11 Mar 2011
Something for the weekend… Richard Heinberg in Totnes
A week ago today, Richard Heinberg gave a stunning talk in Totnes on ‘The End of Growth’. Thanks to our dear friends at nuproject, I can now unveil the film of his talk. Enjoy… .
An Evolving Exploration into the Head, Heart and Hands of Energy Descent
Transition Culture has moved
I no longer blog on this site. You can now find me, my general blogs, and the work I am doing researching my forthcoming book on imagination, on my new blog.
Come find me at robhopkins.net
Archive for “Politics” category
Showing results 36 - 40 of 154 for the category: Politics.
11 Mar 2011
Somerset Transition reversal raises questions over localism agenda
You win some, you lose some. In July 2008, Somerset County Council, then a Liberal Democrat-controlled council, passed a resolution supporting its local Transition initiatives. It was much lauded as a visionary piece of policy-making, a council noting the vibrant activity of Transition groups within the county and deciding to honour that and to begin seriously to explore with them the potential overlaps and interfaces between those two ‘tiers’ in the community. However, it has become clear that what started so boldly and with such great promise has since fallen away. In the spirit of learning from such reversals, this piece explores what we can learn from recent developments in Somerset, and also what we might draw from them in relation to the government’s current ‘localism’ agenda.
7 Mar 2011
‘Confronting Change’ films now online
I wrote a while ago about Transition Finsbury Park‘s fantastic ‘Confronting Change’ event at the South Bank Centre just before Christmas. Well, thanks to the fine efforts of Miguel Faliero, Simon Maggs, Dan Roberts and the TFP team, the films of the event are now available for your delectation. Here they are, in order of appearance, Polly Higgins, Michael Meacher MP and then myself. The Q & A that followed can be viewed here.
Polly Higgins.
2 Mar 2011
Transition and the cuts: a report from Camden
Here is a guest post by Sarah Nicholl and Marietta Birkholtz, on behalf of CamdenCAN, Transition Belsize and Transition Bloomsbury.
It was heartbreaking to be at Camden Council last night. Because of the government-imposed cuts libraries, playgroups, breakfast clubs and after school care are being swept away in a borough that has always prided itself on its public services, especially for the young. Protests outside the council turned into chaotic and ugly scenes and the police prevented demonstrators entering the building on public order grounds. A few made it in and loudly berated councillors for cutting services. Council had to be adjourned at one point.
18 Feb 2011
A Tool for Transition: the Sustainable Communities Act
(A guest post by Steve Shaw).
A radical new law
In October 2007 a new law was created. This new law has, for the first time, set up a ‘bottom-up’ process where local people can drive central government action to protect or create truly localised and sustainable communities. It establishes the right for local people and councils to submit proposals for government action. Government is then required not just to consult, but to try to reach agreement on the implementation of those proposals.
