Article No.1 – Transition Nelson Unleashed

Transition Nelson hosted is official unleashing celebration May 14-16^th. The three day Expo and Gathering was a celebration of the many efforts already underway to strengthen our local economy and build a resilient community.

On Friday the public came to learn more about local organizations working in Nelson and took part in hands-on reskilling demonstrations. During the evening event the audience listened to speeches from distinguished guests who included Marilyn James, Kim Charlesworth, Alex Atamanenko, Russel Rodgers, Bradley Roulston and Ramona Faust. The evening was capped off with music from Cottonwood Choir, Paul Prappa, The Time Spinners, Lazy Poker Blues Band, Adham Shaikh, and DJ Joel West.

Saturday morning kicked off a two day intense workshop lead by Open Space Technology leader Chris Corrigan. Community members were given the chance to create topics around the central issue question “Together, what can we create to have a joyful, resilient and sustainable future?” Small groups then self-organized to discuss these issues.

The three day event has inspired a group of Nelsonites to get involved in making Nelson a stronger more resilient city. Fifteen working groups have formed and are about to begin their work. These groups range from creating low cost housing, to local currency, to supporting volunteers in the area. You can learn more about these working groups or join a group or start your own by visiting: www.transitionnelson.ning.com. To learn more about Transition Nelson visit www.TransitionNelson.org.

Article No.2 – Working Groups

The groups that formed from this weekend are listed below. You can learn more about these groups by visiting: www.transitionnelson.ning.com

Gift Economies

Creating an online gift economy platform to connect, give, ask and celebrate.

Co-ordinating Group

Co-ordinating over all functioning and responsibility for legal/financial aspects of Transition Nelson Society.

Supporting Angels Group

How do we support the volunteer making a difference in Nelson and draw more participants?

$15per Square Foot per 100 houses Initiative

How do we build 100 homes for $15/sq.ft./person in 5 years? Let’s turn what we know of traditional homes on its head.

Science and Sacred World

Joining heart and mind to re-imagine and re-create a new approach to science that is an organic and vital part of the community.

Asset Mapping

Creating a ‘map’ of our community’s resources — individual capacities and abilities, and organizational resources with the potential for promoting personal and community development.

Local Currency

We want to finalize the details of a local currency, engage the public, and eventually consider the possibility of an associated LETS program.

Ecovillage

Exploring possibilities for creating an Ecovillage in the Nelson area.

How to Empower Youth?

Unleash the positive potential of youth through arts-centered animal & wilderness based intergenerational and multi-cultural experiential learning “opportunities”.

Virtual Farmers Market

Create an online site to connect producers to consumers in the Kootenays, lower carbon footprint associated with transport and cut down on waste from food packaging.

Community Centre Action Group

People inspired to initiate and create space for members of our community to gather, share, and learn.

Mindful Walking Excursions

Join and explore the possibilities of mindful walking excursions to help people connect with their community and themselves, to connect with their sense and assets of place, to inspire embodiment, health and vibrancy and help nourish walkability.

Article No.3 – Poem of Our Closing by Chris Corrigan

IPracticality, courage

Where’s the agenda?

Appreciative thanks

amazed it didn’t tank

This scenario is a dream and it seems that

whatever happened, happened.

Woooo….

Gratitude is the attitude of rebirth

A reenergized connection, soft walk on the earth

Want to pass a torch but also linger on the porch of this

new house created by friendship

and the magic in the talk…

We gonna rock…

I’m already looking younger, cultivating the hunger

for transitioning, repositioning,

gestating and relating, digesting and reflecting

seeing what is born this morning

feeling what is important to raise

in these days of unity, community, in what is bigger than me.

I’m new to this place

but what a face you wear -

a community of angels who care.

It’s open and I’m curious to see where it goes,

two feet, ten toes

I don’t know, but somebody knows

and I feel direction, infection

a virus of creative work

the explosion of potential that stars from a spark,

light sparkling in the dark.

Thanks to the angels and the bees

and all that frees us to fly, respond to the calling

pick up those that are falling

and send them back in the air.

I’m more connected than ever before

walked through a door to a store full of knowledge and inspiration

full of awe at the creation of what’s going on -

knowing that together I can be strong enough

to live off the grid, draw on my own power,

this is the hour!

Even the chickens have become free!

It’s hard to do this alone,

to clear a field full of stones,

to live a peace that is co-owned

bring a bell to the young,

three deep breaths,

words that rest lightly on the tongue

and hold the terror of action,

the commitment to a fraction of change

to a group that can rearrange the best of what we have -

time, ideas, muffins -

strange resources for a movement, but sustenance is a must for sustainability

so that’s good.

So in the shadows of locally hewn wood

in a place free of shoulds,

I acknowledge the work we have done

and the potential of what is to come

life springing from ash,

passion leading to action,

a rekindled fire that burns off

guilt and fear.

Inspired -

our future starts here.

Article No.3 – Transition Nelson and the City

On May 26^th Transition Nelson will be asking City Council to endorse a resolution declaring the City of Nelson a Transition Town.

What is a Transition Town?

A Transition Initiative is a community working together to look Peak Oil and Climate Change squarely in the eye and address this BIG question: “for all those aspects of life that this community needs to sustain itself and thrive, how do we significantly increase resilience and drastically reduce carbon emissions?”

Transition Nelson Aims to:

Draw all sectors of our community together to create a deeper social fabric. Reduce our dependence on the fragile global systems which are reliant on diminishing supplies of cheap energy. Engage our collective wisdom to design, adapt and implement an Energy Descent Action Plan (EDAP) that will enable more appropriate energy consumption and local production of what we need.

Transition Nelson asks how do we strengthen our community?

How do we expand our capacity for local economic selfsufficiency? How do we build the capacity to support many of the vital services that may be cut back? How do we ensure personal health, security and safety? And how do we adddress environmental restoration and sustainability?

What is Sustainability?

Sustainability is the “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”

- The Brundtland report

What is Peak Oil?

Peak Oil is the point when the world begins to produce less oil than the previous year. This isn’t the point when oil will run out, but the point where demand will be greater than supply. Currently, supply and demand are about equal.

What is Resilience?

The transition town definition of resilience is “a culture based on its ability to function indefinitely and to live within its limits, and able to thrive forhaving done so.”

- Rob Hopkins

To learn more about Transition Nelson please visit www.transitionnelson.org

Article No.4 – Thanks

A special thanks to the organizations that took part in the Expo and re-skilling workshops:

• BC Food Systems Network
• Cascadia Group
• Wildflower School
• Circle of Habondia Lending Society
• Community Food Matters
• Currency Group
• Harrop Proctor Community Co-operative
• Harrop Proctor Community Forest
• KAIROS
• Kootenay Career Development Society
• Kootenay Co-op Radio (KCR)
• Kootenay Lake Sailing Association
• Kootenay Local Agricultural Society
• Kootenay Shambhala Meditation Centre
• Mountain Waters Retreats
• Nelson & District Credit Union
• Nelson & District Home and Community Care Services
• Nelson & District Women’s Centre
• Nelson CARES Society
• Nelson Carshare Co-op
• Nelson Community Services Centre
• Nelson Waldorf School
• Neuro Somatic Therapy Institute/Pathways School
• NonViolent Communication
• North Kootenay Lake Community Services Society / Kaslo Food Security Project (KFSP)
• Osprey Community Foundation
• Preserved Seed/Twelve Tribes of Israel
• Rare Earth Society
• SelfDesign International School of the Kootenays
• Solar BC
• West Kootenay Ecosociety
• Pete Matheson of ‘Greening the Cube’ presented on ‘Cob Homes’
• Michael Smith & Chris Morasky of Pathways School demonstrated Stone Age Skills
• Lower Columbia 1st Nations presented traditional outdoor cooking
• Lorraine Carlstrom shared samples of edibles made with local ingredients
• Doug of Downtown Automotive presented skills to change cars to electric
• Shawn Tasker presented tie knots
• David Wolenitz held on workshop on  tuning your bike
• Crystal Custom Sewing shared secrets of mending and creating
• Nellie Makortoff demonstrated how to unravel sweaters, cut unwanted clothing and turn them into cozy slippers and durable rugs.
• Frank & Libby Homesteading presented “Living Off the Grid”
• Libby Ruljanich presented Wild Edible Nature
• Frank Ruljanich shared secrets of Grafting and Pruning Fruit trees
• Kevin Shephard shared his experiences with the Electric Train