has compiled a simple wish list of needs (including functioning laptops), and there are numerous volunteer and internship opportunities with Transition US. If you belong to a high-functioning Transition Initiative, you may also consider joining our 2016 Collaborative Design Council to facilitate communication within our movement at a national level. Thanks for collaborating!

Stories from the Movement

Sustainable Berea Celebrates 10 Years!
Read this dispatch from Berea, Kentucky - one of the first Transition Towns in America - and see how a small group of committed individuals stepped up, made meaningful community partnerships, and established themselves as a real all-star in the national Transition Movement. Congratulations to our friends in Sustainable Berea!

Berea Transitioner and 'Thoughtful Coal-Miner' Blogs his Way Across America

Meet Appalachian coal miner Nick Mullins, member of Sustainable Berea. Awakened to the ecological truth and inspired to share his experience, Nick and his family just completed their 2015 Breaking Clean Tour, speaking across the country about mountaintop removal, mining, and their environmental consequences. Click here to read their blog.

Transition Media Launches Solarize! Project
Transition Town Media, PA has partnered with local and regional planning departments to launch a new initiative that makes it easier than ever for people to go solar. Talk about 'building a bridge to local government'! Watch and learn.

Jamaica Plain New Economy Transition Welcomes 2016 Fellows
JP NET, a Transition-inspired "neighborhood effort to create a local economy that works for everyone," is cultivating young leaders with essential skills and a passion for a better tomorrow. Meet their 2016 fellows here, and learn more about the great resilience work going on in this Boston neighborhood.

Interested in starting a Transition Initiative?
Browse the US initiatives map and learn more about becoming an Official Transition Initiative!

Webinars and Online Events

Scaling Up Community Resilience in the Shadow of Chevron, with Doria Robinson of Urban Tilth
Wednesday, February 10, 11:00am-12:15pm PST
Join us to learn from community resilience leader Doria Robinson about the model of Urban Tilth, a high-impact grassroots organization based in Richmond, CA. Urban Tilth hires and trains residents to work with schools, community-based organizations, government agencies, businesses and individuals to develop the capacity to produce 5% of the community's food supply. Read more about this upcoming event here.

How to Transition to a Just Monetary System, with Scott Morris of Ithacash and Chong Kee Tan of Bay Bucks
Wednesday, February 10, 11:00am-12:15pm PST
If we want to successfully transition to an environmentally sustainable future, we must tackle the transition to an economically sustainable monetary system. Join Scott Morris and Chong Kee Tan, founders of local currency projects Ithacash and Bay Bucks, for a webinar on the essential characteristics of a just economy, and how to implement them in your local community.

See all upcoming events >>

Resources

Burnout Tip #1: See Enthusiasm as a Resource
In our vital work as community organizers and activists, it is more important than ever that we nurture ourselves and practice excellent self-care. In this audio blog series, Chris Johnstone offers 5 tips for avoiding burnout altogether, the first of which is to cherish enthusiasm, the wind in our sails. Listen here.

With US Elections Looming, Climate Justice Icon Richard Heinberg Renews Call for a Carbon Tax
Carbon taxes constitute a widely discussed policy tool for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and slowing humanity's headlong rush toward catastrophic climate change. Taxing energy from fossil fuels makes that energy more expensive, thereby making renewable energy comparatively cheaper. Read the full piece by the Post Carbon Institute's senior fellow.

With 'Our Power Campaign' Local Communities Unite Nationwide for a Just Transition
The Our Power Campaign will move local and state governments to create millions of climate jobs - jobs that meet people's needs while caring for natural resources and ecosystems. Pilot programs in building local living economies have been established in towns nationwide. Read more about this project here.

My Year of Magical Tidying: How Getting Rid of Two-Thirds of My Belongings Created More Space for Joy
The time for spring cleaning is almost upon us. In a culture characterized by overconsumption, decluttering can be a real radical act. Click here to read the full article, originally published in Yes! Magazine. Thinking about observing Lent this year? This blog post from the Center for a New American Dream suggests giving up plastic.

'Healthy Home, Healthy Planet' Features Positive Energy Renovated Home
Henry David Thoreau once asked, "What's the use of a house if you haven't got a tolerable planet to put it on?" Follow the journey of one family in Gloucester, MA, as they convert their home into a net energy producer, ditch the electricity bills, and become a part of the climate solution. Watch the video here.

The Town Where Everyone is a Developer
Join Transition Movement founder Rob Hopkins in Totnes, UK, for a TEDx talk recorded in September, 2015. Here, Hopkins discusses a ground-breaking idea which places town planning in the hands of the community. Grassroots design of resilient local systems, by the people and for the people, is the essence of this Transition Movement. Check it out!