Age of Limits Conference in PA, May 25-28 2012

[energycrunch]

The Age of Limits Conference: Conversations on the Collapse of the Global Industrial Model will be happening at Four Quarters Center near Artemas, Pennsylvania during Memorial Day weekend.

John Michael Greer, Tom Whipple, Gail Tverberg, Carolyn Baker, Dmitry Orlov, and others will be presenting! For more info and to register: http://www.ageoflimits.org

"For 50 years serious thinkers have questioned the assumptions of our global industrial culture and its prospects over the longer term. In recent decades they have succeeded in bringing at least some of the core science into popular discussion, notably petroleum depletion and especially climate change. Through these years proposals have been made outlining the governmental policies that would be necessary to begin “solving” these problems. Sadly, we can now see through the course of events, or rather non-events, that the window of opportunity is closing, if not already closed. We are now confronted not by a problem, but by a predicament; one which has no solution, but only adaptations and mitigation's.

Environmental Degradation and Resource Depletion.
Global Population Growth and Demographics.
Rentier Debt and Growth Based Finance. Global Climate Change.
A world now reaching The Limits of Growth on a Finite Earth.

The Age of Limits directly addresses our developing understanding of the core issues relating to the emerging decline of the western industrialized model and the practical adaptations and preparations that apply on the personal, family and local levels.

So this is not intended to be a conference in the usual sense of presentations to a passive audience. We will instead foster “Weekend Community” through the creation of physical spaces that encourage attendees meeting and exchanging with each other and with our presenters... in a very natural and beautiful setting. More info at http://www.ageoflimits.org

[energycrunch]

People are encouraged to publicize this conference to other individuals, groups, networks, and websites that might be interested!

[energycrunch]

FYI, a rideshare board will also be posted soon, for those without cars who wish to attend.

[pstarr]

So we are supposed to drive to this conference to discuss why we shouldn't drive to this conference? Wouldn't one better spend that time working the garden, fixing the bike, building a paddock, working toward (or discovering. or searching for. or improving) our own local economy? Or just reading a book, watching a DVD on the flat screen, hanging out with friends? Just asking (with a tiny bit of malice )

I know. Participants believe they have the solutions to our problems and they intend by their own congregation (ie to assemble) to further that agenda; the betterment of mankind. But how? Does putting a face to a name create a "movement. Is networking better than social networking? Do they meet out of eye/earshot of the proverbial all-seeing eye/ear? But then why post on the internet? call me confused. If this is about the last indulgence, I'd have picked the sea cruise.

[plumlocal]

We do stuff as an "I", that is, from our own initiative. But we're also a "we" that does stuff together and recognizes ourselves as having common interest. Responding to peak oil is definitely a "we" thing too. I'll be going to the conf and hope to see you there.
andrew

[pstarr]

Artemas PA is Greer's new bugout town. You going to dance the May poll in medieval garb?

Plumlocal, I'm not picking on you in particular. I just have a crap attitude after all this time. Welcome here to peak oil.

[plumlocal]

medieval garb sounds groovy. "skyclad" though, hmmm not for me.

pstarr, why the disaffection after all these posts? You must have learned an awesome amount about what other forumers are bringing to the table. What an awesome vantage point. C'mon man or woman as the case might be, give us some of the good stuff.

[AgentR11]

Come-on, yall are doing a conference that could be remote'd. People will drive or fly there.

Yall could accomplish the same thing with Ventrilo and a youtube channel; with the advantage being that any presentations made would be continually available after the fact.

[stephankrasner]

Sounds good. I'm glad to see that people are fighting the good fight out in Artemas, but I'm inclined to agree with pstarr. I'd rather drive 20 minutes to one of the Greener Partners lectures than drive four hours to hang out in the middle of nowhere.

[energycrunch]

Well, if you don't think it is a worthwhile use of your time and energy to travel to rural Pennsylvania for this conference, that's a reasonable choice to make. It is true that it is hard to get to without a car (I myself do not own a car, so I'll have to carpool). It is the reality that all of us, including us peak oil-aware folks, have to live with a certain amount of contradiction in our lives, being still dependent on fossil fuels and the industrial system while we prepare for and imagine the future beyond it. What level of contradiction we are comfortable with is not a uniform answer for everyone; that's something we have to decide for ourselves. If you think your time would be better spent that weekend gardening than traveling to this conference, certainly then that's what you should do!

But for those of you who are inspired to come to this conference, I think it has the potential to be a rich experience. The plan is to make it a much more participatory event than other types of conferences, and discuss topics and questions that lack easy answers, and to get people out of their comfort zone. Therefore the format will be different than an ASPO conference, and not just be a bunch of presentations with a mostly passive audience. It will likely be something more than some lectures that could be posted on the youtube channel.

I was at Four Quarters (where the conference will take place) this weekend for the first time. It is a very beautiful setting. For those of you coming, I hope you will find it worth it.

[energycrunch]

Also, a meetup group has been set up for those who are interested in planning for the Age of Limits Conference, and hope to continue such conversations post-conference. If you are interested, I encourage you to join the meetup: http://www.meetup.com/The-Age-of-Limits/

"Welcome to our Meetup Page for the emerging Age of Limits. A place for conversations and developing community around the issues of Limits to Growth, ecological overshoot, decline and collapse of the Global Industrial Model.

Here, we hope to develop a family of weekend long events, day-long workshops and evening "Living room Conversations" across our MidAtlantic bio-region. Issues that address what individuals can do in their daily lives, such as sustainable living, permaculture, personal energy production and appropriate technologies. As well as discussions on the larger global issues of population demographics, climate change, resource depletion, overshoot and collapse."