Tunbridge is a town of 1,400 people in rural Vermont. In the early 1960s there were no interstates, no supermarkets, 80% of the inhabitants made a living in connection with the land (dairy, logging and allied industries. People grew most of their own food. There was and still is a strong sense of community. There was little or no money here and travel was a life long remembered event. Now it is 15 miles to an interstate exit and much of our work and shopping is 25 or more miles away. There is much more cash flow now. We have a challenge to maximize quality of life as we reduce dependency on oil.

Areas to consider

Conservation: tighten up the house for winter, get an energy audit from your electric company, get a time setback thermostat, cut down on miles driven, ride share, drive your least fuel consumptive vehicle, test your gas mileage at different speeds, get it tuned up if under performing... Get out of personal debt. If purchasing fuel check your supplier NOW for a contract price for the winter BECOME AWARE.

Sustainable energy forms: Move off oil for heating to more wood, if considering a different vehicle consider new technologies including something with an electric component, add some non grid electricity to your house... solar, wind, water.

Community projects: Make more of your activities happen locally. Buy less and by local products. Brainstorm how to work more from home. Can the community generate some or all its fuel and or electricity? How can we generate a local economy and perhaps local trading "$" with energy or time unites to back them.

State & National: Get the rules changed to allow the things we want to do locally. Demand transparency of information especially on energy issues. Push for infrastructure changes in transport, work and shopping locations, energy delivery systems. Demand a longer term approach to research and development of sustainable living systems including alternatives to fossil and nuclear fuels.

ALL ARE WELCOME
Pick something small you can take action on and start there. Let us know what you are doing and ask for help or collaborators. Let me know of ways of improving this introduction.