Resilience, a concept basic to ecological systems theory and permaculture design, is also a staple of the Transition movement. Essentially, it describes how a robust system, whether human-made or natural, can handle shocks without being destroyed. In a forest, an example of a shock could be a series of drought years. Shocks we are facing as human communities include peak oil and climate change.
To be resilient locally, we must break our over-dependence on the declining resource of fossil fuels, and re-build local resources, skills, and community connections similar to, or better than those that existed prior to the era of cheap energy.
Resilience is discussed at length in the Transition Handbook, which can be read online here.
Here is a list of possible indicators for local resilience (not intended to be definitive or complete):
- Percentage of food consumed locally that was produced within a given radius
- Ratio of car parking space to productive land use
- Amount of traffic on local roads
- Degree of engagement in practical relocalization work by local community
- Number of businesses owned by local people
- Percentage of local trade carried out in local currency
- Proportion of the community employed locally
- Percentage of essential goods manufactured within a given radius
- Percentage of local building materials used in new housing developments
- Number of 16-year-olds able to grow 10 different varieties of vegetables to a given degree of basic competency
- Percentage of medicines prescribed locally that have been produced within a given radius
Resilience is also something you can take steps towards as an individual or family, starting now. Read Chris Martenson's take on that rewarding pursuit here.