How can we thrive, build strong communities and help in the transition from a fossil-fuel based lifestyle?

Question

Little Robber Girl, I loved the "World Changing" link.

Answer 1

We can start by replacing old light bulbs with CFLs...

Check out our site. We are doing a major project in our Environmental Science class...

http://clik.to/a-bright-idea

Answer 2

Maybe we can beg Al Gore to run for President, short of this I foresee no other alternative.

Answer 3

Well first, you must have something to transition too,

So what will it be?  

Nuclear?  not in my back yard

Wind?      not with my view

Solar?      not enough space to do the job

So what?  Are you willing to give up your PC, TV, washer dryer oven range, all the things that use more power than can be created by solar?   Probably not

Are you will to anger your neighbors by installing something like a wind turbine that will make noise and kill birds and be seen from blocks away?  probably not

so whats it going to be?

Answer 4

http://www.transitiontowns.org/

http://transitionculture.org/

http://www.greenbooks.co.uk/store/produc...

http://practicalaction.org/?id=home

http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/00...

and wot mark anthony said.

edit; yes, good site, and some really right-on people contributing to the comments too.

i love the new (to me) category "Bright Green" mentioned here;

http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/00...

Answer 5

Transcend ourselves and accept the fact that we are one part of this world, not the pinnacle of it.

Everything will flow from this.

1) We will never thrive so long as we refuse to limit our population.  Ancient cultures limited their populations with ritual and taboo because to do otherwise meant extinction of the tribe.

2) Strong communities are built when everyone has a stake.  When we are divided by class, when some are allowed to perpetuate inequalities at the expense of others, there will be discord.  I am not calling for a command economy; I am calling for fairness, which is solely lacking at the present.

3) We can all help by demanding less.  Accepting a sense of "enoughness" in our lives.  Accepting the fact that what we consume is really, truly obscene in comparison to the other 4/5's of the world today and all of humanity that came before us.

This is the frame work.  The details to accomplish this have been proposed over and over by progressives for over 50 years.  Why are the suggestions, which make total sense even if you take the environmental factor out of it, ignored?

Right now we operate with one big open ended loop.  We take resources and dump waste with no consideration of where it comes from or where it goes.

Let’s make each dwelling, each business, each homestead a small loop.  Solar cell, solar flat plate, windmill,  smart grid connection, ground source, cistern, composting toilet, intensive garden, workshop, tools, material storage.

And love, life, work, play, life and death.  

You know, my children were delivered by mid-wife.  We had to be in the hospital because of complications.  I'm grateful (more than grateful) that the hospital was there; but the central control of everything, this obsession with specialization and profit doesn't have to drive everything.  We can have both.

We could end the centralized production of power and waste disposal and end our reliance on foreign oil and fossil fuels once and for all.

If only we had the will to do it.

Answer 6

Comprehensive Energy Plan To Lower Gasoline Prices and Help Solve Global Warming

This is how we will do it. And this why we will do it.

This country has so much under used industrial capacity in our Auto Plants, Airplane Plants, Steel Plants and Electronics Plants to make America Energy Independent in 2 to 5 years. We can build enough windmills and solar power and wave generation energy plants to replace 90% of all of the electricity generated by COAL and NATURAL GAS.

For under $400 Billion we could build 400,000 windmills.

The Coal and Natural Gas saved by Green Replaceable Elecrrical Generation can now be used to make fuel for cars, trucks, busses, boats and airplanes, and or plastics, chemicals, fertilizers and pharmacuticals.

We need a comprehensive plan that puts America back to work in endeavors that benefit 99% of America and Cleans Up Our Environment.

Howard Scott Pearlman

Answer 7

I am sure there are many different ideas on how we could learn to thrive and build a strong communities.  The lack of unity within our nation will be the obstacle and that is underlying problem.  When  a person comes to the realization the world does not revolve around them they will not change let alone a community.  For me,I found through the faith of which I believe that it is more noble to sacrifice for others.  We are a materialistic nation, and because of that we have lost the value of human relationships and place greater value in things verses people.  When we has a people place value in each other then we will thrive as a community and that in itself will be the solution to more then environmental issues.