Dear Subscriber,
Many of us a breathed a big sigh of relief when Prop. 23, which would have set California's global warming action back by many years, went down. And Santa Cruz now has a draft Climate Action Plan, with an excellent goal of reducing emissions 30% in the next 10 years.
However, the Plan faces an uphill battle to get the "teeth" in it that it needs in order to achieve its goal. Here, as elsewhere, business as usual does not yield easily, and we can't rely on government to lead the way.
Every step that any one of us takes to step out of the norm and build more resilience around us, is leadership. This is especially true when we widen our circle beyond our own household, and include neighbors, friends, fellow-churchgoers, and co-workers in the effort. We are agents of the most important work there is, which is cultural change. This is how we will get policy like the Climate Action Plan to mean something.
As the election-season signs come down from all the front yards, and the slogans are forgotten, here's to all of our efforts at reskilling, relocalization, and resilience-building. And Happy Thanksgiving! I hope to see you soon.
—Michael Levy
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Input to the Climate Action Plan
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Saturday, November 13
9:30 am-12:30 pm
NVC Santa Cruz
225 Rooney, Santa Cruz (map)
Free/by donation
The City of Santa Cruz' attempts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions will only go as far as the people demand them to, and only be as smart as our collective creativity allows.
In this meeting, the emphasis will be on the creativity part. We are gathering folks with expertise in one of the areas addressed in the city's draft Climate Action Plan, to give suggestions to Ross Clark, City Climate Action Coordinator. The meeting is open to all. If you would like to present at the meeting, contact us by replying to this email.
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Wear your true colors!
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TSC T-shirts are now available!
These make good presents! And what a great conversation starter!
Screenprinted by BU Productions (Barrios Unidos) in 5 colors on organic cotton, "natural" color shirts, they feel great to wear.
They're $15 each. Get one by emailing or calling us at 427-9916, and tell us your size.
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Get "re-skilled"!
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At any given time, there are usually at least a few fun, affordable or free reskilling events listed in our website's "Community Events" section on the left side of the homepage.
For example, as of now, November 5th, there are a pair of free rainwater catchment workshops listed, and a whole series of gardening classes offered by Food Not Lawns.
If you periodically offer reskilling or other transition-related events and would like to post to the Community Events list, please contact us.
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An evening with Osprey Orielle Lake
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Wednesday, December 1, 7:30 PM
Capitola Book Café
1475 41st Avenue Capitola
Free
Join Us For A Special Evening with Osprey Orielle Lake, author, artist, and activist, in conversation and reading from her new book, Uprisings for the Earth: Reconnecting Culture with Nature.
"Seeing both the peril and the promise of this moment in time, Osprey Orielle Lake brings us stories infused with her passion for life. Like winds off the mountains, they renew our energy and summon our will to rise up together for the sake of Earth."
-- Joanna Macy, author World as Lover, World as Self
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Contact Details
831-427-9916
http://transitionsc.org
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Reading with
a Purpose
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TSC is taking a holiday break from our potlucks, which will resume in January.
However, it's not all bad! Why not spend the time reading great material and watching great films on Transition topics? We have a few suggestions for your winter brain fare. Here they are, by topic:
The Economy
♦ Learn about the history of economic theory and how we got in this mess, with Richard Heinberg's new Economics for the Hurried, excerpted online here.
♦ Get really in depth about it with Chris Martenson's free, stunning, beginner-friendly 20-chapter video presentation "The Crash Course."
♦ Learn about one of the most exciting local economic developments, New Earth Exchange's ready-to-launch local currency system.
Water
Why not learn about the local water situation and be inspired by TSC's vision for it? Our "Towards a Sustainable Water Plan" is on our website here.
Many topics
♦ The Post-Carbon Reader features a fascinating array of articles by great Transition thinkers (Hopkins, Heinberg, Martenson, Shuman...), some of which are downloadable.
♦ Curl up with a lemonade or a nog (depending on our crazy weather) and someone you like and watch an on-topic film like "The End of Suburbia," "The Future of Food," or "The Power of Community." You'll have to track a copy down, but a fine list can be found here on the Transition US site.
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