Thank you to the 274 people who contributed their feedback in our recent annual survey!

Scope

With this broad survey, we wanted to get a sense of how Transition is evolving in the US and what kind of support is needed. Questions were focused on finding out some background info about Transition initiatives, how Transition initiatives are doing overall, if they have various working groups: how these groups are doing, what resources have been helpful and what participants envision would be helpful in the future; if groups have had any conflicts: how these conflicts were handled, and generally, how participants' insights on how the Transition movement can be most effective.



In this report:



Background

A sense of how things are going

What is happening in Transition Initiatives?

Challenges

Successes

How is Transition making a difference?

Getting support + resources

Inclusivity and getting the word out

Exploring group dynamics and cultivating leadership

Handling conflict

Thinking toward the future

The movement as a whole

Summing up

Thank you + groups represented

Click here to read the full report PDF >>









Summary



With this broad survey, we wanted to get a sense of how Transition is evolving in the US and what kind of support is needed.



In general, the majority of initiatives are reporting that things are going well, but at least half of the respondents had experienced challenges.



Food, communications/publicity, collaborations with other groups, skill sharing, and energy issues are among the top areas that Transition Initiatives are engaging in.



Ongoing challenges include balancing time and energy, engaging people on long term basis, communication and developing clear goals and actions.



Developing relationships within the community, finding common cause, organizing events and collaborating with other groups were among the successes. Coming together as a group and finding others who shared similar interests came up again and again as things that people valued most about being involved.



More regional gatherings and networking opportunities, along with advanced skills workshops for transition leaders, were identified as resources that people would definitely use.



Initiatives are using a wide range of tools and creative means for getting the word out, though most people thought their initiative needed to do more to be inclusive. Examples of ways that Transition Initiatives are exploring diversity were shared.



With regards to handling conflict, for some groups, the relationships between the core organizing group is one of the highlights of their experience, but for others finding cohesion and building capacity is a large stumbling block.



When asked about thinking toward the future for Transition US, many people stated the need to achieve more widespread awareness and recognition, engaging in a larger dialogue, and ultimately a working towards a “culture shift.” With regards to needs for the movement as a whole to be most effective in the next few years, more regional networking, engaging a broad and diverse network, and creating viable alternatives were common themes.





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Thank you!

Huge thanks to the 274 people (individuals, “mullers” and initiatives alike) who contributed feedback to the survey. Your responses were integral to helping inform and shape the work of Transition US in supporting and catalyzing community resilience in the US. We hope that the feedback and insights gleaned from the responses, which we’ve done our best to accurately capture in this report, will also help inform the work that you are doing and the interests that you are exploring in your locale. If you have any questions about this report, please contact us at info@transitionus.org.



Members of the following Initiatives (over 150 in total) contributed their feedback and are represented in the survey results above:

