In de video onder dit artikel, vertellen een aantal buren over hun werkvorm ‘Transition Streets’ in Totness en omgeving. Het ziet er naar uit dat het een succesvolle manier is, waarop TT zich daadwerkelijk kan verbreden en kan wortelen in een lokale gemeenschap.
De aanpak verenigt de vele doelstellingen van Transition Towns en ziet er uit als de ultieme basisvorm voor TT. Aspecten van deze aanpak vind je terug in de Klimaatstraten van de actie Hier, de house greening parties van Duurzame Buren, de Eco Transition Teams van TTNijmegen en de Energie – groepen van TTDeventer. Transitie Straten willen echter dieper, breder en meer duurzaam van opzet zijn.
Harnessing Peer Pressure and Support for Community Change
Community nut tree plantings, permablitz garden make-overs, local currency initiatives and rickshaws powered on waste veggie oil —these are just some of the projects that have been started under the Transition Towns banner. But sometimes even town-wide projects are sometimes too large scale. So the latest innovation from the movement seems to be something called Transition Streets. If the video is anything to go by, a little support, education, (and friendly pressure) from your neighbors can go a long way toward encouraging greener living.
Created by the Transition Town Totnes group, the video talks to some of the participants in the 28 “Transition Streets” groups operating across Totnes and Dartington. The idea is that neighbors get together to learn about everything from fitting a rain barrel through installing photovoltaics to finding out what incentives are out there for putting in insulation.
Tellingly, the participants talk again and again about the support they receive from their neighbors, the specific information they learn, but also the peer-pressure that comes from a group like this. As one lady says, she doesn’t any more think about getting a compost bin “one day”, but rather getting one before the next meeting…