About Us

We are a group of local citizens in Monmouth County, NJ who have started a transition initiative in our community because we are concerned about the realities of climate change, peak oil and economic instability. Once these realities are acknowledged, it becomes clear that resilience, self sufficiency and sustainability are necessary factors in creating successful, thriving communities where individuals are free to live meaningful lives.

What is Peak Oil? Peak oil is about the end of cheap and plentiful oil which has fueled the growth of our industrial economy. Oil is a finite resource. While production is declining, demand continues to rise, pushing prices up. Our food, transportation, and heating/cooling are heavily dependent on oil and gas for fertilizers, irrigation, distribution and storage. When the price of oil goes up, so does the price of food. Both will continue to rise unless we reduce our dependence on oil.

What about Climate Change? Climate change is altering weather patterns, causing sea levels to rise and increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather such as torrential storms and droughts. Climate change affects not only our weather and environment but also our economy and food supply.

How is the current global economic instability a part of this? Should the economy collapse, traditional commercial transactions, such as ATM withdrawals, credit card transactions, bank transfers, auto payments will come to a complete halt. To build resiliency in an unstable market, we need to create alternative markets where local transactions can continue without the need for a fiat based system.

Transition Monmouth will help in the following ways:

• Educate Our Citizens We will show films, hold discussions and distribute educational materials about how we can enhance our food & water systems, energy, transportation and economy. We will hold reskilling workshops to teach basic life skills.
• Support Local Food Production We will support farmer’s markets, local farmers, community-supported gardens and home gardens. We will create a seed bank and share seeds, plants and information on growing, collecting, preserving and storing food.
• Help Build Community Infrastructure We will work with other citizen groups to make our community more resilient, self sufficient and sustainable. We will explore pathways to reduce our use and dependence on fossil fuels and promote the development and use of local, renewable, clean energy.
• Advocate for Policy Changes We will approach local governments with policy proposals in areas such as zoning and development ordinances and economic incentives to create the optimal environment for transition.
• Promote Local Business We will promote local food, manufacturing, transportation, energy conservation and clean energy businesses in order to build local demand for essential services and to create more local jobs.

Get involved

If you are ready to roll up your sleeves and create the world you want to live in, we have many opportunities for you to use your talents here. We are empowered to co-create and we are ready to see miracles happen. To contact us, please send email to transition-monmouth-info@googlegroups.com