Where do we go from here? A great question for us two-leggeds today, no matter where we reside on planet earth. I ask it as a 2-legged Michigander who lives and works up north in Petoskey during the winters and on Beaver Island every summer. Knowing where to head depends not only on a good grasp of where we are today, but also on where we’ve come from and what we’ve learned along the way.
Beginning with those most obvious Michigan facts: unemployment is 14%, energy prices are high, credit is hard to come by, and our real estate market is flat. On Beaver Island this means a crash in the building trades, the mainstay livelihood for many Island families since the 1970’s. Beaver Islanders have suffered such declines before. When its Irish exiles first arrived in the 1850’s, fishing became their mainstay. “When I was a kid, everyone used to say that Beaver Island floated on the fish . . . every family had its fisherman,” reported Francis Martin. But by the 1890’s over-fishing brought a severe decline to this way of life, and the final death knell sounded with the arrival of the lamprey eel, destroying commercial trout fishing in the 1950’s.
Like earthlings elsewhere, many Michiganders now see limits to our old habits of planetary habitation. We see an end in sight to the cheap oil and credit-spurred manic consumerism that got us to this place, just like our great grandparents saw the end of Michigan’s “endless” forests and fisheries. So what do we do now? Let’s start by remembering that these new limits need not be roadblocks, but can be guiding stream banks for our future. Our past can teach us both those valuable skills we need to relearn (home gardening & community sustainability) and caution us which old habits need to go.
On Beaver Island for instance, it’s clear that livelihoods that depend on growth from resource extraction (logging, commercial fishing, and house construction) tend to go boom and bust. They also inevitably tax the long-term health of the living environment. On this Island of just 500 year-round residents, these lessons can come hard. But many folks are learning that Beaver Island’s living environment is the goose we don’t need to harvest anymore, but the one we want to nurture - not in the least for the golden egg its laying. Because we’re an island and “out of the way,” we still harbor intact representations of every natural habitat found in Michigan (from rare fen wetlands to rich upland forests) and are a safe haven for several beautiful threatened species. We are ripe for vibrant new forms of eco and historically informed tourism. And we are attracting the spiritually minded traveler too, for whom the western isles, old Odawa and Celtic traditions, and pristine nature provide a draw. Islands residents have also found a perfect solution to the high cost and pollution from gasoline – you’ll see more electric cars on our 100 miles of winding roads today. And the old skills of gardening for community sustainability are returning with a new generation’s enthusiasm for fresh foods and farmer’s markets.
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On the mainland where I winter, there are strong trends of transition towards a new paradigm too. I am part of a grassroots effort promoting the “Transition Town” concept in Petoskey. This is a vibrant model for local community resilience that began in Britain and is now “going viral” around the globe. Petoskey has new community gardens starting, and our progressive city leadership is sponsoring a “smart commuting week” June 7-11th this year. Thinking globally and acting locally is beginning to come of age, andthe challenges we face in this new century are looking more and more like opportunities here in Northern Michigan. To quote Rob Hopkins, the visionary founder of the Transition Town movement:
“While Peak Oil & Climate Change are understandably profoundly challenging, also inherent within them is the potential for an economic, cultural, and social renaissance the likes of which we have never seen. We will see a flourishing of local businesses, local skills & solutions, and a flowering of ingenuity & creativity. We will have become more humble, more connected to the natural world, fitter, leaner, more skilled, and ultimately wiser.”
Seamus Norgaard is a life coach, community activist, and carrier of Celtic Spirit. He welcomes sojourners out to Tara’s Meadow Center, Beaver Island. Please visit www.CelticBodyPrayers.com or call 231.347.7957 for “Love in Action” - a Labor Day Weekend exploring loving without conditions. |
