Comments on: From the Transition Cities Conference: Energy Descent Planning Workshop http://transitionculture.org/2008/12/04/from-the-transition-cities-conference-energy-descent-planning-workshop/ An Evolving Exploration into the Head, Heart and Hands of Energy Descent Mon, 13 Feb 2012 00:35:27 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Sonya http://transitionculture.org/2008/12/04/from-the-transition-cities-conference-energy-descent-planning-workshop/comment-page-1/#comment-60594 Sonya Sat, 06 Dec 2008 21:24:28 +0000 http://transitionculture.org/?p=2172#comment-60594 Hi, I started learning about this two years ago when I first saw the Kinsale EDAP. I also heard David Holmgren speak on relocalisation in an energy descent future around the same time. Doing lots of research is important, but equally important is actually doing it. EDAPs are protected I feel from becoming an ivory tower thing by remaining the property of the community. Our 250 pages is a series of chapters, some relevant to individuals - one pagers about how to get started. Others are aimed at community members who want to start a Transition Town initiative in their local area - they are more in-depth. The document belongs to the community and people are encouraged to be part of it, now matter how big or small their contribution is - and we are all constrained by time, family, finances and availability. The EDAP will continually be added to, reviewed, enhanced, measured and so on. Each opportunity is an opportunity for people to become involved. Put simply, it's all about moving from oil dependency to local resilience. Looking at all the ways fossil fuels and energy affect our lives; eg our food supply, water supply, waste management, built environment and housing situation... it goes on and on. Take each of those areas and imagine how you could build resilience and strength and diversity into them. To get off the oil addiction. It's also about tackling climate change and peak oil, together. We have 250 pages because we are a region of 300,000 people to cover plus the community had a lot to say! Ours is the first in Australia so it also needed to stand alone and comprehensively explain all these great ideas to new readers. We're finding the best way to introduce people to the idea is through face to face workshops. We have one coming up next weekend which quickly filled with 60 people attending. Cheers, Sonya Hi,

I started learning about this two years ago when I first saw the Kinsale EDAP. I also heard David Holmgren speak on relocalisation in an energy descent future around the same time.

Doing lots of research is important, but equally important is actually doing it.

EDAPs are protected I feel from becoming an ivory tower thing by remaining the property of the community. Our 250 pages is a series of chapters, some relevant to individuals – one pagers about how to get started. Others are aimed at community members who want to start a Transition Town initiative in their local area – they are more in-depth.

The document belongs to the community and people are encouraged to be part of it, now matter how big or small their contribution is – and we are all constrained by time, family, finances and availability.

The EDAP will continually be added to, reviewed, enhanced, measured and so on. Each opportunity is an opportunity for people to become involved.

Put simply, it’s all about moving from oil dependency to local resilience. Looking at all the ways fossil fuels and energy affect our lives; eg our food supply, water supply, waste management, built environment and housing situation… it goes on and on. Take each of those areas and imagine how you could build resilience and strength and diversity into them. To get off the oil addiction.

It’s also about tackling climate change and peak oil, together.

We have 250 pages because we are a region of 300,000 people to cover plus the community had a lot to say! Ours is the first in Australia so it also needed to stand alone and comprehensively explain all these great ideas to new readers.

We’re finding the best way to introduce people to the idea is through face to face workshops. We have one coming up next weekend which quickly filled with 60 people attending.

Cheers,
Sonya

]]> By: Mike http://transitionculture.org/2008/12/04/from-the-transition-cities-conference-energy-descent-planning-workshop/comment-page-1/#comment-60590 Mike Sat, 06 Dec 2008 11:35:32 +0000 http://transitionculture.org/?p=2172#comment-60590 Hi Rob and all you other Transitioneers, I'd like to use the oportunity to congratulate and thank you for the work you are doing. When I read the Handbook I was moved to tears several times to see themes that have caused me deep existential anxiety for most of life adressed courageously and even cheerfully. My deepest gratitude for that. I've been running into difficulties trying to tell others about the Transition idea, and although I will educate myself more as time goes by, it would be so helpful to have, for instance, a website to point people to, where they could find a crisp, maybe multimedia, presentation of the core concepts. As T Kasafir wrote in the previous comment, it can be quite enigmatic to the uninitiated, Sonya in the first comment even wrote about the 250 pages of material she's planning to unleash. I see the danger of it becoming an ivory tower thing after all. I suppose this will be partly adressed by the upcoming film that I'm very much looking forward to. But maybe there are some advertising, or communications design people out there that could boil it down to the essence and present it in a flashy, bite-size format for the benefit of the ignorant, the innocent and the stupid, and then I'd have an internet link I could mention to the guy standing beside me at the bus-stop. Best wishes Mike Hi Rob and all you other Transitioneers,
I’d like to use the oportunity to congratulate and thank you for the work you are doing. When I read the Handbook I was moved to tears several times to see themes that have caused me deep existential anxiety for most of life adressed courageously and even cheerfully. My deepest gratitude for that.
I’ve been running into difficulties trying to tell others about the Transition idea, and although I will educate myself more as time goes by, it would be so helpful to have, for instance, a website to point people to, where they could find a crisp, maybe multimedia, presentation of the core concepts. As T Kasafir wrote in the previous comment, it can be quite enigmatic to the uninitiated, Sonya in the first comment even wrote about the 250 pages of material she’s planning to unleash. I see the danger of it becoming an ivory tower thing after all. I suppose this will be partly adressed by the upcoming film that I’m very much looking forward to. But maybe there are some advertising, or communications design people out there that could boil it down to the essence and present it in a flashy, bite-size format for the benefit of the ignorant, the innocent and the stupid, and then I’d have an internet link I could mention to the guy standing beside me at the bus-stop.
Best wishes
Mike

]]> By: T Kasafir http://transitionculture.org/2008/12/04/from-the-transition-cities-conference-energy-descent-planning-workshop/comment-page-1/#comment-60586 T Kasafir Fri, 05 Dec 2008 18:55:03 +0000 http://transitionculture.org/?p=2172#comment-60586 I've never heard of this before. I was given the link by an on-line friend. I have to say that when I started reading here I was puzzled and somewhat confused. Not knowing what it was all about didn't help any. However, as I continued reading I think I got the hang of it: You project what people want the future to be, then set about figuring out how to get there, and what you can do to set it in train. Yes? If so, I like it. I hope it comes to my neck of the woods soon. I’ve never heard of this before. I was given the link by an on-line friend. I have to say that when I started reading here I was puzzled and somewhat confused. Not knowing what it was all about didn’t help any.
However, as I continued reading I think I got the hang of it: You project what people want the future to be, then set about figuring out how to get there, and what you can do to set it in train. Yes?
If so, I like it. I hope it comes to my neck of the woods soon.

]]> By: Klaus http://transitionculture.org/2008/12/04/from-the-transition-cities-conference-energy-descent-planning-workshop/comment-page-1/#comment-60582 Klaus Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:11:29 +0000 http://transitionculture.org/?p=2172#comment-60582 Thanks for this Rob. In Kinsale we are planning another Open Space session early next year with a view to rewriting your original EDAP (hope you don't mind) so you've shared some useful tips here. Much of what was planned in the original Kinsale EDAP hasn't taken place, or even come close, and other things that weren't planned for some time, or even at all, have already happened. As you have said before it was a student project, and without wanting to diminish its importance or its impact, it needs to be more realistic with greater input from members of the wider community. It's a big task, but as with all Transition projects, I'm excited by and looking forward to the challenge. Thanks for this Rob. In Kinsale we are planning another Open Space session early next year with a view to rewriting your original EDAP (hope you don’t mind) so you’ve shared some useful tips here.

Much of what was planned in the original Kinsale EDAP hasn’t taken place, or even come close, and other things that weren’t planned for some time, or even at all, have already happened.

As you have said before it was a student project, and without wanting to diminish its importance or its impact, it needs to be more realistic with greater input from members of the wider community.

It’s a big task, but as with all Transition projects, I’m excited by and looking forward to the challenge.

]]> By: Sonya http://transitionculture.org/2008/12/04/from-the-transition-cities-conference-energy-descent-planning-workshop/comment-page-1/#comment-60578 Sonya Thu, 04 Dec 2008 20:41:10 +0000 http://transitionculture.org/?p=2172#comment-60578 Thanks for mentioning the Sunshine Coast EDAP. It's going to be around 250+ pages of ideas, thoughts, action, future plans, small action, big actions, top down, bottom up ideas. It will be our list of demands, thoughts, ideas, suggestions and also includes what's already happening (everything the community thought of was included and we've found since some of those actions are already happening, but it all goes in) Since finishing the course and collecting all the responses, we've found so many people want to know about TTs and EDAPs, that we've tried to make sure as much info as possible is in there, so it also becomes a useful resource for others. We've identified around 10 key target audiences who will be able to use the document. It's a big job, and we're doing it all for free and in our own time, but it's coming soon. Our EDAP is for our entire council region, which (after an amalgamation that lead to a super-council) covers more than 300,000 people and over 3,000 square kms. Our plan was to have an EDAP for every council area - just like Geoff Lawton planned when he started permaculture groups in every council area. It will go to the community (and we'll create an education and communication plan to get it out and about as widely as we can), to council, State Government and our Federal Government. Coming soon to you... Better get back to it! Cheers, Sonya Thanks for mentioning the Sunshine Coast EDAP. It’s going to be around 250+ pages of ideas, thoughts, action, future plans, small action, big actions, top down, bottom up ideas.

It will be our list of demands, thoughts, ideas, suggestions and also includes what’s already happening (everything the community thought of was included and we’ve found since some of those actions are already happening, but it all goes in)

Since finishing the course and collecting all the responses, we’ve found so many people want to know about TTs and EDAPs, that we’ve tried to make sure as much info as possible is in there, so it also becomes a useful resource for others.

We’ve identified around 10 key target audiences who will be able to use the document.

It’s a big job, and we’re doing it all for free and in our own time, but it’s coming soon.

Our EDAP is for our entire council region, which (after an amalgamation that lead to a super-council) covers more than 300,000 people and over 3,000 square kms.

Our plan was to have an EDAP for every council area – just like Geoff Lawton planned when he started permaculture groups in every council area.

It will go to the community (and we’ll create an education and communication plan to get it out and about as widely as we can), to council, State Government and our Federal Government.

Coming soon to you…

Better get back to it!

Cheers,
Sonya

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