Snapshots Along the Path of Inner Transition to 2030
“How can we create a timeline for inner transition?” was a question we spent some time pondering when we came to write this section of EDAP. Each person’s journey of inner transition is unique and probably at some level indescribable. Many have found that engaging with Transition takes them on a profound and continuing journey of deepening connection, grief, joy, companionship, release of hope, hopelessness – from bliss to despair – often in the same day! (For others it’s a calm journey of practical action… how different we are!)
In the end we’ve bypassed trying to suggest pathways of psychological and spiritual awakening or shifts in consciousness, and offer some snapshots of events that might – or might not – happen, which reflect some of the changes we have envisioned. They are given below in a chronological order that you are welcome to imagine very differently…
Living Well in Times of Change Workshops offered by Mansion House
2010 (From the South Hams Community Education Brochure)
A new course aimed to equip us in dealing with the changes arising from falling energy availability, climate change, and credit crunch, is being offered by Transition Town Totnes in association with the Mansion House and various church groups.
“Living Well in Times of Change will help you understand the changes that are happening, and think about how you can live well through challenging times ahead. It includes ideas for saving money and energy – something we all need as oil and gas prices go up sharply yet again. There is also time to think about what you really value in life and what you want for the future – your own and that of your family and community.”
Silence in meetings mushrooms
2011
A survey has found more and more groups using silence or meditation as part of their meetings. The technique has become more widespread since a group of Quakers offered training in the practice they use and call “worship”.
Whenever a difficult situation is encountered, instead of everyone pitching in with their point of view and trying to “win” the argument the chairperson calls for silence, and the group sits for a few minutes until someone feels “able to speak from a different place, offering a new way forward”. Just repeating the previous points of view isn’t allowed!
“What happens if no one can come up with anything?” I asked Amanda from the Totnes Meeting House.
“Sometimes the silence goes on a while. Sometimes the group will agree to leave the question and come back to it, or to find out more information before trying to decide. But usually something new does happen – we’ve generally had very good feedback from groups that use our techniques”.
Children Love to Hear Local Stories
2011
Connecting elders in our community with young children was the aim of the Local Life, Local Stories project set up in the Bridgetown youth centre last year. Now the scheme has spread to schools, and the Totnes Community Supported Agriculture scheme has got involved.
Three Totnes primary schools are inviting local elders to come in for an extended lunch twice a week – eating locally grown food and sitting at tables with school children telling them tales of how local life used to be.
“It’s a real win-win-win” enthused Lydia Overbury from Totnes social services. “Elders get some company; the children get to hear some really interesting stories, and everyone gets a good meal.”
“Mrs Jenkins said they used to collect rubbish using a big lorry and it was really noisy.” said one little boy. “I like the electric vans cos they are so quiet and clean”.
South Hams are looking at finding ways to extend the scheme so that older people can be together for longer periods during the day, saving a huge amount on their heating bills. “We’ve talked to places like Newham in London who have been running these schemes for years as a way of beating fuel poverty.” Said Lydia. Watch this space.
Listening service launched in Job Centre
2012
A new service is to be offered to people losing their jobs in the Long Recession following a government initiative to widen the availability of counselling and support for those affected by the continuing downturn in economic activity.
Anyone who has become unemployed, or suffered a significant loss in income can have up to 12 sessions of one to one counselling. Linda Smith from the TTT Heart and Soul group said the new service was partly the result of an ongoing dialogue with central government about the need to increase access to support services. “It’s wonderful news – the government have increased funding for these kind of services, I guess they’re realising that one to one support is a genuine low carbon industry, but with a very positive outcome. We’ve been running a voluntary service with local trained people offering a few hours per week but this will really increase what is on offer”.
Similar services are already running in Torbay, Plymouth and Exeter. Smaller communities are looking at offering the service through doctor’s surgeries and local information offices.
Higher Westonfields wins Green Street Makeover
2013
At the annual Transition Teams festival, this year hosted by the upper Bridgetown team, prizes were awarded as follows:
Biggest group carbon reduction – St Mary Street
Most innovative Transition invention – the bicycle pump (bicycle powered pumping of rainwater from the off-roof tub up the garden)
Community service award – Transition Team Rotherfold made lined curtains for several elderly residents on Leechwell Street following energy audits of their homes.
There are now over 30 Transition Teams in Totnes and we’ve lost count of what’s happening in nearby villages. For more information see the Transition Town Totnes website.
Totnes Times
One World Banquet highlights gap between rich and poor
2014
In a novel event Transition Town Totnes’ Food Group invited citizens to come and experience a banquet with a difference. Everyone paid the same for the evening – £25 per head (12 for children) but on entering each diner picked a raffle ticket from a bucket, and this determined what they got to eat.
Pink tickets got a typical western restaurant meal – three courses with meat and vegetarian options. Blue tickets got the meal an African villager would eat – maize “fou fou” dipped in vegetable soup – tasty and fairly nourishing. Those with yellow tickets got the “refugee camp” meal, a bowl of brown rice with a small dollop of lentil or dahl.
Before the meal was served Angela Ridlington and Monda Lugamba from Zaire gave a talk about the typical diet of different families across the world, and how much energy and land were needed to provide for their weekly shopping basket.
The difference made by eating meat really struck John Savingham from Follaton “I was brought up expecting to eat meat twice a day and was astonished to find out how many people in the world eat it twice a year if that. And the amount of land that it takes to feed a cow – amazing!”
After the meal the diners formed groups to talk about how it felt to be experiencing such a different way of eating, and how this connects with differences in wealth. “It made me feel angry,” said June Cole – it was hard to even speak to the people who were stuffing themselves with chicken and salad when I just had a little bowl of what felt like gruel – like in Oliver Twist. Then I thought, but that’s what I usually cook, especially for visitors. It’s made me really think about what I put on the table”.
Another world banquet with a twist is planned for next year.
Old Ladies Win the Day for New Justice System Try Out
2016
A group of grey haired ladies marched into the police station on Monday asking for a say in the treatment of the young people that have been creating disturbances in the town centre on recent weekends.
“We think this is a community problem, and the community should take a role in sorting it out” said Esme Mandolin, spokeswoman of “Local Justice Real Justice” who lives in a flat on the high street. “The police hand out ASBOs but they don’t seem to make a difference – and we don’t want to see our young men criminalised. We want to see if there’s a better way of solving the problem”.
The group have been learning about a community restorative justice scheme that has been applied in Brazil and the United States. “It’s a bit like going to mediation rather than the court for your divorce – but it deals with anti-social behaviour rather than family issues”. In the model, people who are affected by the youths’ actions or involved with them come together with social workers and law enforcement agencies to try to work out a way forward.” I was impressed with the idea, but can it work in Totnes?
“Well it’s something different, but we’re open to suggestions.” Said Jim Turby, local magistrate. “We know the recent rise in theft and vandalism has a lot to do with the rising number of young people out of work and unable to get on training schemes – and we’d like to find better solutions than locking them up.”
The first “Restorative Action Group” will meet next Wednesday to consider recent disturbances in South Street. If you’ve been affected or would like to be involved in helping to find solutions please contact Esme at RAGTotnes@googlefuture.com
Food Price Crisis finds new ways of expression
2017
A heated meeting in the Town Hall narrowly avoided seeing some punches thrown last Wednesday when a community meeting was called to discuss food rationing. The meeting was called following the march by agricultural labourers last Saturday to protest about their working conditions.
Farmer and growers, local people including representatives from refugee groups, the Seeking Work Action group and town officials came together to discuss the issue of food pricing and provision within the town.
The meeting was very heated, with migrant workers complaining that although they do much of the hard work of planting and picking vegetables and fruit in local farms what they get to eat is meagre, wages are low and their accommodation very basic. On the other side people out of work and with steadily reducing benefits are already hard hit by food price rises.
“Cut price deals at the supermarket are a thing of the past” said Joe Hawcombe, manager of South Totnes Organics. We understand it’s harder for others who aren’t earning but we have to be able to pay people here a reasonable wage. If we were getting more money in for what we produce we could take on more workers”
The meeting was held in a new style that has been used to help diffuse heated issues around the world – from race riots to helping to integrate the Stasi police into their community after the fall of the Iron Curtain. Each time someone spoke with anger or passion the facilitator, Sandra Emmanuel, would find others who supported their view, and different people who felt strongly opposed, and encourage them to voice their feeling however they liked – without coming to blows!
“I found it very moving to see people talking about what is really affecting their lives – and I now I understand the need for me to pay what I can afford for the food I buy. I think I’m very lucky to be in work and still able to pay for 3 good meals a day” said a resident from Tuckenhay. “I didn’t realise people living so close were finding it so hard”.
By the end of the meeting several shops had agreed to increase their standard prices, with special discount rates for people on state pensions and benefits. “The extra income will make a huge difference to what we can pay our workers” said Joe.
Survey Finds Totnes Residents Really Know their Neighbours
2018
The latest town survey has found that 92% of Totnesians say they know all or nearly all their neighbours, and the feeling of safety and trust in the community is at an all time high.
Our reporter asked a Totnes Home Group why they thought this was?
“I think it’s because of all the things we do together these days – it seems like we do loads of stuff in groups which used to be done alone or in the family – shared meals, taking it in turns to plant gardens and sometimes even doing the spring cleaning together”.
“We’ve been through a lot together – and come to depend on each other more. My neighbour on one side grows a lot of veg. and on the other side she’s got fruit trees – but up the road we’ve got Mr Jing who’s really good at fixing things, he’s got a fantastic shed with wood and metalworking tools. I don’t know what I bring – maybe cooking?”
Elders Council for Town Strategy Group
2019
Totnes Strategy Group has agreed to the formation of an Elders’ Council for the Town. The council will advise the Strategy group, and be available for other local groups to go to for advice, help with resolving problems, and support for new projects.
They are looking for elders who really know how the town works and have been involved for a long time – but also who bring the wisdom and experience of having seen a lot of change, and got beyond personality issues.
“It’s easy for the meetings of local councils and organisations to get bogged down with money issues short term thinking and local politics. We want people who can bring a much longer and wider view, and a range of perspectives on society and life. Having this view is probably more important than age”.
Interfaith Harvest Festival Largest Ever
2020
A joint harvest festival celebrating the season’s produce will take place in Totnes Town Hall this September 23rd and all are welcome. Organised by several of the town’s faith groups – churches, Quakers and Buddhist groups, and assisted by the Townswomen’s guild, the event is expected to bring together several hundred people including growers from the community allotments and Dartington community supported agriculture. Now a major fixture in the growers’ calendar – as well as a great celebration – the harvest festival shows the enormous range and abundance of produce that the region manages.
“We expect everything to be on display – from aubergines to zucchini (that’s courgettes to you and me), figs and apricots, perhaps even a locally grown mango!” Said Suzie Aimsbury of the Townswomen’s guild. “It’s such a lovely opportunity to come together and enjoy the fruits of the season! As well as traditional hymns there will be chanting (good if you don’t know the words), poetry from local poets, music and maybe even dancing if the mood is right!”
After the ceremony there will be a “bring your own feast” in the hall and town square – bring a dish, or share the cooking of the produce on display.
Totnes Welcomes Home Young Wanderers
2023
A gathering of parents, friends and supporters welcomed home the group of 25 teenagers who completed their “Wilderness Wandering” time on Dartmoor yesterday. Accompanied by the team of Wilderness Wanderers that ensured their safe completion of the four week adventure outdoors they looked jubilant, healthy – and weathered.
The culmination of a year’s training in making fires, living from wild food, creating shelters and living cooperatively and alone outdoors, the month outdoors had clearly made a big impact on the youngsters.
“It was awesome!” said Annette Dawson of Bridgetown, “Some bits were really hard – it rained for three days while we were hiking and it was so slippy! But then the sun came out – and I’ve never felt so alive! I’m glad did it, and I’m glad it’s over. I feel like I know how to take care of myself outdoors, maybe not in really bad weather, but all the basics. It was great to learn so much more about how it all connects up – water, soil, life, weather and the landscape. And I’m looking forward to a hot shower & sleeping a bed!!”
Jane Stone, founder of the scheme, told Totnes Times that this group was the largest so far, and included roughly half teenagers from cities – Bristol, London and Plymouth – as well as locals between the ages of 13 and 18. “In some ways it’s tougher for the city kids – some have so little experience of being outdoors. But they also come to really value it, where the locals can take it all a bit for granted. I think it’s great that youngsters from such different backgrounds can learn from each other as well as from us – and from nature”.
Remembrance Day for those who died during the Great Turning
2027
On a windy grey day many people came to the Town Square to lay flowers and good wishes at the memorial sculpture for those who have lost their lives during recent years due to loss of home or land, hunger, illness, or other causes. In a solemn service hymns were sung and leaders of different faith and community groups offered poems, short speeches and sang together to remember those whose sacrifice was their lives.
Latest government figures estimate that 20 million worldwide are now homeless due to rising sea levels, and over 10 million have died as a result of loss of food or sickness as cholera and typhoid have spread due to loss of sanitation or clean water.
Lantern Procession Celebrates Transition Journey
2030
The 2030 Lantern procession up Totnes High Street will be a commemoration and celebration of the years of Transition in the local area.
Starting back in 2006 at the plains, there will be reminders of how life used to be – cars and the noise of traffic, food flown in from Africa covered in packaging, electronic gadgets and the old fashions.
As the procession makes its way up it will travel through the years of transition remembering some of the key events on the way, and ending in the castle with a celebration of South Hams life in 2030.
One of the biggest events in the town’s annual calendar the lantern procession is usually attended by over a thousand people, and culminates in a display of fireworks set of from the castle walls.
This year Helen Sands, founder of the procession, will be honoured by the group who took over the organisation of the event when she retired back in 2010.
Workshops to make lanterns on the theme of “Transition Journey” will be held from August to October – all are welcome. See the Totnes Town website or local notice boards for information.
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