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Transition
Town Totnes (TTT)
Sustainable Makers
is a group run by
Richenda Macgregor at Transition Town Totnes
which is exploring exciting initiatives to arise out of
the inevitable changes following post peak oil
production. I have been working with her and other
artists/makers on the project and wrote the following statement expressing the aspirations of the group:
Philosophy:
Transitional times raise questions that require us to
re-evaluate our assumed directions and solutions based
on currently held beliefs. For those willing to look
towards new horizons across uncharted and perhaps
formidable terrain, the inherent fears associated with
change may gradually be seen as nothing less than the
most appropriate challenge and an exciting opportunity
of our time. This time of “post peak oil” has made
us look back at a paradigm which offered routes to
things which with hindsight didn’t produce the
satisfaction we dreamt of. Nowhere has this been more
apparent than in the way we experience the everyday
objects in our lives, where ownership has taken over
from stewardship and acquisition from appreciation.
Nature creates forms that are simultaneously effective
and beautiful, and we appreciate this because we
recognise it as the same cellular content that connects
us to all life and the living web of our own planet. We
save and revere artefacts of those cultures where that
reflection gives us a picture of their integrated
connection to the land, whether through spiritual
practice, seasonal celebration, daily life and death, or
simple function. At this time it is hardly surprising
that we turn to the remaining indigenous cultures of the
world in the hope of finding solutions to the crisis of
our own culture.
It is on that bridge where function and beauty merge
that we find the expression of the craft makers. Theirs
is the sensibility of balance between vision and
material in the changing context of the time. They are
in a unique position to respond to change. In scale,
versatility, individuality, accessibility and
adaptability the work of contemporary crafts people lies
between large scale manufacturing industry and the
purely expressive arts, and yet is capable of extending
into either.
Aims and Objectives:
Sustainable Makers aims to:
• Support the development of new creative responses to
cultural change and to offer a spirit of support and
inclusivity in the search for new solutions to the
ecological challenges that lie ahead.
• Encourage the making of work that does least harm to
the environment by helping makers assess the ecological
consequences of their practice and supporting them to
change.
• Promote a greater understanding of the philosophy
and practicalities of sustainable making to the larger
community.
• Help the community be creative and discerning in
developing their own awareness of the importance of
choosing more sustainable solutions to everyday living,
and the role hand made products may have in this.
• Create opportunities to exchange knowledge, share
resources, develop new experimental practices, and to
research and revive cultural traditions.
Social events:
Sustainable Makers is about community and integration
within a locality, sharing values between craft makers,
and the bigger picture of what we need to address
culturally at a major transitional time. The end of peak
oil production offers us a global symptom of social and
practical problems, in our relationship to each other
and the planet, and therefore the intention of
Sustainable Makers is more than replacing the fast lane
of consumerism with a set of remedial activities in an
opposing fast lane.
Sustainable Makers is a group for all makers who want to
be involved in exchanging their ideas, for those who are
prepared to share responsibility and take an interest in
developing the community. We will look at how we can
broaden and enhance social, cultural and economic values
within the community and exchange ideas and skills
through semi-structured networking events. Makers,
suppliers and retailers will be welcomed to take part in
social events and celebrations. Those who want to be can
be included in an accessible directory and database.
Within the ethos of Transition Town Totnes the
development of an awareness of the importance of buying
locally created products and creating from local
materials in a conscientious way will be promoted, so it
will be important to network with other Transition Town
groups. This will give new opportunities for skills and
methods exchange and to share different approaches.
Actions:
The following plans are being considered:
1) Setting up a Sustainable Makers studio &
workshop space suitable for several functions
including:
• a combination of larger spaces for group work such
as workshops/teaching & specialist technologies, and
smaller individual units to be let to makers committed
to researching and developing sustainable practice in
their particular discipline (including possible short
term incubator units for recent post graduates.)
• a range of specialist equipment and technologies
within the communal workspace. These could include kilns
for glass/ceramics, welding equipment, construction
tools for wood and board, etc. (Inductions and
supervision will be essential for this)
• IT facilities, Web production, marketing tools.
• an office/meeting room.
This could be set up as a “not for profit company”,
with a membership basis. Rent would be charged for
permanent workspaces, communal workspaces could be
rented on an hourly basis, and specialist facilities
could also be paid for on an hourly basis. Individuals
would run their own businesses from their own workshop
premises under normal rented conditions. The possibility
to develop the premises as an Ecological Building
College will also be considered. (Project to be
developed depending on location and opportunities)
2) Exhibitions plotting new routes for
sustainability with commentary & written output,
such as the suggested themes of “Cradle to Cradle”
tracing a products life cycle, or awareness raising
activities such as an “Eco-train” to London. We will
also arrange various other fun activities, taster
workshops and so on, to involve the local community.
3) Encouraging the production of a percentage of work by
makers specifically aimed to be for the local community
in addition to their normal production.
4) Participation in TTT events such as the Great
re-skilling & Christmas markets.
5) Databases of makers with specific interests and
abilities, including a website for skills exchange based
on the LETTS scheme (Local Exchange & Time-Trading
Scheme) or old bartering system, galleries interested to
exhibit their work, suppliers who might be interested in
reciprocal promotion.
6) Production of leaflets, cards, a possible booklet and
quarterly newssheet.
7) A brand for Sustainable Makers with appropriate
conditions (including labelling and marketing
developments)
For more info contact:
Richenda: 01803 865 033 Email: chendie@hotmail.com
or
Natalie: 07791134408 Email: elder_natalie@yahoo.co.uk
Compiled/written by Jon Middlemiss
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