Q&A with Transition Town Initiator Kaat Vander Straeten

On Sunday afternoon, the Wayland Free Public Library will host a talk intended to introduce the Transition Town model and how it could impact Wayland.

According to the Transition U.S. website, "The Transition Movement is comprised of vibrant, grassroots community initiatives that seek to build community resilience in the face of such challenges as peak oil, climate change and the economic crisis." 

In anticipation of the Sunday's introductory event, Patch asked Kaat Vander Straeten, Transition initiator (it is a non-hierarchical organization, so there are no directors, founders, etc.), to answer a few questions.

Q: How did you become interested in the Transition Town program/model?

A: Many years ago I became aware of climate change and the problems with oil, and of our absolute dependence on a steady climate and a reliable supply of oil for such basics as food. My husband and I felt we needed to do something, and we got our chance when we moved to Wayland three years ago. We became serious about shrinking our household’s carbon footprint, installing a large vegetable garden, beehives and saving up for a PV solar array (to become reality this summer). We cut our electricity and water consumption and our trash production to 20 percent the U.S. national average and our oil dependence to 45 percent.

But the exuberant joy of that homegrown tomato or KiloWatt always threatens to give way to the despair of what is happening to our world. You start doubting yourself: Am I really making a difference? You feel inept, helpless and, frankly, alone.

I can’t remember how I learned about Transition Towns, but I do remember that Aha!-feeling. Transition is basically a model for action on the middle ground between the individual or household level where actions seem trivial, and the national and global scene that is way beyond our control. On that human scale we can have a visible, meaningful and effective impact. In that local space we can build the kind of resilience and sustainability that can mitigate or at least adapt to all these crises barreling down on us. The Transition model and the enormous network of people experimenting with it offer a tool box for all aspects of this process.

It took me some time to gather the courage to try and make this happen in Wayland, but here we are, on the cusp of introducing the model to the community.

Q: Why is Wayland a good candidate to be a Transition Town?

A: Well, any town, any community is a good candidate for Transition. The problems that Transition addresses are already upon us, upon some more than others, but in any case in the near future for all of us. As we approach climate tipping points, as the supply of oil shrinks while the demand rises, as the economy gets more shaky and natural support systems crash, the time of relegating the problems to the future of our grandchildren is past.

Simply put, Wayland is a good candidate because you and I live here. And I think Transition could be very powerful here. Transition is really what a town makes of it, and a town such as ours would make of it something spectacular. Look at the diversity of educational and cultural backgrounds -- what a wealth of experience, expertise and skills! Also, the democratic process is very strong in our town.

Wayland is also home to many groups who are already doing the good work, like the Green Team in the schools; the LEES group working on a Community Farm; the Big Heart, Little Feet Foundation reducing our ecological footprint; and many outstanding charitable initiatives. Transition wants to support all these elements and connect them all in one, powerful effort.

Q: What can the average resident do to participate in the Transition Town effort?

A: The possibilities are endless. I want to share with you something Tina Clarke – who will be presenting the model this Sunday – told me: "Transition is about the giving of gifts." Everyone in our town has a gift, and I am sure that at one point or another everyone here has wished there were a network that would make it easy to share it with the community.

Transition can act as a kind of clearing house for skills, called a “skill share.” If you know how to can vegetables, keep bees or chickens, or build a solar oven, Transition could arrange a workshop. Others can share their understanding of climate change in a talk or work group. If you have an alternative energy system or a food garden, you could open your house to show others what works. Did you see a movie that sheds light on our situation? Let us know and we’ll help you set up a showing.

This kind of thing goes viral really fast. Soon you have the whole community learning together, having fun, getting to know each other.  

If you’re very passionate and have the time, you can organize your neighborhood in a Low Carbon Diet. You could organize a study and action group about how we can strengthen Wayland’s foodshed, for instance, or work toward a local currency.

Just showing up at events and participating in discussions makes for a powerful contribution. If you’re there, you’re building community.

Close to my own heart is the importance given by Transition to oral histories, stories about the distant and near past of this place. Teenagers are good at interviewing elders and recording their stories about attending WHS in the '50s, or about a time when food didn't travel 1,500 miles to the plate and there were only three channels on television. And you don't have to be 100 years old to remember the old Lee's Farm on Route 27 or the flooding of 2010. These are all stories of resilience, adaptation, community, and we can weave a powerful identity with them.

I invite everyone to visit our website at www.transitionwayland.org to check out all the ways in which residents can get informed and participate.

Q: How can someone who has a bit more time/energy participate in the work of the Transition Town?

A: Our steering group is still very small and we need more initiators. Initiators organize the first push of awareness raising and community building by showing movies, getting expert speakers in and connecting with other initiatives in the town and local government. They also set the stage for the formation of working groups.

You’re not an initiator for long. It is fundamental to Transition to “give away” the movement to the community when that community is ready. To that effect, when the steering group is formed, it also “plans its demise,” setting a date by which it should no longer be needed.

After that, an initiator can (but does not have to) go on as part of any of the working groups, which would study how Wayland can build local, resilient and sustainable systems of food production, transport, waste reduction, energy production, local economy, etc.

We are all volunteers and value everyone’s contribution, however small, and we respect the dynamics of one’s energy and time.

Q: What are some upcoming dates/events that are important to know?

One of the first priorities of a Transition Town is the raising of awareness about climate change, energy depletion, the economy and the predicament of nature, and all the ways in which the Town can deal with these issues. As we educate ourselves we also learn about the community and the many ways we can share our gifts to make us stronger.

To that effect we are starting off, this Sunday, April 3, with , a Transition Trainer who has advised over three dozen Transition Initiatives. Tina will introduce the model and discuss with us what it can do for Wayland and how to proceed. 

We will have a booth at the Earth Day Celebration on April 9 at the DPW from 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

On Monday, April 11, we will watch an interview with Bill McKibben of 350.org and discuss his book, "Eaarth."  at the library at 6:30 p.m.

On Monday, April 25, we are hosting Donna Kramer Merritt, who was trained by Al Gore in giving the Climate Change talk, and we’ll follow up with a Global Warming Café workshop.

Q: Anything else we should know about Transition Towns?

A: Transition is unlike anything we’ve seen in activism and community-building. It is proactive, practical and resourceful. It is inclusive, without political or religious or whatever affiliations. It is hopeful, positive and kind. It does do the hard work of facing despair, cynicism and guilt, then moves beyond it into meaningful and supportive responses. It is non-prescriptive, offering people organizational tools and sound information and trusting them to make the right decisions for their community. 

If you ask me, "What would Wayland look like as a Transition Town?" I won’t be able to answer. Two sayings in Transition are “Let it go where it wants to go” and “Whoever comes are the right people.”

I do know that, as it takes ownership of the model, Transition Wayland will be unique.