Transition US Newsletter - May 2012

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> Monthly digest of news, stories, trainings and resources from and for the Transition movement

In this Issue:
New Training Courses
Upcoming Webinars & Events
Transition Projects
Bulk Discounts: In Transition 2.0
Resources
Festival of Transition
National Potluck Week
Fixing the Future: Pop-Up
Volunteers Needed
PCI Update
Get Involved

Transition Launch Training
(formerly the T4T)

June 16-17 Fort Collins, CO

This two-day course is an in-depth experiential introduction to Transition for those considering bringing Transition to their community or for existing Transition initiatives who are interested in deepening their understanding of Transition.

Learn about hosting a training >>

Online Events

Starting up and Running Local Economy Centers

Thursday, May 24, 2012
(11am-12:15pm Pacific)
Kelley and Dave will discuss their experience starting up and running Local Economy Centers. A Local Economy Center is a place to incubate and showcase solutions for better, smarter living. These are community-based places where the new local economy is being built and grass roots economic development is put into action.

Monthly Transition Salon
Thursday, June 7, 2012
(11am-noon Pacific)
An open dialogue space where folks involved in Transition meet voice-to-voice, celebrate, network, swap ideas, get help, give help, and learn together.
details + registration >>

A Story of Resilience and Hope in Extraordinary Times with Rob Hopkins
June 12, 12 noon Pacific // part of the Spring of Sustainability Series

Transition US is co-sponsoring these free half-hour shots of inspiration... Tune in by phone or web to some of the world's leading thinkers, visionaries and experts as they chart a way forward to a healthy and resilient world. Featuring:

Related Events

Strategies for a New Economy
2012 Conference

June 8-10, by simulcast

This three-day conference will include over 60 workshops, plenary gatherings, and participatory sessions organized around 10 theme areas. Registration for this conference has closed, but the plenaries and some workshops will be simulcast. Hear about research and best practice and how a decentralized, sustainable, cooperative economy is already taking shape. Read more >>

Volunteers Needed

We are on the lookout for youth mentors, regional reporters, videographers, transcribers and more - visit our volunteer opportunities page >>

Connect

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Transition US :: May 2012 e-newsletter

One more week to enter your actions towardsBuilding Community, Growing Food, Saving Water or Conserving Energy!

We'd like to welcome our intern Molly Rose-Williams who is embarking on a project to weave together the stories about why we (the collective we) are engaging in this work. Read her guest blog post >>

New Training Courses

Transition US is offering 2 new courses this July:

Train The Trainer *new

July 12-15 Chicago, IL
Transition US is offering its second ever 4-day Train the Trainer course for those interested in being trained to facilitate the 2-day Transition Launch (formerly Training for Transition or T4T) this July! Full details + registration >>

Transition Thrive *new

July 18-19 Chicago, IL

Two UK Transition Network trainers will lead participants through Transition THRIVE! This training follows the Transition Launch Training and takes up where Launch leaves off. In Transition THRIVE, participants will explore how to boost their Transition Initiative to the next level, sustain & gain momentum and learn new tools to deepen the Transition process. Full details + registration >>

Transition Projects

May Roundup: Transition across the Country
Building onthe monthly roundup over at Rob's Transition Culture blog, here are some highlights of what's keeping Transition Initiatives busy across the US... (read more >>)

Launching a free clinic
New York State is alive with Transition! Transition Marbletown launches a free clinic (read more >>)

Skillsharing on Earth Day
Transition Town Missoula in Montana got people to learn to sew their own grocery bags out of old t-shirts at their Earth Day Celebration...all in only 2 minutes! (read more >>)

In Transition 2.0 Movie: Bulk Discounts

Place your orders here and consider buying in bulk too. We want Transition initiatives and other community groups to be able to buy DVDs of ‘In Transition 2.0′ to sell at their events to allow them to make some money to support their work.

Here’s how it works:

If you buy over 20 copies you can get a30% discount
if you buy over 50 you get a 40% discount(up to a maximum purchase of 99 dvd’s).
if you wish to purchase DVD's in bulk or wish to purchase more than 99 DVDs, get in touch with us.

The Transition Network presents
Festival of Transition

The nationwide ‘Festival of Transition’, coordinated by nef (the new economics foundation) and the Transition Network, has begun, running until 20th June, the first day of the 20th UN Earth Summit in Rio. Instead of traveling to Brazil, the Festival gives people the opportunity to do something positive about climate change and the economic crisis in their own communities.

Full details of the Festival events can be found at www.festivaloftransition.net ›

New Initiatives

This month we welcome another new official Transition Initiatives:

Transition Longfellow - Minneapolis, MN (#117)

Browse the initiatives map and learn more about becoming an Official Transition Initiative!

Resources
(that Transition folk are reading and screening)

The Lexicon of Sustainability
The Lexicon of Sustainability is based on a simple premise: people can’t be expected to live more sustainable lives if they don’t even know the most basic terms and principles that define sustainability. For the past three years Douglas Gayeton and Laura Howard-Gayeton have crisscrossed the USA to learn this new language of sustainability from its foremost practitioners in food and farming. The first three short videos available online + airing on PBS >>

Community Action Kit: Guide to Sharing
The first guide in the New Dream Community Action Kit is all about sharing: everything from starting a tool library to organizing a solar cooperative, from holding a clothing swap to launching a time bank. With how-to tips, fun videos, and useful resources, the Guide to Sharing provides the inspiration and practical tools you need to get started on these projects in your community – right away! Learn more >>

Honeycomb Kids:
Big Picture Parenting...
"Honeycomb Kids is a book about making the most of the day-to-day with your family while preparing your children for likely impacts on their world including global population growth, peak oil, competition for resources, increasing costs of living (food, electricity), health issues and plenty more. It’s about raising contributors not just consumers. The book also covers off on ‘nature deficit disorder’ and how to mitigate every day threats to children while making them more resilient and capable." Learn more >>

This week May 20-26, we are celebrating National Potluck Week! If you have not registered an action for the month-long Transition Home & Garden Challenge - here is a great idea: Host a community potluck and then let us know by registering it as an action of the Transition Challenge too.

After all the Challenge is about: Saving water, conserving energy, growing food and building community! Potlucks are a great way to do achieve these goals.

Fixing the Future: Across America July 18

On Wednesday, July 18, 2012, Transition Towns are invited to be a part of a national effort to support local economic initiatives.

On this day,Fixing the Future, a documentary that showcases working models for thriving economies, will screen in at least 50 theaters in cities across the U.S. Due to a wildly successful PBS version, the filmmakers have made a new, feature length version of the documentary that you can be among the first to see.

In Fixing the Future, host David Brancaccio (of NOW on PBS) visits people and organizations across America that are attempting a revolution: the reinvention of the American economy. By featuring communities using sustainable and innovative approaches to create jobs and build prosperity, Fixing the Future inspires hope and renewal in a people overwhelmed by economic collapse.

Click to learn more + watch the trailer >>

Post Carbon Institute Update

Transition US Partner | visit www.postcarbon.org for more articles, reports and news

Do you frequently get asked questions about the issues which inspired you to get involved with Transition? If so maybe you'll find it useful to check out Richard Heinberg's answers to the Top 11 FAQs he gets asked when he's out on the road.

Richard also took part in the latest in our series of Interactive Video Chats at Energy Bulletin. You can catch up with what Richard and historian, political economist, activist and writer Gar Alperovitz had to say as they discussed 'Equality and Inequality in a Shrinking Economy--Strategies and Consequences'.

Let's mobilize of thousands of new residents, create innumerable sustainability actions provide the community networks and cross-sector collaborations needed to Transition our towns and cities across the US.

Roll up your sleeves and get involved :)

Find out what it's all about: Transition 101
Organize a Transition Salon (what is a Transition Salon?)
Form a group and start a Transition Initiative
Get in touch! info@transitionus.org
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