Transition Tales: Framing in the Transition Town movement

Alexia CokeRESOLVE (ESRC-funded)

Centre for Environmental StrategyUniversity of Surrey

STEPS Conference, 23-24 September 2010

The Transition Movement

• Over 300 ‘official’ initiatives in UK & beyond since 2006

• Motivated by ‘twin’ threats of Peak Oil & Climate Change

• Focus on facilitating local responses • Informed by systems thinking and

‘stages of change’ • Social Movement Organisation –

The Transition Network

Framing the Problem:Exposing Current ‘Myths’

‘‘Dominant myths of todayDominant myths of today– Things are getting betterThings are getting better– Tomorrow will be like today, Tomorrow will be like today,

but bigger and shinierbut bigger and shinier– Economic growth is goodEconomic growth is good– We must keep shoppingWe must keep shopping– Technology will solve all our Technology will solve all our

problemsproblems– There is no alternativeThere is no alternative– You can’t stop progressYou can’t stop progress– Living standards are risingLiving standards are rising– Humans are selfish and Humans are selfish and

greedy by naturegreedy by nature– The market will solve itThe market will solve it– We’re all doomed…’We’re all doomed…’From: www.transitionnetwork.org: Standard Transition Presentation 2010

Framing the Problem:Framing the Problem:The Need for New ‘Cultural stories’The Need for New ‘Cultural stories’

Indu

stri

al A

scen

t

• Energy useEnergy use• Resource useResource use• Environmental degradationEnvironmental degradation• PollutionPollution

Peak Energy

?

Techno-Fantasy

Green-Tech

StabilityGreen-Tech

Stability

Earth

stewardshipPost Mad Max Collapse

Great Grand Children

Agriculture10.000yrs BP

Industrial Revolution

Baby Boom

Pre-industrial culture

Historical Time

Future Time

Creative D

escent

(Perm

aculture)From ‘Standard Transition Presentation’

Framing the SolutionCreating New ‘Cultural Stories’

Use of:

-- positive visioning

-- story-telling

To depict:

• A more connected, sustainable & enjoyable future

Graphic from Transition Training

Framing the Solution

• Catalyst for collective action• Community-based• Relocalisation• Building resilience• Reducing energy

consumption• Fun & enjoyable• Inclusive• ‘Inner’ & ‘outer’ Transition

Framing the SolutionResponses to Peak Oil & Climate Change*

CLIMATE CHANGE

• Climate engineering

• Carbon capture and storage

• International emissions trading

• Climate adaptation• Nuclear power

P O + C C =Systems Re-think

• Planned Relocalisation• Energy Descent

Pathways• Local Resilience

* Slide from Transition Training

PEAK OIL

• Burn everything!relaxed drilling

regulationsbiofuelstar sands and non-

conventional oils

• Resource nationalism

• Resource Wars

Transition as Pathway:The 12 Steps

1. Set up a steering group

2. Raise awareness

3. Lay the foundations

4. Organise a Great Unleashing

5. Form groups

6. Use Open Space

7. Develop visible practical manifestations

8. Facilitate the Great Reskilling

9. Build a bridge to local government

10. Honour the elders

11. Let it go where it wants to go

12. Create an Energy Descent Plan

Transition as PathwayTotnes Energy Descent Action Plan

Hodgson 2010: 98-99

Transition as Process

‘The Transition process offers a positive, solutions-focused approach that draws together the various elements of a community to address this common challenge and sees much of the solution as coming from within, through a process of unlocking what is already there, rather than from experts and consultants coming in from the outside.’

(Hopkins 2008: 136)

Transition as ‘Pattern Language’:An Emergent Framing

From: 2010 Transition Network Conference Guide

A New ‘New Social Movement’?• Middle-class, white (European), & young?

– Large % middle-class, white, middle-aged, ‘Northern’, but not all • Focus on lifestyle politics?

– ‘Inner’ transition focus on individual, but ‘outer’ on collective action– Doing locally, rather than campaigning nationally– Concerns about imposing lifestyle on others– Links to other related movements (e.g. Coop, LETS, etc)

• No redistribution/representation agenda?– Critiqued for non-oppositional stance by some left activists– Social justice raised at many Transition conferences, but not an explicit Network agenda– No-growth position potentially problematic for social justice agenda?

Thank youReferences

Chamberlain, S. (2009): The Transition Timeline for a local, resilient future, Dartington, Green Books

Haxeltine, A. and G. Seyfang (2009): “Transitions for the People: Theory and Practice of ‘Transition’ and ‘Resilience’ in the UK’s Transition Movement. Paper presented at The First European Conference on Sustainability Transitions, July 2009.

Hodgson, J. with R. Hopkins (2010): Transition in Action: Totnes and District 2030 – An Energy Descent Action Plan. Transition Town Totnes

Hopkins, R. (2008): The Transition Handbook: From oil dependency to local resilience. Dartington, Green Books.

North, P. (2009). “The Climate Change and Peak Oil Movements: possibilities and obstacles”. Paper presented at Alternative Futures and Popular Protest Conference, Manchester Metropolitan University, 15-17 April 2009