Fred Klammt wrote:I wish there was a USA version of 'retro-suburbia' and an organization that would support that.
I would say there is an organization like that... at least it's attempting to be. It's the
Transition Town movement.
Transition Town Network
Transition Town groups have started in most major US cities, as well as quite a few towns on the west coast. Here is the map for finding a Transition Town group near you:
Transition Town finder and map
And there is even a forum for Transition Towns in Permies:
Transition Towns forum
And within the organization was once a sub-grouping for Transition Streets. Maybe someone will start it again after starting their own street
permaculture like in the video above? Based on the notes, the way they were going about it doesn't seem anywhere as dynamic as how Shani Graham and her partner did.
In the notes of how the Transition Street groups worked, it seemed focused more on encouraging neighbors to change their behaviors to more eco-conscious ones - and that would get really annoying to me. Rather than building things or events that would unite and serve one's neighborhood, and leading by example.
Transition Streets - sub-movement (not currently active as of March 2019)
Our
local chapter Transition Town Joshua Tree is not big, but does organize group meetings and events periodically. And they are promoting
permaculture here is this very arid desert region. I think Transition Towns are a potential start if someone wants an organizational framework from which to share skills and ideas with others. But it will still be up to individuals to act within their own neighborhoods, of course.
That said, I think that the approach done in the video above - neighbors working with neighbors - will end up being more effective overall. It's as localized as one gets and all it takes is one initial organizer who is able to develop good relationships with neighbors. That would be more my style since I'm quite tired of groups, organizations, and committees. haha But the concepts could be combined and I can see how someone could use Transition Town groups as a forum or teaching venue to help develop neighborhood-sized groups across the US. Someone just needs to do it, document it, and share it so others can see how to repeat it.
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