Transition Ireland

The Transition movement is a good example of how Democracy in Action is facilitating change towards a more sustainable way of living.

The movement is spreading rapidly in Ireland. For a sense of its vibrancy take a look at www.transitiontownsireland.ning.com

Its come a long way since the following review was written in late 2008

What is Transition?

To quote the founder of this movement, Rob Hopkin's, from his book, ‘The Transition Handbook’: "Transition Initiatives are an emerging and evolving approach to community level sustainability which is starting to appear in communities up and down the country". Transition Initiatives are based on several fundamental concepts. Collectively, our current energy level usage is unsustainable, and we are going to have to get used to using a lot less. Our local communities are lacking in the resilience that will be required to weather the storms of peak oil and climate change. We need to act now and we need to act together. By doing this we can unleash the creativity and genius in ourselves, and design a sustainable life in harmony with our needs and our environments. Each initiative will be unique in the way it approaches transition.

How did it start?

The Transition movement was started in 2005 by Rob Hopkins, a teacher of Permaculture in Kinsale Further Education College. During 2005, several events occurred which marked the beginning of this movement. Rob and associates organised a conference,  'Fuelling the Future', and one of his students, Louise Rooney set about developing the Transition Concept, which facilitated the launch of the 'Kinsale energy descent action plan'.

How has it developed?

The Transition Movement has developed rapidly in the UK as Rob moved to Totnes in late 2005 to do a PhD and established the second Transition Initiative. Currently there are 120 registered Initiatives listed on the worldwide network site and over 800 ‘mullers’ mulling it over, or they are on the way to becoming a registered Initiative.

Where is it now in Ireland?

There are three officially registered Initiatives in the south and one in the north, listed on the web site, with one more in the process of registration in the south. We have maybe 25 mullers some of whom are more active than others. The Irish Network was set up at

The Sustainable Ireland Co-operative run the Cultivate Living and Learning Centre in Dublin, which is supporting the Network of Transition Initiatives in Ireland at this time. Cultivates Powerdown education is proving itself an effective resource developed to support and facilitate the transition to a more sustainable society. www.cultivate.ie

The three foremost Initiatives currently in action in the south of Ireland.

Kinsale

Kinsale is the oldest and one of the most comprehensive initiatives in Ireland. They have five forums, Food, Energy, Transport, Strategy, Waste and Recycling, three of which are active on their website, http://transitiontowns.org/Kinsale/. The food forum seems to be the most active with many areas of activity, Community Gardens, Community composting, Allotments, School gardening, Wild Food walks, TTK at local Farmers Market, Kinsale Gourmet 50 mile meal award, and the Grateful Gleaners. Kinsale have launched a Powerdown forum this year, and have produced the first Energy Descent Plan.  An energy descent plan looks at how a community can transit from its currently unsustainably high dependence on cheap energy provided by fossil fuels, to a more economical and sustainable use of energy provided by renewable sources. There it must take a very comprehensive look at all the areas of energy usage, within a community, and be creative in its analysis and recommendations. Public Transport forms a main topic, importantly, as they are a rural community.

Kilkenny

Future Proof Kilkenny is the name they have chosen and it also is a comprehensive initiative as can be seen on their website. http://futureproofkilkenny.org/.Their website is highly accessible and educational with two primers on Peak Oil and Climate Change presented in a very readable format. They have many community activities on a regular basis raising awareness of the issues surrounding sustainability. They have chosen a head, hands, & heart theme, and the content they offer reflects this.

Fada in Newbridge

An Initiative that sprang from a philosophy group and is now undergoing a metamorphosis into a more action orientated organisation.

www.fada.ie

What are Transition Town effects?

The three main areas of effect are:

· Community Gardens.

· Awareness raising.

· Networking.

One of Transitions main functions is to facilitate the networking of numerous agencies and organisations involved in the community towards a more sustainable way of thinking and acting in conjunction with the local people. The various meetings and activities are building up networking relationships.

Where will it go from here?

· Continuing development of its core successful activities, ie. gardens, awareness raising and networking.

· Towards the establishment of an island wide Powerdown educational network.

Conclusions.Sometimes one encounters a sense of frustration with some Transitioners because change happens within its own timeframe. Change in terms of local food production, transport, or energy supply is also economically driven. It is not  possible until it is economically viable and socially desirable, within the current system. This suggests that the Transition Movements role at this time may be in preparing the forward thinking members of the population so that as these parameters change there is a growing body of people who will be ready to swiftly take advantage of the opportunities that will emerge.

January 2009. Adapted from “Transition Ireland”- A Review by Alex Duffy. Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it