Resources
Here are pertinent articles, books, or movies that might be useful or interesting to ACORN members. Most of these articles deal directly with peak oil, global warming, local food, local energy, or relocalization in general.
Have something to add? E-mail the webmaster: webmaster@acornvt.org
Global Energy
“The Energy Bulletin”
EnergyBulletin.net is a clearinghouse for information regarding the peak in global energy supply.
“Peak Oil Primer”
An introduction to the basics of peak oil.
“Past the Peak” – by R. V. Scheide, Metroactive
An article about the California town of Willits and its cooperative response to peak oil.
“The Oil is Going, the Oil is Going!” – Salon.com
An article about the Paul Reveres of Peak Oil.
“The Oil We Eat” – by Richard Manning, Harper’s Magazine, 2004
An article about the oil-intensive nature of industrial agriculture.
“When Will the Oil Run Out?”
Interview with chief economist of the International Energy Agency
“Will the Children of Today Be Living in a World Powered by Renewable Energy
in 2050?” – (October 2008 study by German Aerospace Institute of Technical
Thermodynamics)
Global Environment
“You are Brilliant and the Earth is Hiring,” Paul Hawken, Commencement address to the Class of 2009, May 2009
“Living Planet Report” – 2008 – World Wildlife Fund [4.3 MB pdf]
This report is a must read. It is nothing less than a greenprint for the survival of our species.
“One Shot Left” – by George Monbiot, The Guardian, November 2008
The latest science suggests that preventing runaway climate change means total decarbonisation.
“Global Warming Twenty Years Later: Tipping Points Near” – by James Hansen, Director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, June 2008
350.org (http://www.350.org/)
“The Stolen Forests: Inside the Covert War on Illegal Logging” – The New Yorker, by Raffi Khatchadourian, October 2008
AskNature (http://www.janinebenyus.com/) Janine Benyus is a natural sciences writer, innovation consultant, and author of six books, including her latest − Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature. In Biomimicry, she names an emerging discipline that seeks sustainable solutions by emulating nature’s designs and processes (e.g., solar cells that mimic leaves, agriculture that models a prairie, businesses that run like redwood forests).
Global Finance and Economy
Interview with David Walker, former Comptroller General of the U.S. on the unsustainability of U.S. finances
“Money, Banking and the Federal Reserve” by Ludwig von Mises Institute, 2006
“The Crash Course” – Ready to learn everything you need to know about the economy in the shortest amount of time? The Crash Course is a condensed online version of Chris Martenson’s “End of Money” seminar. It seeks to provide you with a baseline understanding of the economy so that you can better appreciate the risks that we all face.
“What Cooked the World’s Economy?” – by James Lieber, Village Voice
“Worst Is Yet to Come: Americans’ Standard of Living Permanently Changed” -
Feb. 2009 Interview with Howard Davidowitz, retail analyst
“A Steady-State Economy” by Herman Daly, April 2008
Do you want to rebuild our economy and revitalize your community? The10% Shift wants to help you do just that.
Transition
Resilience Thinking: by Rob Hopkins, Resurgence, November/December 2009.
Transition Culture: An evolving exploration into the head, heart and hands of energy descent
“2030” from The Transition Handbook: From Oil Dependence to Local Resilience by Rob Hopkins, founder of the Transition movement (5MB pdf)
“Cradle to Cradle: Re-making the Way We Make Things” – Regenerative Design
“If Nature had Rights” by Cormac Cullinan
“Whole Measures” from the Center for Whole Communities
De-Stress Kit for Changing Times (256 kb pdf)
by Doc Childre, founder of HeartMath
Addison County
Quick facts on Addison County (U.S. Census website)
“Final Report and Action Plan” – Middlebury Creative Communities Program – July 2007
Middlebury and Addison County Community Forum Notes – Council on the Future of Vermont – April 17, 2008
Addison County Speaks: “Community Needs Assessment 2007″ – by United Way of Addison County
Books
The Citizen-Powered Energy Handbook: Community Solutions to a Global Crisis
By Greg Pahl. 2007.
The Long Emergency: Surviving the End of the Oil Age, Climate Change, and Other Converging Catastrophes of the Twenty-first Century
By James Howard Kunstler. 2005.
Powerdown: Options and Actions for a Post-Carbon World
By Richard Heinberg. 2004.
Twilight in the Desert: The Coming Saudi Oil Shock and the World Economy
By Matthew R. Simmons. 2005.
The Empty Tank : Oil, Gas, Hot Air, and the Coming Global Financial Catastrophe
By Jeremy Leggett. 2005.
The End of Oil: On the Edge of a Perilous New World
Paul Roberts. 2005.
Beyond Oil: The View from Hubbert’s Peak
By Kenneth S. Deffeyes. 2004.
“The Transition Handbook: From Oil Dependency to Local Resilience”
By Rob Hopkins, Green Books, 2008.
Films
On YouTube/Web videos
Rob Hopkins on the Transition Handbook
Rob Hopkins on Local Resilience
Kem Eter ( President of Crossroads Resource Center in Minneapolis)
Documentaries
The End of Suburbia: Oil Depletion and the Collapse of The American Dream
The Power of Community – How Cuba Survived Peak Oil
