past events

Please join Transition Sebastopol for our screening of the film DIVE!- a humorous and informative about food waste in America.

About the Movie:
"Inspirired by a curiosity about our country's careless habit of sending food straight to the landfill, the multi-award winning documentary DIVE! followsJeremy Selfert and his friends as they dumpster dive in the back alleys, and gated garbage recepicals of LA's supermarkets. In the process they salvage thousands of dollars worth of good, edible food- resulting in an inspiring documentary that is equal parts entertainment, guerilla journalism, and a call to action."

Dive! Trailer.

Please stay with us after the movie, and lend your voice to our lively and interesting discussion directly following the movie.
See you there! 

FREE EVENT
~donations appreciated~

Come early and enjoy dinner!

Location:
The French Garden Restaurant
8050 Bodega Avenue, Sebastopol
Google map: http://tinyurl.com/frenchgardenmap

Please join Transition Sebastopol for our monthly Movie Night at the French Garden Restaurant! This month's movie is Carbon Nation and the Transition-featuring short film "Everything Is Going to be Fine".

free event/optional discussion following the screening

About the films: 

Everything Is Going to be Fine is a short 15 minute film by documentary film maker Ryan Malloy that features Transition Sebastopol and its members, especially those in our Energy group!

carbon nation is a documentary movie about climate change SOLUTIONS. Even if you doubt the severity of the impact of climate change or just don't buy it at all, this is still a compelling and relevant film that illustrates how SOLUTIONS to climate change also address other social, economic and national security issues. You'll meet a host of entertaining and endearing characters along the way.

•  carbon nation is an optimistic, solutions-based, non-preachy, non-partisan, big tent film that shows tackling climate change boosts the economy, increases national & energy security and promotes health & a clean environment.
• Public opinion is sliding the wrong way - far fewer people are concerned about climate change than even a year ago. We’ve made carbon nation to give a majority of people an entertaining, informed and pragmatic primer about why it’s incredibly smart to be a part of the new, low-carbon economy: it’s good business.
• carbon nation's optimism and pragmatism are appealing across the political spectrum. While other good films have been about problems, blame and guilt,carbon nation is a film that celebrates solutions, inspiration and action.

FREE EVENT
~donations appreciated~

Come early and enjoy dinner!

Location:
The French Garden Restaurant
8050 Bodega Avenue, Sebastopol
Google map: http://tinyurl.com/frenchgardenmap

free event/optional discussion following the screening

Please join us for our monthly movie night at the French Garden Restaurant. This month's movie is Gas Hole- a look at our dependency on fossil fuels in America. Please stay for the discussion afterward and lend your voice to our conversation!

About the Movie:
What caused America to go from being a leading exporter of oil to the world's largest importer? What are the economic and sociological forces that have contributed to that change and impede its solution?

GAS HOLE is an eye-opening documentary about the history of oil prices and sheds light on a secret that the big oil companies don't want you to know – that there are viable and affordable alternatives to petroleum fuel! It also provides a detailed examination of our continued dependence on foreign oil and examines various potential solutions -- starting with claims of buried technology that dramatically improves gas mileage, to navigating bureaucratic governmental roadblocks, to evaluating different alternative fuels that are technologically available now, to questioning the American Consumers' reluctance to embrace alternatives.

Narrated by Peter Gallagher, hear from a wide range of opinions from representatives of the US Department of Energy Representatives, Congressional leaders both Democrat and Republican, Alternative Fuel Producers, Alternative Fuel Consumers (including actor Joshua Jackson), Professors of Economics and Psychology and more. Anyone who buys gas should see this film!
 

FREE EVENT

~donations appreciated~

Come early and enjoy dinner!

Location:
The French Garden Restaurant
8050 Bodega Avenue, Sebastopol
Google map: http://tinyurl.com/frenchgardenmap

with Suzie Gruber

In this class we will talk about common terms used to describe herbal actions and explore different forms of herbal medicine. Additionally, we will discuss specific plants you might want to include in a basic herbal medicine chest and how to grow them yourself. Learn how you can incorporate medicinal herbs into your family’s well-being toolkit.

When: Saturday, July 23, 10 a.m. to noon

Where:
Sonoma County Herb Exchange Barn at Laguna Farm
1764 Cooper Road, Sebastopol

COST: $10; No one turned away for lack of funds

Suzie Gruber, trained by Karyn Sanders and Sarah Holmes, practices energetic herbalism in Sebastopol. Additionally, she helps run the Sonoma County Herb Exchange, a local growers’ cooperative providing high quality organic medicinal herbs. For more information please call (707) 888-9646 or e-mail suzie@suziegruber.com

with Trathen Heckman and Julia Bystrova

We are living in a time of unprecedented change. These changes can impact us in many ways, affecting our relationships, work, financial stability, home, and our physical and mental health. To adapt and thrive, we need to radically elevate how we live our potential through mindful daily choices. In this workshop you will learn new tools and practices that help you stay clear, organized and at peace as you take action on what matters most in your life and community. Amidst guided meditation and movement exercises, we will discuss ways to keep and reclaim our center amidst the significant shifts occurring. We’ll develop a personal purpose statement and learn leadership practices and empowering tools that help you access inner power, aligned with your values and beliefs. In this way, you can hone your inner compass to navigate change while building personal resilience and staying inspired and in action towards living your vision.

On Thursday June 9th, the Transition Sebastopol Ready For Anything group is excited to host Nicole Foss also known as Stoneleigh who co-edits the wonderful financial website the Automatic Earth (www.automaticearth.blogspot.com ). She and her writing partner, Ilargi, have been chronicling and interpreting the on-going financial unraveling as the most pressing aspect of our current multi-faceted predicament. They integrate finance, energy, environment, psychology, and population with outstanding analysis in order to explain why we find ourselves in a state of crisis and what we can do about it. Prior to the establishment of TAE, Nicole was the editor of The Oil Drum Canada where she wrote on peak oil and finance. Nicole is also a nuclear safety expert, contributing significant analysis on the events at Fukushima.

Nicole M. Foss is co-editor of The Automatic Earth, where she writes under the name Stoneleigh. She and her writing partner, Ilargi, have been chronicling and interpreting the ongoing credit crunch as the most pressing aspect of our current multifaceted predicament. 

They integrate finance, energy, environment, psychology, and population with outstanding analysis in order to explain why we find ourselves in a state of crisis and what we can do about it. Prior to the establishment of TAE, Nicole was the editor of The Oil Drum Canada where she wrote on peak oil and finance. Nicole is also a nuclear safety expert, contributing significant analysis on the events at Fukushima. You can learn more about Nicole Foss and the Automatic Earth at:

www.theautomaticearth.blogspot.com. 

When: Thursday, June 9, 7 p.m.
Where: Sebastopol Grange Hall, 6000 Sebastopol Road/Highway 12, Sebastopol

Cost: $12-$15, No one turned away for lack of funds 

For more information about this event, please call (707) 888-9646 or e-mail suzie@suziegruber.com

Please join us for Transition Sebastopol's April Movie Night at the French Garden Restaurant for a screening of:
Cultural Creatives.

~ free event - donations appreciated ~ optional discussion following the screening ~

About the Film:

Featuring many key figures from Europe and the U.S., this is the first documentary film to look with scientific thoroughness at the world of Cultural Creatives. It shows that a great mass of people think differently from the way propagated by the media and promoted by the establishment. By the end of the film it becomes evident that this huge mass, were it to become aware of its power, could change the world. Because Cultural Creatives are unstoppable and their number is continuously rising, the values they champion could soon become core values for human civilization generally.Cultural Creatives are emerging without anybody organizing their presence, without anyone seeking to create political power from their existence, and without any group having any interest in them. They are emerging simply because in real historical development the growth of human consciousness can not be stopped, no matter how much today's establishments and intellectual elites try to ignore and even hide their appearance.

So they are all here, among and around us: 80 million Cultural Creatives in the United States and 120 million in Europe, all with a similar mindset -- the citizens of a new world. They are the ones who are really preparing the future and its new social structures for us, and are doing so right now. They are the ones who anticipate the future as an astonishing opportunity never before available to mankind throughout the whole course of its history here on earth. Their message: The time is ripe to take the shaping of social life into our own hands.

http://www.CulturalCreatives.CC~

FREE EVENT 
~donations appreciated~
Come early and enjoy dinner!

Location:
The French Garden Restaurant
8050 Bodega Avenue, Sebastopol

Googlemap

Please join us for Transition Sebastopol's April Movie Night at the French Garden Restaurant for a screening of:
A Lot in Common- a film about creating a public garden in Berkeley.

~ free event - donations appreciated ~ optional discussion following the screening ~

About the Film:
Meet the neighbors: Grandpa Roosevelt and his grandson, Joan the single mom, Ruthe the psychic, and Amy the metal sculptor. They all have "A Lot in Common" when together they turn a vacant lot in Berkeley, CA into a blooming community garden full of lush native California vegetation, eco-friendly technology demonstrations, and outdoor artwork by local artists. They clash over political ideals, runaway pets and public art, yet in the end, they grow a community of neighbors.
 

Interviews with urban planning visionary Jane Jacobs, PBS reporter/author Ray Suarez, environmentalist Paul Hawken, and Urban Habitat co-founder Carl Anthony, lend context and background to the discussion of the Commons. Landscape architect/psychologist Karl Linn who envisioned and orchestrated the creation of the gardens, provides on-going commentary.

"A convincing argument for what Linn calls 'neighborhood commons' as well as a poignant story about friendship and community-building, with all the challenges and sweetness that implies." San Francisco Chronicle

"A work filled with grace and artistry that goes right to the heart." Amy Blackstone, artist

Joining us for the discussion afterward will be Sara McCamant from iGrow, and Lynn Renn of the 350 Garden Challenge . Please come and add your voice to our conversation and help Transition Sebastopol and iGrow kick off this year's 350 Garden Challenge!

FREE EVENT 
~donations appreciated~
Come early and enjoy dinner!

Location:
The French Garden Restaurant
8050 Bodega Avenue, Sebastopol

Googlemap

When: Saturday, April 9th, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Where: Meet at St Stevens Church, 500 Robinson Way, Sebastopol, CA 95472

Theme of the Month: Water

This Saturday we will focus on Water… Where does it come from, and where does it go when it leaves our homes? Learn how to read your bill, check for leaks and optimize your water use. Find out when you should filter your water, and whether you should rethink your water use. You will learn and see rainwater harvesting and easy water catchment systems. Discover the simplicity of passive rainwater catchment, drip irrigation, & aquaponics. What is the best way to do our dishes, take our showers and/or store our water for emergencies? How much water should we be drinking, what types of purifiers are best, and what safeguards should we support that will protect and secure our water supply.? These things and more will be covered this session.

We will begin our day meeting at St Stevens’s parish hall at 8:30am. From there we will carpool over to the Llano Road Water Treatment Plant at 8:45am sharp. We will meet Denise Cadman there and she will give us a tour of the plant and present an overview about water. Afterward we will come back to St Stevens and meet Kerry Pollard from the Sonoma County Water Agency. She will also present an overview on water, walk the property, assess the irrigation system, check and test the toilets, as well as the entire system for leaks. She will cover practical applications for conservation of water.

Lunch is a potluck. If you don’t have time or money to prepare something, don’t worry about it. There will be plenty.

After lunch we will check in, make sure we have all been introduced, talk about the program process and also address water. At 2:20 we will head over to Erik Ohlsen’s home and walk through the comprehensive water systems he has installed, while he discusses each one. At 4:00 we will head back to St Stevens for some review, wrap up our day, and discuss the homework for the next module; Waste.

The Model of Transition for Sustainable Living (MTSL) program consists of twelve modules—one of which will be covered each month, from December 2010 through November, 2011.  Together they will provide an overall perspective on current thinking and technology, as well as practical skills for everyday sustainable living.  The MTSL program includes a Workbook/Planner, a Reader, a Resource Directory, a Journal, and a series of Visual Aides. (read more below)

Overview of Module 1:

Introduction to A Model of Transition for Sustainable Living

Program Overview and Introduction to Course Materials and Resources: 
Workbook/Planner, Reader, Resource Directory, Journal, and Visual Aides. 
Course Outline and Requirements. 
Principles and Ethics of Course Foundation. 
Visioning. 
Time Management. 
The Identification of the Why. 
Program Commitment. 

Homework: 
Assessing Carbon Footprint