I Want a Tiny House!
Posted on March 6 by Josef
Check this out!
Buy a plan or complete unit at Shafer’s Tumbleweed Tiny House Company.
Via http://www.homegrownrevolution.org
See also:
Transition Towns
Posted on May 2 by Josef
So, we’re both a day late, but Gloria and I somehow decided that every day in May was going to be inspirational!
Each day Gloria will a post about an inspirational person, and I’ll highlight an inspirational project. Her first person is Maya Angelou, and my first project is…
Transition Towns
The Transition Towns project was initiated by permaculture teacher of 10 years, Rob Hopkins.
Focussing on the central issues of peak oil and climate change, Transition Towns are “towns that are participating in the transition to a more localised post-peak-oil future”.
This process normally involves going through the following 10 steps (now 12 steps, see here):
- Raise awareness of peak oil and climate change (often by showing films like The End of Suburbia and An Inconvenient Truth)
- Lay the Foundations. This is about networking with existing groups and activists and stressing that this Transition Town initiative is not a process of duplicating their work but of requesting their input in a new way of looking at the future.
- The Official Unleashing. The aim of this event is to generate a momentum which will propel your initiative forward for the next period of its work.
- Form Groups. You can’t do this on your own. Part of the process of developing an Energy Descent Action Plan is that of tapping into the collective genius of the community. One of the most effective ways to do this is to set up a number of smaller groups to focus on specific aspects of the process.
- Use Open Space. Open Space Technology is an extraordinary tool. It has been described as ‘a simple way to run productive meetings, for five to 2000+ people, and a powerful way to lead any kind of organization, in everyday practice and ongoing change’.
- Develop Visible Practical Manifestations of the Project. It is easy to come up with ideas, harder to get practical things happening on the ground. It is essential that you avoid any sense that your project is just a talking shop where people sit around and draw up wish lists. Your project needs, from an early stage, to begin to create practical manifestations in the town, high visibility signals that it means business.
- Facilitate The Great Reskilling. Very few people still have the skills a more resilient society needs. This is where your Transition Town initiative comes in.
- Build a Bridge to Local Government. Whatever the degree of groundswell your Transition Town initiative manages to generate, however many practical projects you manage to get going on the ground and however wonderful your Energy Descent Plan is, you will not progress too far unless you have cultivated a positive and productive relationship with your local authority.
- Honour the Elders. There is a great deal that we can learn from those who directly remember the transition to the age of cheap oil, especially the period between 1930 and 1960.
- Let it Go Where It Wants to Go and Reflections….In essence, although you may start out developing your Transition Town process with a clear idea of where it will go, it will inevitably go elsewhere. You need to be open to it going where the energy of those who get involved want to take it. If you try and hold onto the idea that it will be a certain way it will, after a while, begin to sap the energy that is building to do certain things. It is what is so exciting about the whole thing, seeing what emerges.
So there you have it. Transition Towns (of which there are now many) are very inspiring projects.
For more info check out Rob Hopkin’s blog Transition Culture, these excellent articles on Treehugger, and have a read through the Transition Initiatives Primer (pdf) and the Kinsale Energy Decent Action Plan (pdf)
Also, check out this short video from Transition Town Lewes:
See also:
Very Exciting News
Posted on January 27 by Josef
Yesterday I had the most amazing and inspiring phone call ever.
A man called Ray called me from Cornwall, 2km from where Oli was already but totally randomly literally on his way to (thanks to Katharine), and basically said that he wants to entrust his land to a community very much like the commons creation collective – i.e. one with shared values (create a whole new economic system based on new land ownership and monetary systems etc.) he can grow to trust and love.
He’s got an 1.5 acre and is about to buy another acre. He wants to build sustainable housing and stuff. His partner runs a theatre company and they are both really into open space technology (self-organised meeting/conferences) and new forms of organisation.
I’ve just had another long conversation with him (we spoke for 2 hours before, and about another hour or so just now) and its seems that we may well try to have a what I call a “Building Man” festival on the land this summer (open space, build, celebrate)
Oli is going to make contact and hopefully go visit the land. It sounds very beautiful, near the sea and relatively high up with sea views and access to a lake (that they share with the quarry on the other side).
They’ve already got a load of waste materials from the quarry, enough to build a few cob/straw type structures.
Looks very like we could be off to a flying start!
To the Commons!
See also:
Commons Creation meeting
Posted on January 17 by Josef
The first Commons Creation meeting took place on Sunday 21st January:
So far I’ve got some great groups signed up to the collective:
Peace Not War: http://peace.fm
The Synergy Project: http://thesynergyproject.org
OneTaste: http://onetaste.co.uk
Movimientos: http://www.movimientos.org.uk/ (site down!) they bring together all the Latin America solidarity groups and do regular monthly events with film and music.
This is just the beginning, but together these groups already regularly connect with 1000s of people. And they have all agreed to promote the Commons Creation project on all their flyers, mailouts and websites, and to offer special offers to members to the collective.
All these people collaborating to pools funds to buy land and build share infrastructure (The Fund) and working together as a marketing and media collective (The Flyer) is going to be a very powerful and exciting project (to learn more read through the background information ). Together We Have Everything
UPDATE: A copy of the presentation given can be downloaded here as a PDF (1.1Mb), PPT (2.4Mb) (PowerPoint), or ODP (2.3Mb) (OpenOffice.org Impress) file. Enjoy! 
If you’re already sold on the idea and up for committing £5 a month from February onwards, please set up a standing order and join the list.
Commons Creation list:
https://lists.open.coop/mailman/listinfo/commons
Bank Account details:
name: uniteddiversity LLP
sort code: 09-06-66
account: 40375992:
If you still need convincing, check out the presentation or comment with your proposals!
Commons Creation: PDF (1.1Mb), PPT (2.4Mb) (PowerPoint), or ODP (2.3Mb) (OpenOffice.org Impress) file. Enjoy!
See also:
Enterprising Communities Conference 2006
Posted on July 28 by Josef
I’m going to do my best to attend this conference.
Should be a great networking opportunity and a good place to tell people about Commons Creation
Birmingham, 17th – 19th September.
The Development Trusts Association is planning the biggest ever community sector conference in the UK. Enterprising Communities 2006 is for anyone interested in creating community assets, setting up new community enterprises, accessing finance, tackling poverty, celebrating diversity – and for anyone who wants to be inspired. We are expecting 600 people to attend, from front-line activists to key policy makers including ministers Ruth Kelly and Ed Miliband.
Enterprising Communities 2006 is on 17th – 19th September in Birmingham.
For further information go to: http://www.dta.org.uk/Content/current_activities/conference%202006.htm
See also:
Commons Creation Collective
Posted on July 22 by Josef
UPDATE: the first Commons Creation meeting was held at Limehouse Town Hall on Sunday 21st January, 2007. A copy of the presentation given can be downloaded here as a PDF (1.1Mb) file. Enjoy!
Introduction
The Commons Creation Collective is all about harnessing the wealth and power of our networks and working together to raising funds and awareness.
It will initially bring together conscious event organisers, radial media publishers, and their supporters, to collaborate on two complementary projects:
- The Commons Creation Fund
Lots of people contributing a minimum of £5 a month into a common fund and deciding together how to best to invest it in shared infrastructure. Purpose: to create a commons; a pool of collectively owned/ shared resources (thereby building the foundations for a scaleable community banking and exchange system). - The Commons Creation Flyer
A regular A3 (folded to A6) flyer, distributed by members, that encourages people to become a member of the collective (i.e. contribute £5 a month, help distribute flyer, promote the collective), give details of all the events organised by members, and links to news and issues they deem important.Purpose: to ensure the success of the Commons Creation Fund, and to inform as many people as possible about all events organised by members, and all the news/issues they deem important.
So, what’s the deal?
INDIVIDUALS
To become a member of the Commons Creation Collective, individuals agree to:
- Contribute a minimum of £5 per month to the Commons Creation Fund
- Help distribute the Commons Creation Flyer/ promote the Commons Creation Collective (this can be as simple as inviting friends and forwarding e-mails, or getting involved with day to day admin jobs etc.)
In return, members:
- Become shared owners of The Commons, our pool of collectively owned/shared resouces
- Decide together (using Dotmocracy?) how best to spend the money contributed to the Commons Creation Fund
- Are kept informed about all the latest news and events relevant to the collective
- Can submit and rate news, events and short articles to be included on the flyer
- Get FREE entrance to exclusive member gatherings and parties
- Get discounts from other members of the collective (eg. concessionary ticket prices, cheap books, CDs etc)
- Get fair access to use of the resources in The Commons (obviously, you own them)
- Get connected to other people and groups who share similar values and/or are interested in the same things (all the other members and the wonderful people you’ll meet at member events)
GROUPS
If a conscious event/radical publisher/other group wants to get involved they agree:
- To put a link to commonscreation.org on their website
- To put a link to commonscreation.org on all their flyers/mailouts/publications
- To offer discouts and/or special offers to members of the collective
In return, groups will get:
- A profile on commonscreation.org highlighting all the good work the groups does, including details about how to get involved and links back to their own site etc.
- Details of all events organised by the group included on the Commons Creation Flyer
- A link to the group’s website on all copies of the Commons Creation Flyer
- Additionally, and perhaps most significantly, groups will gain discounted access to and use of the resources held in The Commons (eg. web experts, CD burners, printers, vans, lighting rigs, staging, land, venues, etc.)
Who needs to be involved?
Event Organisers:
- uniteddiversity – signed up!
Josef, Oli, Tom - Peace Not War – signed up!
Mudge, Katie, Rob, Sarah, Katie, Fidel, etc. - One Taste – signed up!
Dannii, Jamie - The Synergy Project – signed up!
Dom, Gian, Daniel, Alex, Rowly, etc. - Movimientos – signed up!
- Neo-Dogma-Non – signed up!
- Creative Forum
Alan, Teresa, Shane, Gareth etc. - Art Music Politic
Will etc. - Guerilla Zoo
James etc. - Small World Solar Stage
Pony, Emma, etc. - The Synergy Centre
Steve, Matt, Jo, etc. - Kingston Green Fair
Bernadette, Des, etc. - NODE London
- Big Green Gathering
- Sunrise Celebration
Daniel etc.
- Buttercuts
Andy etc. - Raison d’etre
Yvan, Crystal - Needle and Thread
Len etc. - Signs of Life
- Crystal Field
Enoch etc. - Sangita Sounds
Darren etc. - Planet Angel
Pete, Angel, etc. - etc.
Radical Media Publishers and Bloggers
- Red Pepper
- Bulb Magazine
- Resurgence
- Undercurrents
- Peace News
- Green Events
- City Hippy – signed up!
- Shorno.net
- Leighton Cooke
- Ceridwen Devi
- Indymedia
- i-conscious
- germination
- contaminant media
- media venture collective
- etc.
How will it be financed?
The aim is for the whole thing to be self-financed by member contributions (we encourage those who can afford to contribute more than £5 a month to do so). Some seed funding will also be sought, but there is nothing stopping a group of co-operatively minded people from pooling £5+ a month straight away.
Next Steps:
- Gather some of the people who need to be involved and get agreement on the above (or at least something very similar to what is outlined above)
- On the back of this initial agreement, get more of the people who need to be involved signed-up, whilst also working on the initial website and flyer
APPENDIX
Suggested Initial SMART Goals/Objectives (specific, measurable, acheivable, realistic, time-based)
- Get first version of http://commonscreation.org up (a nicely designed site explaining the idea, who the existing members are, how and why to join, etc.) no later than one month after getting initial agreement from some of the people who need to be involved.
- Design and produce the first version of the flyer no later than one month after getting initial agreement from some of the people who need to be involved. Start to distribute flyers.
- Get 400 members to sign-up and start contributing £5 a month by December 31st, 2006.
- Hold a monthly member’s gatherings (meal and jam session), starting no later than Januray, 2007.
Suggestions about where to put/invest money
- La Base – “Some seek to destroy the pyramid by taking the power of the top. La Base creates by giving power to the base. When the base rises, a new structure rises with it.”
What is La Base
La Base is rooted in the idea that real democracy and human rights can only be meaningful when accompanied by economic rights and autonomy.La Base is not an organization, but a fund of productive capital owned in common. Access to this resource is universal but entails an obligation to ensure its sustainability for all, now and in the future. Those who use La Base are free to create their world as they will.
La Base’s resources are currently used as fair loans to individuals to help them pursue their economic independence in democratic collectives. Loan repayments go back to the common fund to be used by others. To learn more about loans and other practical applications of La Base, please see the actions.
- Rootstock – “supporting co-operatives working for social change”
Rootstock is a social investment society set up as an initiative of the Radical Routes network of co-operatives. Radical Routes is a growing network of housing and workers’ co-operatives working for social change.
Radical Routes co-operatives are active in many fields, including:
Sustainable land use through permaculture, land restoration, woodland creation, and growing and distributing organic food.
Communal housing – co-operatively owned housing is a resource for the whole community rather than a commodity for the profit of a few.
Resource centres for communities
Information through publications, radical bookshops and practical support for new co-ops.
Campaigning on issues such as ecological preservation, animal rights and housing.
International peace work
Home education
Electrical, plumbing and small scale building work
Support services including Book keeping and accountancy, Computer services, Training and consultancy, Mediation and group working
- Triodos – Europe’s leading ethical bank that only finances projects wtih affect positive social, environmental and cultural change.
- Ecology Building Society – a mutual building society dedicated to improving the environment by promoting sustainable housing and sustainable communities.
- London Rebuilding Society and other CDFI’s (Community Development Finance Institutions)
See also:
Support THE SQUARE this FRIDAY 9AM or earlier
Posted on June 21 by Josef
Hello everyone,
Please go to:
THE SQUARE Occupied Social Centre, 21 Russell Square, London WC1B 5EA (North west Side of Russell Square) Map: http://tinyurl.com/mhuby
on FRIDAY MORNING BEFORE 9AM
(but do still come later if you really can’t make it by then)
THE SQAURE Occupied Social Centre is due to be evicted on Friday morning. They have asked anyone who has used or supports the space to gather outside to resist the evition BEFORE 9AM on FRIDAY MORNING.
Having access to a central space and resource like THE SQAURE has been of immense value to a very large number of groups working for positive social change. Please help them by turning up on Friday morning and/or forwarding this message on.
Their call out and eviction update follow…
I’ve also pasted this message here:
THE SQUARE Occupied Social Centre // 21 Russell Square // London WC1H
(North west Side of Russell Square)
For info: www.londonsocialcentre.org.uk
————————————————————————–
>> >>RESIST THE EVICTION OF THE SQUARE O.C.S.
[9am Friday June 23rd outside 21 - 22 Russell Square, London WC1]
The Square Social Centre is due to be evicted next Friday 23rd June. We
have decided to put out a call to resist the eviction. We are hoping that as many groups and individuals as possible who have used the Square for events, meetings, campaigns, film showings, benefits etc will show their support.
We are calling for people to assemble outside THE SQUARE at 9am (or
earliar!) on Friday 23rd June. There will also be a meeting this monday
at 7pm to plan and organise how we will resist.
>> >>FESTIVAL OF RESISTANCE – SAT 24th & SUN 25th
To celebrate our achievements and time at THE SQUARE, We are planning a
weekend festival of events from Saturday 24th – Sunday 25th June. The
FESTIVAL OF RESISTANcE will be a showcase of the many social struggles &
political campaigns in London that have participated in and been supported by The Square. There will be an open mic for experiences and analysis aswell as dozens of live bands, DJ’s, food, drinks, discussions and cinema.
>> >>HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT US
We want as many people as possible to arrive at 9am (or earliar!) and
assemble outside 21 & 22 Russell Square. Bring your friends, banners,
passion!
If you or your group or band have participated, used, supported THE SQUARE over the last months then please email us to have your group name added to the list of supporters.
If you are an academic or involved in a student society or study at university please email us so we can add your name (with your department/uni) to the list of supporters from the university.
If you would like to get involved, or your group would like to support the Festival of Resistance, please come along on 7pm Monday 19th June meeting or email: square@riseup.net
We have also produced a number of flyers and posters and would welcome any help in giving them out/putting them up around the uni. There are some down at THE SQUARE and it can also be downloaded from Indymedia:
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2006/06/342730.html?c=on#c149665
>> >>THE SQUARE – THE END?
THE SQUARE has been an attempt to construct a radical common space, where ideas and alternatives to the present rule of commercial interests and authoritarianism can be developed. Over the past 6 months we have created a network consisting of many who feel and share the need for social change. We hoped that during our time at THE SQUARE we have made this more possible and have laid the ground for new initiatives of
self-organisation, co-operation and commuincation. For some of us THE
SQUARE has been a step forward from previous social centres (Grand Banks – Tufnel Park, Institute For Autonomy – Gower Street), the relationships
formed have been solidified and consolidated, we have made connections
with many groups and people we thought we never could, we have become
constituent network, a diverse community within a common space. Lets make this weekend a springboard for future activity.
THE SQUARE O.C.S.
- e-mail: square@riseup.net (for support emails and general enquiries) -
Homepage: http://www.londonsocialcentre.org.uk
————————————————————————–
Eviction Update: the square social centre (Monday june 19th meeting)
- over the next 3 days people are encouraged to come down to the square to help out preparing for the resistance weekend. There are many things that need doing & many people needed for doing them.
- help with securing the building against eviction
Barricades group will meet tonight (Tuesday 20th) at 7pm (before the David Rovics gig) to decide how secure the building needs to be, collect materials & begin ensuring all vulnerable areas reinforced against entry. People with building skills not essential all hands welcome. This group will meet each evening at 7pm at the square.
- Banner making group will meet 7pm tomorrow (Wednesday 21st) to paint the banners, make flags etc. Again everyone is encouraged to participate.
- building group. To build the stage in the garden as well as erect the
marquee & build barbeque.
- we need people to flypost the area & hand out flyers around the university for the eviction. There are hundreds of flyers & posters at the square (along with buckets & paste).This needs to be done everyday up to the weekend.
- people are needed for the food group (to cook over the weekend), please put you name down if you are willing to help out.
Thursday 22nd june, will be the last pre-eviction meeting, 7pm the square. This will be in the form of a final preparation for the next morning, as well as for the weekend event.
Resistance weekend:
- The will be a general assembly over the weekend to discuss & formulate
an ‘exit strategy’ from the building (including timetable), also how the
building will operate until then. It is important people attend if they
wish to have a say in how the building is maintained.
- anyone wishing to hold a workshop and/or initiate a discussion over theeviction weekend please email the square. Equally if you want bands to perform, help with the film showings, cook food & general be involved let us know.
- we are putting together a booklet about people & their groups
experiences of the square over the past months. We would like as many
people as possible to contribute so we are asking you for thoughts on the place (no more than 50/100 words), send it to the square email address asap.
————————————————————————–
THE SQUARE Occupied Social Centre // 21 Russell Square // London WC1H
(North west Side of Russell Square)
For info: www.londonsocialcentre.org.uk
See also:
Housing Co-ops
Posted on March 7 by Josef
Just sent this out to a couple of lists…
People keep asking me about Housing Co-ops
Here are a few good links:
Finding Housing Co-ops in London
http://www.cch.coop/coopinfo/london.html
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/Users/iane/coops/coopsdirlondon.html
How to set up a Housing Co-op: Step by Step (pdf file)
http://www.radicalroutes.org.uk/documents/how2housingco-opstepbystep.pdf
Sanford Housing Co-op (where I live)
http://www.sanford.coop/
Sanford is a great option for single people at only £45 a week all in (bills, council tax and shared broadband included). That even includes a £5 rent rise which is helping to pay for the eco-refurbishment of our properties and the installation of a large wind turbine.
Enjoy!
Josef
See also: