High gas prices are now drawing comparisons with 1973 energy crisis in the United States, which led many families to find creative and practical ways of reducing the need for energy, and thus reduce household costs.

The oil shocks of the ’70s resulted in a dramatic nationwide push for energy conservation in the US. Since then, however, fuel consumption has been steadily increasing. Now that energy prices are climbing, many are now wondering if conservation will make a comeback? Conservation and efficiency measures are even coming to the forefront in the US presidential race. This month, we turn our attention back to the '70s for some insight on reducing our consumption.

1. 10 Steps for Individuals

As part of our “Kiss Your Gas Goodbye” event in Sebastopol, CA on August 2, 2008, Post Carbon Institute has presented a 10 Step framework for individuals to transition to a post carbon world. This framework will be updated with more and more resources over time, and we welcome your feedback.

1. Understand
2. Plan
3. Reduce
4. Share
5. Participate
6. Reskill
7. Reinvest
8. Generate
9. Grow
10. Monitor

Read more.

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2. Going Retro: More Than a Spread

Summer in a Jar. For many people, homemade jams and jellies remind them of childhood when preserving food was the norm. Canning and other methods of food storage allows you to capture great fruits and vegetables at the peak of their season and then enjoy them later in the year. Get started and host a jam session.

In his latest commentary, Richard Heinberg talks about his recent experience canning:

"My wife Janet and I have spent the past two days canning fruit. We’re also preserving fruit with a solar food dryer. We’ve been planning for a post-carbon food system for eight years now, gradually developing the skills and tools needed to feed ourselves from our quarter-acre suburban backyard. Just now it’s plum and peach season, and—as any gardener or arborist knows—when the fruit comes in, it comes in all at once...This is how people have lived for millennia." Read more.

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3. Online Resources

• Calculate your home water budget
  Learn tips for water saving in your home and garden on H2ouse.org.
• Want to cut down your home energy use?
  Conduct a Do-It-Yourself home energy audit
• Wondering about trying your hand at food preservation?
  Find all the information you need to start canning, pickling, freezing, drying and more courtesy of the National Center for Home Food Preservation, and read a special series of articles by Sharon Astyk. [Editor's note: see also the Reality Report interview with Sharon Astyk by Jason Bradford on GlobalPublicMedia]
• Want to cut down your electricity bill?
  The Kill a Watt Reader will help you determine how much electricity and money individual appliances use.
• Wishing you could save more at the pump?
  Estimates show that we can collectively reduce our consumption ten-fold by adopting relatively easy and cheap efficiency measures outlined by the Alliance to Save Energy.

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4. Post Carbon Cities: Updates from the Isles

By Laurel Hoyt, Post Carbon Cities Program Coordinator

Our writing about local government actions often has a North American focus, but that doesn't mean we're not keeping a keen eye out for news from elsewhere. Lately, we've caught wind of a few interesting developments in the U.K. (largely thanks to our glamorous Post Carbon field agents there).

Economies

Back at the end of July, we got news that the city of Bristol in England had set up a peak oil task force. That's good news, but it's not all. The council of the county that Bristol is in, Somerset, has resolved to become the UK's first "Transition Local Authority," endorsing Transition Towns principles (including acknowledging energy descent). The county thereby commits to create an energy descent action plan, to allocate funds toward transition projects, and to assist other Somerset towns in joining the Transition Network if they wish.

Read more.

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5. New on Global Public Media

KunstlerCast: Anti-Urban Bias
San Francisco Peak Oil Town Hall Meeting: What's Happening With Oil?
Ron Cooke: The Perfect (Economic) Storm
Reality Report: David Holmgren and FutureScenarios.org (Part 1)
Crop to Cuisine: Innovations in Farming & Gardening
Peak Moment: Go-Getter Gets Governments Going on Sustainability
Richard Heinberg's MuseLetter: Coal and Climate
The Story of Joe Average and Jane Median : A Simple Climate Tax Scheme

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6. Relocalization Network Group Projects

After 40 episodes, the final Lifeboat Show will be airing on August 25th, featuring interviews with local leaders of sustainability and community solutions. The Lifeboat Show is produced by Titanic Lifeboat Academy in Astoria, Oregon, and episodes can be heard on Global Public Media. Read a message by hosts and organizers, Caren Black and Christopher Padden. As a member of the relocalize.net, the Titanic Lifeboat Academy is a working demonstration site and non-profit education center promoting community-based, sustainable living practices, deep ecology ethics, indigenous energy systems and low-impact appropriate technologies in Coastal Oregon. We wish them all the best!

Tour Around by Bike. In Oregon, Post Carbon Eugene organized a bike tour of neighbourhood homes with innovative permaculture, active and passive solar design, and rain-water catchment systems.

For more news, discussions and upcoming events, visit www.relocalize.net.

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7. Upcoming Events

Post Carbon Institute Speakers Schedule

Sustainable Packing forum
September 10, 2008 - Denver Marriott Tech Center Denver, CO
Post Carbon Institute Senior Fellow Richard Heinberg will deliver the Keynote Address at the 2008 Sustainable Packing Forum in Denver, CO. Richard talk is titled "Peak Sustainability & The 5 Axioms of Sustainability"

Bay Area Funders' Forum on Energy Scarcity
September 15, 2008 - San Francisco, CA
Post Carbon Institute Senior Fellow Richard Heinberg will present at the Bay Area Funders' Forum on Energy Scarcity, produced by the Tides Foundation, the JoMiJo Foundation and and the Bay Area Peak Oil Task Force. Also speaking will be Nancy Nadel, Oakland City Council, David Fridley, UC Berkeley Lawerence Livermore Labs, Jeff Ritterman, Chief of Cardiology, Kaiser Permanente and David Room & Kirsten Schwind of Bay Localize.

Annual Isadore Candeub Memorial Lecture in Planning
Oct 8 2008 - 7:30pm - Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ
Post Carbon Cities Program Manager Daniel Lerch will be presenting the Annual Isadore Candeub Memorial Lecture in Planning at the Edward Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University in New Jersey.

Bioneers Conference
October 17, 2008 - San Rafael, CA
Richard Heinberg, Post Carbon Institute Senior Fellow will participate in a panel at Bioneers titled, "Food and the Triple Global Crisis: Climate Change, Peak Oil, Resource Depletion". On the panel with Richard will be Debi Barker, co-director of IFG and Andrew Kimbrell, executive director, Center for Food Safety.

American Planning Association, Fall Conference
November 7, 2008 - Salt Lake City, UT
Daniel Lerch, Post Carbon Cities Program Manager will present at the Utah Chapter of the American Planning Association, Fall Conference. The meeting will be held at University of Utah.

Featured Events

ASPO-USA Peak Oil Conference
September 21-23, 2008 - Hyatt Regency, Sacramento, CA
ASPO-USA announces its fourth annual high-level conference to discuss impacts of and responses to a peak in world oil production. Conference participants will include Matt Simmons, Jeff Rubin, Jim Buckee, Jeremy Gilbert, Herman Franssen, Kjell Aleklett, Randy Udall, Jim Puplava, David Hughes, Dan Reicher, Vince Mathews, Nate Hagens, and many others.

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If you have any comments about this Newsletter or suggestions for the next, please contact us.

Relocalization Network Team

Post Carbon Institute
Tel. +1 707 823 8700
Email Us
6971 Sebastopol Avenue
Sebastopol, California, 95472, USA
www.relocalize.net
www.postcarbon.org

Photo credits:
Stephanie Watson