Transition Tooting in south London together with Project Phakama, a London based youth arts organization working with refugees from around the world, have been awarded a grant towards the cost of a year long twelve step Transition process that will culminate in a large scale carnival on the 2010 summer solstice.

Oh lord, Won’t You Buy Me, A Composting Loo
If a conference dosn’t spark the creative juices to flow then what is it for you might ask? Well if that is the test then the 2009 Transition conference passed by inspiring this wonderful version of a wonderful song sung by everyone to round off the event.

Rob Hopkins announces plans to show ‘In Transition’, online as well as an appeal for help in finishing it…

‘Water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink.’ Stroud Communiversity is offering a one day event on 23rd June to think about our most fundamental resource and hear from a range of experts that will look at water for many different angles including water for energy, waste water, flooding, and drought.

It’s too late to be a pessimist

The popular coffee table book The Earth from Above by French photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand has been made into a stunning film to highlight the damage man is doing to the planet. Called HOME, the film shows images of cities, rain forests, deserts and oceans from above to highlight the damage climate change, development and over exploitation is doing to the planet. With no talking heads. the narrative quickly draws the viewer in to see the story of life on the planet, our role in shaping it and calls to us to work together to write the script of what happens next.

With accelerating growth and it’s ideas spreading so fast, it’s easy to forget that the Transition Movement is only a bit over three years old. The third annual Transition conference held for the first time in London had around twice as many participants as last year over three days at the Battersea Arts Centre.

A new way of learning and engaging using the Internet is being developed by the Open University called SocialLearn. SocialLearn enables people to connect with each other and resources and provides opportunities for discussion, reflection and putting forward points of view. You are invited to take part in the testing of Social Learn during June and July 2009.

Stroud’s second Communiversity took place over three days of wonderful and sometimes challenging weather. Max Comfort gives us some of the insights into topics covered such as Community Supported Agriculture, Street Allotments and food foraging.

The Cultivate Centre in Dublin have just produced a fabulous resource that all Transition groups will find invaluable, the Powerdown Show. This series of ten 20 minute programmes on DVD explore many aspects of the Transition movement in a humorous, accessible and inspiring way.

Those interviewed in the series include George Monbiot, Paul Allen, Richard Douthwaite, Megan Quinn, Daniel Lerch, Duncan Stewart, Rob Hopkins and many more.

What is tourism’s contribution to sustainable communities. A large and vital industry in so many towns and villages in the UK, tourism’s role within the wider sustainability agenda should not be overlooked. Anna Waddilove reports on a recently completed piece of research examining the potential role of tourism within sustainable communities, with a particular focus on the Transition model.