A community is a cooperative group people locally who want to achieve a sense of belonging and  who recognise that they need to look after what they have. By doing this in ways such as not wasting resources, or becoming more independently resourceful, a community ensures it becomes resilient. Essential, particularly when the community meets new challenge.

On a collective basis this sees groups within the community pulling together in the same direction and supporting each other, sharing resources, expertise, and equipment. Individually, this sees people looking out for each other, sharing resources and being thoughtful.

During 2018 the film “Tomorrow” (French Demain) was shown in Oxford, Wallingford, Cholsey, Abingdon and other Sustainable groups locally.  All who attended were inspired by the many important issues about taking back control of our lives, our economy and our planet. After the film and the following week we talked about what we’d like to do at a grass roots level to follow up, and a new group, Cholsey Tomorrow, has started there to progress proactive ideas.

Since then we have put several projects into action, with others planned, all to help the communities to thrive through transition,

• a community response to the challenge of shrinking supplies of cheap oil, and climate change
• encouraging a change from our current way of living to a local self-sustaining economy.

Two of the projects identfied in the film as being successful from studies in many countries were LETS, a non-monetary exchange ofgoods, skills and services which has been etablished for many years in the area, and Incredible Edible, which soon started in the Wallingford area. Both these projects have proved the concept of having fun and achieving results through working together.