Trade and Climate Chaos, the Rise of 5G Technology, Our Return to Ladakh, and more
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Local Futures
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Local Futures
Understanding the many problems we face can feel overwhelming. Whether it's the carbon footprint of global trade, or the growing push for technologies that could affect all of our lives, we're here to help make sense out of it all—and to highlight the rising tide of local initiatives pushing back against the madness. Read on for a selection of thought-provoking pieces and upcoming events that will inspire you to continue working for real change.
Volunteers needed!
We recently released our short film and factsheet about 'Insane Trade' in the global economy. We're now looking to translate these materials into as many languages as possible. If you're interested in volunteering your time to help us with translation, please send an email to info@localfutures.org.
On our Blog
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lobal trade at work
Connecting the Dots – Insane Trade and Climate Chaos: Imagine a world where food routinely gets shipped thousands of miles away to be processed, then shipped back to be sold right where it started. It sounds like a joke, but it's the world we live in now. Much of the trade that happens in the global economy is unnecessary, and detrimental to our efforts to curb carbon emissions. Read more in this blog entry, a companion to our 'Insane Trade' short film and factsheet.
The looming risk of 5G: The 'next generation' of wireless technology, called 5G, is on its way to being implemented worldwide. Tied to the privacy-invading 'internet of things', 5G technology poses serious threats to our democracy, security, health, and climate. We break down the risks in two guest blog entries, with a special focus on the policy environment in the United States that has allowed 5G to move forward with minimal oversight. Read more here and here.
How bad is global inequality, really?: It's often claimed that the global economy has helped bring inequality down worldwide. Jason Hickel rebuts this claim, showing who the real beneficiaries of globalization have been. Read more.
Growthism – its ecological, economic and ethical limits: Mainstream economists believe that all problems can be solved through economic growth. So why are our most serious problems getting worse, even though the economy is continuing to grow? Renowned ecological economist Herman Daly describes how we've 'allowed [this] lurking inconsistency to metastasize.' Read more.
Upcoming Events
Gaunts House banner
Happiness in a Time of Crisis - Gaunts House, Dorset, UK
July 11-15
A first-of-its-kind residential event, bringing together Local Futures' founder Helena Norberg-Hodge, Satish Kumar, and Mac Macartney – three internationally-recognized and inspirational speakers – as well as special guests and facilitators with a diverse breadth of knowledge and experience. This 4-day course gives you the chance to learn from ancient cultures, explore ideas that lead to real change, meet friendly like-minded people, and discuss important issues in a welcoming setting. Read more and book tickets.
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Helena Norberg-Hodge at the Brussels Economic Forum - Brussels, Belgium
June 18
This forum is the flagship annual economic event of the European Commission, and a venue for discussing and debating Europe’s biggest economic challenges. Helena Norberg-Hodge will make the case for local economies, and unpack the assumption that globalization and trade benefit everyone, as part of a panel on the topic: 'A new global order: inward or outward looking?'. Read more.
Following the conference at 6pm, there will be a screening of The Economics of Happiness at Studio 5 Movie Theatre in the conference center.
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Ladakh landscape
Economics of Happiness Conference - Ladakh, India
September 20-21
Local Futures was founded in Ladakh to introduce alternatives to fossil-fuel-based, un-ecological development. Now, we're returning to our roots by bringing our flagship conference series to Ladakh. There will be a focus on compassionate economics – an ‘economics of happiness’ – and what we can do to achieve it. There will also be an emphasis on identifying strategies that can strengthen and renew Ladakh's local economy and food systems, while addressing some of Ladakh's imminent problems. We will also explore different strategies to counter the onslaught of the corporate-led global economy in India and abroad. Read more and book tickets.
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Other Upcoming Events
June 16: How do we Scale Up Local Food Production? (Bristol, UK). Helena Norberg-Hodge will appear on a panel to discuss how to develop resilient local food economies, and support access to local produce.
June 22-23: This Is Not A Design Conference 2019 - Human and Nature (Maastricht, Netherlands). Local Futures' Associate Programs Director, Anja Lyngbaek, will speak about local economies and run a 'big-picture activism' workshop at this event hosted by Maastricht Disrupt at the Cube Design Museum.
'Planet Local' Gets an Overhaul
Planet Local collage
Planet Local is our library of grassroots efforts to create the local economies of the future. It now features over 140 groups fighting for people and the planet, and we're adding more all the time.
We recently overhauled the structure of the Planet Local collection, to make the entries easier to find and share. You can now search for a particular entry in the search bar on the top right of our website. You can also now browse the collection either by category (e.g. Ecology, Health, Local Business & Finance, etc) or by location.
We've also added a 'Maps of Alternatives' section at the bottom of our Links page, which will direct you to other collections of grassroots projects similar to Planet Local.
If you have a localization story or initiative to suggest for Planet Local, send us an email at info@localfutures.org.
News and Links
Local Futures panel audienceLocal Futures' talk at Australia's National Sustainable Living Festival. Photo by Julian Meehan
Climate disasters and local responses: A new book on the climate crisis features a chapter co-written by Local Futures staff member Kristen Steele, together with Green House think tank chair Rupert Read. Read the chapter, 'Making the Best of Climate Disasters: On the Need for a Localised and Localising Response', in Facing Up to Climate Reality: Honesty, Disaster and Hope, out now.
Caretaking, with Wendell Berry and Helena Norberg-Hodge: A wide-ranging and moving conversation between these two giants of the localization movement previously aired on the Local Bites podcast. Now a print version has been published by Orion magazine. Read it here.
On the possibility of human extinction: We highly recommend this recent interview with scientist and environmentalist Dr. David Suzuki, who talks candidly about the future of the planet, the need for mass movements, and the economics underlying where we are and where we need to go as a society.
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Watch The Economics of Happiness
Economics of Happiness'What's our favorite documentary of all time? The one film we wish everyone could see? Hands down, this is it. It is truly one of the most important and useful films for inspiring change that has been made in a generation.'
- Films for Action
View online on demand or Get the DVD
Translated versions available online:
American Sign Language | Arabic | Chinese | Croatian | Farsi | French | Greek | Hungarian | Nepali | Norwegian | Portuguese | Russian | Slovenian | Spanish | Swedish | Turkish | Ukrainian
View a list of all 25 translated versions and how to obtain them.
Donate to Local FuturesLocal Futures/ISEC
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