The trials and tribulations of a Transition Individual
For me a large part of Transition (and being resilient) is about being in a community and connecting with your local area and this has the tendency to tie you to one place. When the rules of society pull you away from this place, then you have to leave behind all of the time, effort and love that you invested in building your resilience in that community
Being part of an active transition initiative completely changed my life. It enabled and inspired me to really soften my impact on the earth and made sustainable living into this wonderful, fun, communal activity. As I have elaborated on the This Low Carbon Life Blog, Transition made me the person I am.
I really wanted to have a career in a Transitionesque sector and so I left fair Norwich for the government funded opportunities of Scotland, and specifically Glasgow. Although I work for a Transition project it is not a Transition Initiative as most Transitioners would recognise it and unfortunately Glasgow does not have an active transition group. There are hundreds of different fantastic environmental charities and projects, but as I suggested last month the funding culture has stopped communities from taking the initiative themselves and therefore there is not a Transition style community around to provide moral support and encouragement in Transitioning to a new future.
I have found this really difficult and I feel like I have 'slipped backwards' in my resilience since moving here. Changes to my lifestyle that I made in Norwich I found difficult to keep up without the support of a community around me. I have also found it much harder to stay positive and motivated about the future and how society is going to handle the challenges facing it. Part of this is just coming to a new place and taking time to get to know people and how things work, but a good proportion of it is definitely the lack of a Transition community.
So what does this mean for all of the transitioners out there who do not have an initiative for whatever reason? And how do we reconcile Transition with our modern culture of moving around? I moved to get a job that I wanted, actually in transition type work, which didnt exist in Norwich. Are we going to stop moving again? Or do we only move to places with active Transition initiatives?? That is definitely one of my criteria for my next job as I do not have the energy to start a transition initiative from scratch again if I can help it!
Hopefully our bloggers over the next few days might answer some of these questions.
Photos: Some of the members of the Transition circle Earlham West - part of my Norwich community and hugging a tree!
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The same but different
16 April 2012 - 1:28pm — Mandy MeikleHi Kerry - just read your blog and had to comment. We should meet up - I'm not that far away! Your post struck me as I recently realised that my activism hasn't shaped who I am - rather who I am has shaped my activism. I'm an unfocused, half-arsed Eyore kinda girl, which is why it's taken 20 years to really get involved with my local community! I say this as a friend interviewed me last Thursday for her dissertation on how activists recall actions (I'm sure there's more to it than that!). Anyway, one of the questions was 'How has your activism shaped who you are?' 'It hasn't', I replied, slightly unconvinced of my answer. I had never thought about that question before and I hadn't realised what it mean until I read your post. My activism has enabled me to meet countless wonderful people, who no doubt have influenced my thinking, and there's no denying that a bunch of people all working together for change is inspiring. But I realise that I've never had that community activism thing, which you had in Norwich. Don't worry, you'll find it again. It will be the same, but different.