Transition Culture

11 Aug 2009

Transition Movie – “In Transition 1.0″ – release schedule and prices

NOTE: This post has been drafted up by me, Ben Brangwyn (benbrangwyn@transitionnetwork.org), while Rob’s on holiday.

Actually, I’m trying to be on holiday too, but had the misfortune of going somewhere that has a reliable broadband connection.

For those people who have seen this movie in one of its previews, you’ll know it’s something a bit special. For those of us who had the good fortune to be involved in it (submitting footage, trying out our best “inscrutable Brad Pitt smile” in the trailer, getting the money together, giving feedback to make it better, making chamomile tea for the director), there’s more than just a little emotion tied up in this production and some high hopes in terms of who it’ll reach and how it’ll affect them. The purpose of this post is to provide the timeline for rolling out the movie for group viewings and beyond, and to state the costs for the group viewing licence.

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6 Aug 2009

Paul Romer on Charter Cities… can you spot the flaws?

Am home for a couple of days, and spotted that some of the TED talks have started going up. Here, as a sort of Transition Culture Summer Homework, is Paul Romer’s talk on ‘Charter Cities’ which I was so critical about in my write up. It offers a fascinating taste of unbridled human hubris, of an economist with no sense of economic or resource constraints, no sense of living within our means or of peak anything, no sense that perhaps unbridled neo-liberal free trade economics have been anything other than to the dazzling wellbeing of everyone.  Have a look.  Be fascinated to hear your thoughts on it.  My two highlights are his raising the question as to why no-one else has thought of building cities in deserts, and the bit near the end where he says …“there is no roadblock, there is no impediment, other than a failure of imagination that will keep us from delivering on a truly global win win solution”.   See what you think.

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