35. Use local resources
How well do you know your neighbourhood? Think local - make a local resource map, reduce your ecological footprint, and create and find support in a climate crisis.
The globalisation of society certainly has its pluses and minuses. On the plus side, we have improved global communication, connections and cultural understanding, access to a wider variety of goods and services and, in theory, we can support each other better. But a down side of globalisation, besides making the rich richer and the poor poorer, is extreme waste, especially in transport and over-consumption. Whilst it has become much more affordable to move people and goods around the planet, the cost of these activities have been externalised, causing harm to biodiversity and disrupting the climate.
A while back, we put forward a climate solution of ‘knowing your neighbours’ highlighting the importance of local social cohesion for acting on climate. For this weeks’ #52climatesolutions, we complement knowing your neighbours with this solution; to use local resources. Take a walk around your neighbourhood. Focus your attention to resources and services within walking distance, that you could utilise to meet your needs. How much of your food could you gather within walking distance? What about public reserves where you can gather kindling for your wood fire? Do edible foods grow in the cracks in the footpaths and marginal areas? By utilising what is already available near you, you can contribute to reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
Most Australians (>70%) live in major cities containing suburbs that were not designed with climate change in mind. Urban planners rarely (if ever) design ways for residents to meet food, water, and energy needs from within their suburb. It is often up to leaders (yes, that can be you!) in local communities to add services that make it easier for people to act local, such as street libraries, community gardens, community batteries, seed libraries, tool libraries, food co-ops, local pantries and composting services. These sorts of initiatives make communities more resilient and cohesive.
Consider what you have near you, what you can use that you don’t already, or what you might help to start up. We may have to retro-fit our way out of climate catastrophe, and live more locally, if we want to avoid the harmful aspects of globalisation.
Make a local resource map
Here’s a fun household project to get started on. You can add to it through the year, perhaps giving it more consideration in the winter months when you’re likely to be outdoors less.
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