3 Big Ideas for a Resilient Future

 

Talent show and community music night at Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage, Northeast Missouri.

Photo by DéSha Metschke

Build Practical Skills

Learn how to repair it, grow it, make it from scratch, and make do. Then you are better able to take care of yourself and you have something to trade even if you don’t have money. Get good at communication, collaboration, and passing along what you know, and you’re on your way to building a resilient community.

Live Within Local Means

Resilient communities rely when possible on local resources. That means growing food locally, and protecting and restoring the soil, water, and air that sustain us. It means converting waste into resources, fostering biodiversity, and getting good at exchanging and sharing.

  Imagine, Adapt, Create

Encourage imagination and creativity. Make space for joy. Have parties, create liberated spaces. Celebrate, especially in tough times. A strong sense of community grows out of shared music, dance, sense of place, and storytelling.

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This article was written by YES! Magazine staff for the Fall 2010 issue, A Resilient Community.

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