Forest Row in Transition is a summary of ideas, created through the collective thinking of many local people, describing how Forest Row could transition to become a low carbon, resilient community. It has come together out of many conversations over the past two years as we have begun to explore what a truly sustainable future could be like here.
The group Transition Forest Row came together in 2007 to find ways of creating a better future. They had deep concerns about climate change and the depletion of the earth’s resources. They also realised that huge changes need to happen if we are to look to the future with any sense of optimism, but felt discouraged about making much difference through individual actions. Drawing on the Transition Town movement, in which communities act together to find a path to a more sustainable way of life, they recognised its enormous potential and began Transition Forest Row.
Over the past two years Transition Forest Row have organised films, community debates, a children’s festival, seed swaps, gardening and jam making, community bag making, electricity monitoring, permaculture courses, storytelling, camps, and coppicing days. They have also been involved in a range of other village events (apple day, cycle day, the community market, and twinning fun day, to name a few). In addition, the group discovered great things going on on our doorstep and wanted to promote and share them, and also began to host conversations to build a vision for the future and to look for actions that we as a community could take.
Hundreds of residents from Forest Row and surrounding villages have come together in a variety of events to share information about the challenges we face, and to look for solutions. The groups have met to admit our fears about the future, and to build courage to face them. In doing so, the participants have shared expertise and dreams. Everyone participating in these conversations has played a part in shaping the ideas summarised in Forest Row in Transition.
