Greenhouse Rebuilding
2018-04-21 13:00 - 17:00 (America/Halifax) | Unnamed Venue, St Margarets Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada
Oh dear – the wind blew the plastic off the greenhouse during a January storm!! The winter spinach crop survived because we put row cover over it for protection.
Join us for a half-day workshop to rebuild this 20’x24′ greenhouse. We will rebuild the gable ends and doors and put on new plastic. Learn all about greenhouse construction and maintenance, and the valuable crops that you can grow inside year-round without heat.
There is no cost to attend. Registration is required.
Contact: info@transitionbay.ca

Crossroads Educational Vegetable Garden - 2018 Spring Planting
2018-05-05 13:00 - 16:00 | St Margarets Bay Crossroads, 5209 Saint Margarets Bay Road, Tantallon, B3Z 4R5, Canada
Join us for starting the 7th successful year of the Crossroads Educational Vegetable Garden! We will be doing soil prep in the raised beds, and planting beets, carrots, parsnips, cabbage, onion, chard, kale and rutabaga.

Last year, we harvested a total of 665 pounds of vegetables for the St Margarets Bay Food Bank.
Learn how to garden food successfully while helping your community.
For more information, contact info@transitionbay.ca
Free – All welcome – No registration, just come!

Introduction to Analog (aka Film) Photography **Registration Required**
2018-05-06 14:15 - 16:30 | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Road, Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Canada
Before there was digital photography there was analog – film – photography. For 160 years analog photography looked after the photographic needs of the world. Although most photography is now digital, there are still practitioners of analog photography, and it still has some distinct advantages over it’s digital cousin.
This presentation is an introduction to the concepts, ideas and practices of analog photography. For those who have never experienced analog photography it will be an opportunity to learn about this once universal technology – think of it as the photographic equivalent of vinyl records. For those who remember analog photography it will be an opportunity to learn a bit more about this still useful process.
While most of the presentation will be done lecture style, there will be a live demonstration – done under a red safelight – of enlarging and developing a print from a 35mm negative.
Registration required. This presentation is free but registration is required as there is a limit of 35 people. Please email us to register.

If you would like to make a donation to Transition Bay St Margarets to help with the costs of our events and community programs, please visit our donation page. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Transition Bay Steering Meeting -- Pitch a Project!
2018-05-31 18:30 - 20:30 | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Road, Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Canada
Are you interested in learning more about our upcoming programs? Would you like to get more involved with Transition Bay and help bring some of our projects to life? Join us for our next steering meeting!
We are also inviting anyone with ideas for new Transition Bay programs to come out and pitch a project! All of our programs are born of volunteer passion and commitment, and fit with the Transition Initiative. Anyone pitching should have a willingness to put in the work to help bring the project to fruition — we can’t commit to new projects without volunteers to help make it happen. If you have an idea to share, please send us an email with a couple sentences outlining what you’d like to propose so we can discuss with you before our meeting, and be sure it’s something that falls under the Transition Bay mandate. (See our website for more information on the types of programs we offer and to learn more about our organization.) If your idea is a fit for Transition Bay, and you are committed to helping to make it happen, we will invite you to share with the group on May 31st.
If you have a project to pitch, would like to help with other community members bring their ideas to life, or are simply interested in learning more about what we do at Transition Bay — join us! All are welcome to this meeting! We look forward to planning the future with you!

Crossroads Educational Vegetable Garden - Fall Harvest
2018-09-18 09:30 - 11:30 | St Margarets Bay Crossroads, 5209 Saint Margarets Bay Road, Tantallon, B3Z 4R5, Canada
Join us for the 2018 seventh-season’s main harvest of the Crossroads Educational Vegetable Harvest. We have already harvested 103 pounds of kale, chard and carrots. During this main harvest, we will pull the carrots, beets, rutabaga and onions – they all look huge! Also, we will harvest more kale and chard.
All vegetables go to the St Margarets Bay Food Bank.
We hope to see you there. For more information contact info@transitionbay.ca
Free – All welcome – No registration, just come!

Housing Outside the Box: Creative, Affordable Options for Healthy Housing Symposium
2018-10-13 09:00 - 16:30 | Estabrooks Community Hall, 4408 St Margarets Bay Rd, Lewis Lake, Nova Scotia, Canada
The Housing Outside the Box Symposium will bring community members together to discuss the opportunities that exist for creative solutions for affordable, appropriate housing in our community. With a focus on sustainable, people-friendly solutions, we will hear from a variety of speakers sharing their knowledge and expertise, and have plenty of opportunity to learn and share ideas between professionals, researchers, older adults, students, community planners, and many others.
We will explore creative solutions that will allow people to stay in their existing homes by sharing with renters and housemates, approaches to small-scale shared housing such as co-housing and co-ops, and small scale development such as adding cottages or tiny houses on wheels.
We will include the essential: ways to find others we can share living with in confidence and happiness, as well as ways to cooperate to ensure tasks and maintenance are done reliably, even as we age. Our approach is multi-faceted so as to address and help in every way needed! It is community working together.
Our goal is that all attendees will leave the workshop with information, resources, and connections needed to move forward with opportunities to create sustainable and resilient housing solutions in our community. This will be a practical approach to support our community by focusing on solutions that are available to us now!
Schedule:
Schedule:
8:30 – 9:00 Registration and Displays
9:00 – 9:15 Welcome and Opening Remarks
9:15 – 9:45 Keynote Address – Dr. Lori Weeks, PhD, Dalhousie U. Assoc. Prof. – “Promoting Healthy Community & Aging Through Innovative Housing”
9:45 – 11:15 Panel: Transforming a Private Home – Room Mates, Renovations, Suites. Also municipal policies & Community Navigators.

HRM’s Affordable Housing Workplan, Alan Howell, Affordable Housing Planner for Halifax Regional Municipality
Being There for the Transformation: Sharing Space & Renovating to Add a Suite, David Quinn, architectural/residential designer
Community Navigator Role for Success, Pauline MacIntosh, StFX Extension Department
Under One Roof – Bonding Between Generations, Hina Jawed, Co-founder, One Roof: Inter-Generational & Co-Living Matchup
Converting Existing Homes to Cohousing, Bill Hockey, St. Margaret’s Bay Housing Coalition

10:15 – 11:30 Break & Displays
11:30 – 1:00 Panel: Cohousing, Cooperatives, Small Development, Tiny Houses on Wheels, “In-law” Cottages, Small Homes, etc.

Building Small Cottages Around a Home & Condo-izing, Shari Johnson, Community Activist & Tradewinds Realty
Intentional Communities, Michael Sheppard, Natura – Regenerative Community
Cohousing From Scratch, Cate or Leon de Vreede, Bridgewater Cohousing
Tiny Home on Wheels to Benefit Society, Danielle Pentland, LakeCity Works

1:00 – 1:30 Lunch & Displays
1:30 – 2:00 Keynote Address – Shawna Henderson, CEO, Bfreehomes, — “A Patchwork Quilt: The Pieces, Layers, and Threads of Sustainable Housing and Community”
2:00 – 3:30 Small Group Discussions
3:30 – 4:00 Summary of Small Group Discussions and Closing Remarks.
4:00 – 4:30 Stay a bit afterwards for Displays and Networking
Registration is required in advance for this event. Please visit our listing on eventbrite to book your tickets. Lunch and nutrition break snacks included. Location is just minutes from Halifax, approaching St. Margaret’s Bay.
This event is co-hosted by Transition Bay St Margarets and the St Margaret’s Bay Housing Coalition.
We would like to thank the Bay Treasure Chest for funding support through their honorarium program.

In Transition 2.0 (film)
2018-10-21 14:00 - 16:30 | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Road, Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Canada
In Transition 2.0 is an inspirational immersion into the Transition movement, gathering stories from around the world of ordinary people doing extraordinary things. You’ll hear about communities printing their own money, growing food everywhere, localizing their economies and setting up community power stations. It’s an idea that has gone viral, a social experiment that is about responding to uncertain times with solutions and optimism. In a world that is awash with gloom, here is a story of hope, ingenuity and the power of growing vegetables in unexpected places.
You can see a trailer at: http://transitionus.org/films/transition-20-dvd
We will be screening this 67 minute film at about 2:15pm, followed by discussion. This program is free and open to all.

Climate Change & the Human Prospect (film)
2018-11-04 14:00 - 16:30 | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Road, Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Canada
Climate Change and the Human Prospect documents the vision created at the Climate Change and the Human Prospect: A Thinkers Retreat held at Thinkers Lodge in Pugwash, Nova Scotia.

On the 60th Anniversary of the Inaugural Pugwash Conference on Nuclear Disarmament held in 1957, twenty-four global and regional Thinkers, armed with the conviction that local action is not only possible, but also the best path forward, gathered to define a path to restore and revitalize local communities in the face of climate change.
In the compelling setting of the Thinkers Lodge where scientists and scholars from all over the world have stayed and tackled the world’s most pressing issues through the power of dialogue, Climate Change and the Human Prospect captures the thoughts, emotions and ideas of these Thinkers – scientists, economists, municipal councillors, planners, artists, community activists, First Nations and Eastern wisdom representatives, the Project Drawdown Director and others – as they articulate global warming’s cascading impact on small, rural, and coastal communities and focus on actionable, locally-oriented and forward-motion climate change plans.
A discussion about climate change and what communities can do to adapt and mitigate it will be held after this 40 minute film. A trailer and more information about the film is available here.

Handmade Holidays
2018-11-18 14:15 - 16:30 | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Road, Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Canada
Are you interested in learning more about how to create simple, beautiful, hand made gifts for the holidays? Would you like ideas on how to use recycled materials and every day items to create useful presents and memorable keepsakes?
Join us for a presentation and “show and tell” featuring an assortment of hand made gift ideas. After we look at some of the many creative ways to create frugal and environmentally friendly gifts, we will have a hands on workshop where people can choose to make one of a variety of small items to take home.
All materials will be provided, and this program is free to all participants. We ask that you RSVP via facebook or email (info@transitionbay.ca) so that we have an idea of how much material to have on hand to meet the needs of the group.
We hope you will join us in creating a hand made holiday season!

BURNED: Are Trees the New Coal? the movie expose of biomass burning
2018-11-28 19:30 - 21:00 | St. Luke’s United Church Sanctuary, 5374 St Margarets Bay Rd., Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, B3Z 2J1, Canada
BURNED: Are Trees the New Coal?
The movie exposé of biomass burning. NS suffers terribly from this!
“This film elicited a powerful and passionate response from our audience this year with many saying they had no idea about this issue and its devastating impacts. BURNED reveals the shocking destruction of our forests for fuel and the resultant rise in carbon emissions that exceed those of coal-burning.”
Audience Choice Award, American Conservation Film Festival Committee

BURNED tells the little-known story of the accelerating destruction of our forests for fuel, and probes the policy loopholes, huge subsidies, and blatant green washing of the burgeoning biomass electric power industry.
BURNED is a feature-length documentary, which takes an unwavering look at the latest electric power industry solution to climate change. The film tells the story of how woody biomass has become the fossil-fuel industry’s renewable, green savior, and of the people and parties who are both fighting against and promoting its adoption and use.
Through interviews with activists, experts, and citizens, along with verité-style footage shot across the U.S. and in the EU and UK, the film interweaves the science of climate change, the escalating energy-policy disputes, the dynamics of forest ecology, the biomass industry practices, the conflict between jobs and trees, and the actions of activists and citizens who are working to protect their own health, their communities, the forest, and the planet’s climate.
Woven together, the various stories present an intimate and visceral account of what is at this moment in time a critical, yet mostly unknown, national and international controversy.

Wednesday, November 28, 7:30 PM. Sanctuary of St. Luke’s United Church,
5374 St Margarets Bay Rd., Upper Tantallon
FREE ADMISSION with a “Pay-what-you-can” option

Introducing the film and leading the post-screening discussion will be Ray Ploudre: Ecology Action Centre’s Wilderness Coordinator.

Trailer at <https://burnedthemovie.com/take-action/>
We will offer home-baked goodies, Paul Barry’s deluxe lemonade, coffee and tea, etc.
This screening is a pilot for a series of evening gatherings examining issues related to Climate Change and What We Can Do About It.
The evenings will be solution oriented.
Co-hosting organizations currently are:

St. Margaret’s Bay Stewardship Association
Five Bridge Wilderness Heritage Trust
Woodens River Watershed Environmental Organization
Transition Bay St Margarets

Fermented Foods Presentation
2019-02-03 14:15 - 16:30 | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Road, Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Canada
Note: this program has been rescheduled due to storm warnings for our original date. Please join us on Feb 3rd!

Are you interested in learning about fermented foods, and discovering how to make your own interesting and tasty ferments? Seven Acres Farm and Ferments will be on hand to show us some tips and tricks for getting great results with fermented foods. The presentation will include a live demonstration, samples to try, and plenty of time and opportunity for questions.

This is a free program, open to all.

Please note, there is no need to print your ticket for this event. We are taking registration for the purposes of knowing numbers of attendees only. Please reserve your spot by visiting our Eventbrite listing.

To find out more about Seven Acres Farm and Ferments, please visit https://www.sevenacresfarm.ca/.

All About Off Grid
2019-02-17 14:15 - 16:30 | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Road, Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Canada
Wondering what it’s like to live without a connection to the electric grid and with no electric bill? Then this 2 hour presentation and discussion is for you.
Some of the topics that will be covered are:
o Introduction to off-grid
o Types of off-grid systems
o Off-grid for new construction
o Off-grid as a retrofit for existing houses
o Components of off-grid systems
o Energy use reduction techniques
o Trade-off choices
o Cost of some sample off-grid packages
o Discussion of off-grid living
o Ample time for questions
The primary presenter at this workshop will be Cam Farnell, who has been living happily off-grid for over five years and has no plans to go back.
This event is currently FULL. Please visit our listing on eventbrite to add your name to the wait list and be notified if space becomes available.
There is no cost to attend this workshop.
Chronicle Herald Article featuring Cam’s installed Solar Power System in Tantallon. http://thechronicleherald.ca/artslife/77109-slideshow-couple-lives-off-the-grid plus more details at: http://www.fundysolar.com/installed-systems.php?id=8
This event is free to all. If you would like to make a donation to Transition Bay St Margarets to help with the costs of our events and community programs, please visit our donate page. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Re-localizing Prosperity in Rural Atlantic Canada
2019-03-17 14:00 - 16:00 | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Road, Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Canada
Due to the forces of globalization, our economies today can be described as leaky buckets. Nova Scotia has a 35% ‘leakage rate’ of dollars flowing out of the economy, resulting in a dramatic negative trade deficit.
Robert Cervelli, Executive Director, Centre for Local Prosperity will present “Re-Localizing Prosperity in Rural Atlantic Canada”. Working alongside community groups, businesses and governments, the Centre for Local Prosperity encourages communities to move towards an economy scaled for their size and with local agency for their economic future. His presentation will address the need to ‘re-localize’ rural economies, reduce ‘economic leakage,’ and explore initiatives for greater local procurement by major public-sector anchor institutions such as schools and hospitals.
The Centre for Local Prosperity is dedicated to promoting and inspiring practical solutions for prosperous and healthy local economies. The Centre offers workshops, conferences, and targeted discussions on relevant topics such as restorative local business modeling, living wage, affordable and efficient housing, local energy production, food & community hubs, entrepreneurial start-ups, transportation, arts & culture, social and economic justice and climate change readiness.
Free – Registration is not required. For more information, contact info@transitionbay.ca

Eco-Rally: Pictou Rising! A Conversation with Joan Baxter
2019-04-02 19:00 - 21:00 | St. Margaret’s Centre, 12 Westwood Boulevard, Upper Tantallon, NS, B4Z 1H3, Canada
Incisive, no nonsense, take no prisoners. Joan Baxter’s brilliant exposé “The Mill – Fifty Years of Pulp and Protest” tells the story of shocking government/industry collusion and a community that refuses to take it. Having destroyed the Pictou Landing First Nation’s Boat Harbour, now Pictou’s Northern Pulp mill wants to dump its effluent in the Northumberland Strait. An extraordinary battle is playing out on our province’s north shore and Baxter’s award-winning book is at its very centre.
Journalist, anthropologist, development consultant, mother of two much of Joan’s career was in Africa. Home again at last, she now applies her deep knowledge of direct investment in Africa, extractive industries, regulatory capture, environmental rights and justice, food sovereignty and sustainable farming and food systems, to life here in Nova Scotia and Canada.
Interviewing Joan on stage, former CBC journalist Jennifer Henderson. Now with the Halifax Examiner, her publisher calls Henderson “a reporter’s reporter.” Expertise in a host of current local issues like the QE2 replacement, tidal power, NSP, and the state of our nursing homes.
Homemade snacks, tea and coffee provided.
Pay-What-You-Can
For information and media inquiries, call 902-823-1404.
Sponsored by Five Bridge Wilderness Heritage Trust, Friends of Nature, Healthy Forest Coalition, St. Margaret’s Bay Stewardship Association, Transition Bay St Margarets, Woodens River Watershed Environmental Organization.

Climate Emergency Preparedness
2019-04-07 14:00 - 16:30 | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Road, Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Canada
This afternoon workshop will explore different aspects of climate change emergency preparedness. As we move into a new era of weather extremes and sea level rise, homeowners, neighbourhoods and communities will need to be more prepared for a host of new threats.
There is an increased importance for emergency preparedness due to flooding, wind damage and power outages due to increased storm strength; greater wildfire risks due to the increasingly severe summer droughts; and coastal erosion and flooding due to storm surges and sea level rise. In addition, there is a need for greater levels of community preparedness to cope with the potential for extended grid-down events, and supply- chain shocks to fuel, food or other basic necessities due to increased global fragilities.
Speakers:

Erica Fleck, Division Chief, Emergency Management, HRM Fire & Emergency – Community emergency preparedness. Community risks equal the hazards and the vulnerabilities, the exposures to the impacts and our capacity to cope with the climate variability and the extreme weather that we are seeing. Prevention plans and evacuation plans are more important than ever.
Kara McCurdy, Wildfire Prevention Officer, Nova Scotia Department of Lands and Forestry – Home wildfire risk assessments and prevention/mitigation techniques. Why wildfires seem to be getting worse and what are some tools residents need to know to protect themselves. Increase your homes survivability in a wildfire.
Alex MacDonald, Climate Change Specialist, HRM Energy and Environment – Sea level rise, storm surges and other coastal climate risks. Coastal areas face multiple threats from climate change that pose significant risk to built environments and human landscapes. How do governments, communities and homeowners safeguard these built environments and landscapes? What tools are appropriate to mitigate climate change risks and/or enhance resiliency?
Robert Cervelli, Chair, Transition Bay St Margarets – Deep climate adaptation and resilience for neighbourhoods and communities. We may be entering a period in history described as the ‘Long Emergency,’ where there is increased stress and fragility around global systems. How can communities ‘future proof’ themselves through locally redundant supplies of basic needs, especially for food and power?
Ann Morrow, Community Activist, Level 2 Training – Trauma Resiliency Model – The Community Resiliency Model. After a stressful event, humans can experience a nervous system that is knocked out of its “resilient zone.” These reactions are normal responses (such as fight, flight and freeze). The Community Resiliency Model is designed to teach individuals and entire communities how to restore inner balance and a sense of wellbeing after experiencing a traumatic event.

Who should attend: individual residents, homeowners, community organizations, and municipal officials.
The workshop is free and open to the public. Advanced registration is required. Please visit our Eventbrite listing to reserve your spot.
For more information, contact: info@transitionbay.ca.

Crossroads Educational Vegetable Garden - 2019 Spring Planting
2019-05-04 13:00 - 16:00 | St Margarets Bay Crossroads, 5209 Saint Margarets Bay Road, Tantallon, B3Z 4R5, Canada
Join us for the eighth successful year of the Crossroads Educational Vegetable Garden. We will be doing soil prep in the four raised beds, and planting carrots, parsnips, potatoes, cabbage, turnips, onion and kale.

Last year, we harvested a total of 423 pounds of vegetables for the St Margarets Bay Food Bank.
Learn how to garden food successfully while helping your community.
Free – all welcome – no registration, just come!

The Clean Bin Project: Film Screening & Discussion
2019-05-05 14:00 - 16:30 | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Road, Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Canada
Is it possible to live completely waste free? In this multi-award winning, festival favourite, partners Jen and Grant go head to head in a competition to see who can swear off consumerism and produce the least garbage Their light-hearted competition is set against a darker examination of the problem waste. Even as Grant and Jen start to garner interest in their project, they struggle to find meaning in their minuscule influence on the large-scale environmental impacts of our “throw-away society”. Described as An Inconvenient Truth meets Super Size Me, The Clean Bin Project features laugh out loud moments, stop motion animations, and unforgettable imagery. Captivating interviews with renowned artist, Chris Jordan and TED Lecturer Captain Charles Moore, make this film a fun and inspiring call to individual action that speaks to crowds of all ages.

View a trailer: http://www.cleanbinmovie.com/

The film will be followed by discussion. Free and open to all.

8th Birthday Celebration
2019-06-23 14:00 - 17:00 | SMB Community Enterprise Centre, 1-5229 St. Margaret's Bay Rd., Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, B3Z 4R5, Canada
Transition Bay St Margarets – 8th Birthday Celebration!

Free! Cake and refresments offered! All warmly welcome!

Pizza provided. Bring snacks if you like.

As part of the celebrations, join us for playful Visioning
— for anyone with ideas, like YOU!
Fishbowl format visioning with questions like:
“What ways do you most want to contribute to our resilience in the next few years?” and
“What would you like to see happen in your community over the next few years?”
What are your questions?
Please do come!
RSVP requested but not required, just so we know about how much refresments to bring.

For more information: www.transitionbay.ca and info@transitionbay.ca

Discover Solar PV 2019
2019-06-26 18:00 - 20:00 | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Road, Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Canada
In partnership with communities throughout the province, Solar Nova Scotia will be offering public information sessions on solar electricity (PV). These presentations are designed to de-mystify the technology, economics, and regulations that apply to homeowners interested in producing their own sustainable energy.
Solar PV is one of the lowest emission sources of electricity available!
Please visit www.solarns.ca for more information about Solar Nova Scotia, including details about grants and incentives, solar providers, and a list of other scheduled events. Community groups interested in hosting or helping to publicize an event are invited to get in touch with Solar Nova Scotia: 902-852-4758 or info@solarns.ca.
Questions? Join the conversation in our event on facebook!
RSVP to info@solarns.ca is greatly appreciated, though not required.

Crossroads Educational Vegetable Garden - Fall Harvest
2019-09-28 09:00 - 11:00 | St Margarets Bay Crossroads, 5209 Saint Margarets Bay Road, Tantallon, B3Z 4R5, Canada
Join us for the 2019 eight-season’s main harvest of the Crossroads Educational Vegetable Harvest. We have already harvested of kale and carrots. During this main harvest, we will pull the carrots, rutabaga and onions – they all look huge! And, dig potatoes and parsnips Also, we will harvest more kale.
All vegetables go to the St Margarets Bay Food Bank.
We hope to see you there. For more information contact info@transitionbay.ca
Free – All welcome – No registration, just come!

Climate Change: Heading for Extinction (and What to Do About It)
2019-10-06 14:15 - 16:30 | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Rd., Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, B3Z 1H3, Canada
~ Transition Bay St Margarets hosts Extinction Rebellion NS
for them to present their exciting, informative, and timely program! ~
This is telling the truth, the genuine truth we all need to understand!
This public talk has been given hundreds of times around the world and is the main tool in increasing the numbers that have stood up to rebel against a course set for extinction.
We will share the latest climate science on where our planet is heading, discuss some of the current psychology around climate change denial, and offer solutions through the study of social movements.
Our speaker is Lisa Strickland-Clark, a leader in Extinction Rebellion NS and a psychologist with kids and families in Bridgewater. She has given this talk numerous times. She has actively applied compassion and meditation to her life for 30 years.
Note – we are not trying to “save the planet”…we are at the point where we need to save ourselves and ecological systems.
The Earth itself will go on…the issue is whether we as humans and all other species will be here too.
ALL WELCOME! – FREE! – No Registration Needed – just come!
To learn more about XRNS, click here for an intro letter, and sign up if the movement speaks to you.
https://actionnetwork.org/forms/join-extinction-rebellion-nova-scotiaCome learn more about exciting upcomming events with XRNS! And with Transition Bay!
Come learn more about exciting upcoming events with XRNS! And with Transition Bay!
There will be an opportunity for folks to talk with one another and meet others who share your concerns + Q & A.
This event takes place on UNCEDED, and UNSURRENDERED Territory of the Mi’kmaw People. We are all Treaty People and have responsibilities to each other and this land. (More info on the Peace and Friendship Treaties: http://mikmaqrights.com/negotiations/treaties )
This is an emergency.
We need to build a mass movement that is prepared to accept what is happening and act accordingly. We need rapid change. We need to rebel. – Extinction Rebellion

=====================================

Transition Bay is offering this spot to Extinction Rebellion because we want to hear their perspective on the truth about climate change and associated effects. Hosting their talk is not taking a position on their actions. Rather it is providing a forum for public discourse. Transition Bay is a non-political group by design so we can focus on other essential needs towards transformation. We are part of a global network of over 2,000 groups in over 50 countries worldwide that contributes towards building resilience on a community level. We help local communities act on what really works to prepare for: Climate Change/Ecological Disaster, Economic Fragility, and Going Beyond Fossil Fuels, AND we have fun in the process by helping each other! See www.transitionbay.ca for much more!

Climate Emergency! Solutions for Survival
2019-11-14 18:30 - 20:30 | Halifax Central Library, 5440 Spring Garden Road, Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3J 1E9, Canada
The best from the land of Greta Thunberg. Act now! Grow Local Resilience!
The climate emergency is far worse, & growing faster, than expected – with shockingly rapid deterioration of food, weather, and ecological systems upon which we depend. Green, resilient technologies are better for economy, community, children’s future, environment, and democratic government.
Learn the power of localizing and working together as a community to build self-sufficiency. It’s not only about “technologies,” but very much about cooperation and action at a local level. We can transition workers, and all of us, from damaging forms of energy and out-dated processes —and be much better off!
Join Tina Clarke & TransitionBay.ca to learn to translate these ideas into tangible actions!
Scientific evidence is now irrefutable and new reports suggest alarming trends. We are, at last, where we need to be: transitioning to a green, more resilient future. The moment to act is now. We in the industrialized, wealthier, democratic western nations are the ones to lead, from the bottom up.
Bring your questions, concerns, ideas, and voice to a community gathering of local projects working for our common good. Invite your neighbors who share your care and concern for the well-being of all.
Our guest speaker, Tina Clarke is a global educator and community resilience consultant from the Transition Movement who has been working with climate leaders in Denmark, Sweden, and communities across Europe. She will share stories and inspiring models from the lands of Greta Thunberg and the two “greenest” cities in the world, and elsewhere.

_____________
Bio:

Tina Clarke has a B.A. from Macalester College and an M.A. from the University of Chicago. Tina has been a program director, trainer and facilitator since 1985. She has directed several national and regional citizen initiatives, facilitated multi-stakeholder coalitions, led educational and training programs on environmental issues, and led several grassroots nonprofit organizations. Since 2008, Tina has been a Transition Towns Trainer (www.TransitionNetwork.org) and served over 240 communities worldwide, delivering 65 Transition Training courses and providing hundreds of presentations. She is currently in a four-year consulting contract in Denmark and Sweden, supporting several NGOs, universities, and a collaboration of six networks across Europe. Tina can be reached at: TinaClarkeOz@gmail.com.

How Shall We Talk Together About the Climate Crisis? An Intergenerational Conversation
2019-11-15 18:30 - 21:00 | St. Margaret of Scotland Anglican Church, 3751 Robie St., Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3K 4T3, Canada
Youth Experiences and Intergenerational Exploration of our Responses to the Climate Crisis ~
Youth around the world are calling for immediate, emergency climate action, and growing a vibrant movement in northern Europe and across the world. Greta Thunberg and the “Green Students” in Sweden and Denmark have helped to spark a fire of youth leadership to save the climate. Last spring over 1.3 million young people in over 100 countries rallied in the streets of their cities to call on governments to take strong action. This fall, even more! Momentum continues to build.
In response to youth action, Denmark’s newly elected centrist government has pledged to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 70% below 1990 levels by 2030. This is the most ambitious goal set by any government, and it is a direct result of student leadership and the support of older generations.
Each panelist will introduce their perspective; more youths than elders. Together we will explore how to build a united, shared, positive understanding. The evening will include interactive conversation with all attending.
Where do we go now ourselves? How can we learn to speak together with truth, integrity, and compassion across diverse ages, cultures, and experiences? How can we discover together the wisdom to survive?
Join us! Join in!
The workshop was initiated by Tina during a Transition workshop in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was publicly offered with Danish colleagues at the annual national Democracy Festival last June. The sharing was profound and meaningful, and inspired all to work more together. The model is now being developed with Røskilde University for municipal and community use.
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Event by donation, $10 suggested. Help continue the work!
To reserve tickets in advance, please visit our eventbrite listing.
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Guest moderator Tina Clarke has been working on climate issues and “bottom-up” action in Denmark and southern Sweden for years. She will briefly share stories of this inspiring growing movement and the conversation between the generations that it has inspired.

Tina Clarke has been a program director, trainer and facilitator since 1985. She has directed several national and regional citizen initiatives, facilitated multi-stakeholder coalitions, led educational and training programs on environmental issues, and led several grassroots nonprofit organizations. Since 2008, Tina has been a Transition Towns Trainer (www.TransitionNetwork.org) and served over 240 communities worldwide, delivering 65 Transition Training courses and providing hundreds of presentations. She is currently in a four-year consulting contract in Denmark and Sweden, supporting several NGOs, universities, and a collaboration of six networks across Europe. Tina can be reached at: TinaClarkeOz@gmail.com.

Training for Transition (Transition LAUNCH Workshop)
2019-11-16 - 2019-11-17 | St. Luke’s United Church Lower Hall, 5374 St Margarets Bay Rd., Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Canada
Are you worried about the climate situation but aren’t sure what you can do? Do you want to be part of the growing number of people stepping forward to act across our globe?
In response to scientific warnings that the climate situation is far worse than expected, networks of global municipalities are sprouting like mushrooms across the world; tens of thousands of citizen groups are demanding a transition from fossil fuels and ecosystem damage.

Invitation
Join Tina Clarke & TransitionBay.ca to explore and co-create ways to move from concern into creative and strategic community action. In this weekend workshop you will grow your network of local relationships, explore ideas with friends new and old, and learn about innovative models to advance change. You can use this two-day workshop to explore new ways to help your community be more proactive, increase community engagement and accelerate more rapid innovation for resilience and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.
Transition Bay Margarets will share information and support resources gathered in service to our region.
Building on the existing accomplishments and creative projects in Halifax and the region, we’ll create more ways of working together to build community resilience. Through cooperation, collective genius, and strategic action, we can transition together from damaging and dangerous forms of energy and consumption to a healthier, brighter future.
Background
The first official Transition Town was created by a small group of citizens in a small town in the U.K. in 2004. The idea quickly grew into a massive, global movement of thousands of communities in over 50 countries around the world. The Transition Network continues to catalyze local action and to inspire communities with resources and support.
Training for Transition (LAUNCH Workshop) was created to provide a summary of key methods, concepts, principles, tools, group processes, and practical models for supporting a local transition from oil dependency to community resilience.
Workshop Content
Training for Transition is packed with imaginative ways to delve into the practice of Transition, showing you how to set up, support, and grow a community Transition Initiative. This networking and co-creative weekend increases everyone’s awareness of the good work already underway, and also supports the creation of new collaboration and projects. The conversations and resources are useful for people who are curious, as well as for leaders already actively helping to advance environmental, community-building, climate, and resilience work in the community. Reviews of past workshops have shown that the structure and content of the weekend “retreat” is pragmatically useful both to those who want to develop essential skills and those looking for new insights to help their local initiatives become a greater success.
Transition Training has been delivered hundreds of times in over 35 countries worldwide, gathering and sharing the emerging, collective wisdom of the Transition movement. This is our third time hosting this event and the host committee hopes to help others across the Maritimes to build skills towards successful Transition Towns – or similar groups.
This training is ideal for you if are new to Transition and want to explore the model. It’s also perfect if you are a member of a Transition group and want additional skills or abilities in the fundamentals of Transition. You will learn:

Tools for community engagement
How to communicate why we need to transition our communities
How to set up and run an Open Space event
Keys for creating and supporting a successful transition/community resilience group
How to balance daunting information-sharing with organizing positive action
How to use visioning in practical ways
Ways to deepen your personal transition and resilience
Partnerships & Collaboration
Strategic planning and growth for more rapid transition

Training for Transition will enable you to:

Gain a good working knowledge of how to apply Transition methods and processes
Participate in a shared journey of courage and action for transition
Develop your skills in connecting with diverse members of your community and expanding ways of working together
Meet other people involved in Transition and similar initiatives to share experiences, difficulties and successes, and mutual support.

Training for Transition will help bring your community together to accelerate the transition from dependency on polluting energy, food, and imported products to greater community resilience and well-being. Invite your neighbors to join you in exploring ways to help your community reduce dangerous climate emissions and transition to greater local, practical resilience.
Register
To secure your place, please go to our Facebook event page at: https://www.facebook.com/events/409677876639797/ and click on the “Ticket” button. From there you can register and pay using Tickets by Eventbrite.

Cost – C$150.00.
9 AM to 5 PM each day, Saturday and Sunday, November 16 & 17.

Includes 2 vegan lunches and nutritional breaks. Limited to 45 participants- register now to assure a spot. Pre-registration required. Early registration highly recommended. This has always sold out.
We aim to offer the workshop at the lowest possible price to make this two-day workshop available to everyone, regardless of your financial means. The more people who register at full price, and who donate to help, the more young people and those with lower incomes can attend. Some free and lower cost places are available as work-study. Please contact us if you can help another person attend.

Lead Trainer: Tina Clarke

Our workshop leader, Tina Clarke, is a global educator and community resilience consultant from the Transition Movement who is now working with climate leaders in Denmark, Sweden, and communities across Europe. She will share stories and inspiring models from two of the greenest cities in the world, Copenhagen and Malmo, Sweden, and beyond.
Tina Clarke has been a Transition Towns Trainer (www.TransitionNetwork.org) since 2008, and served over 240 communities worldwide, delivering 65 Transition Training courses and providing over a thousand presentations. Several years ago Transition Network leaders called Tina Clarke the “leading global trainer”. Tina has been a social change leader, consultant, program director, trainer, and facilitator for over 30 years, working in Washington, D.C., Massachusetts, Connecticut, and now Europe. She directed several U.S. national and regional citizen initiatives, facilitated multi-stakeholder coalitions, led educational and training programs on environmental issues, provided strategic planning and organizational development consulting, and directed several grassroots nonprofit organizations. She is currently consulting in Denmark and Sweden, supporting municipalities, NGOs, universities, and local citizen groups in a model collaboration for more rapid transition. In her personal transition journey, Tina did not fly for 15 years, has been over 95% vegetarian and vegan for 35 years, and has lived without her own car for 37 years. She led and organized a team to build the first certified below-net-zero energy house in North America, winning two prestigious awards. The house is Platinum LEED, affordable to families below 50% median income in her diverse, lower income community, and built of local, sustainable wood and insulation, and with mostly non-toxic or recycled materials. Tina can be reached at: TinaClarkeOz@gmail.com.

Inner Transition: Truth, Courage, & Unfolding in a Time of Environmental Crisis
2019-11-16 19:30 - 21:30 | Ummah Mosque Community Centre, 2510 St. Matthias St., Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3L 0A9, Canada
As we face the severity of the climate crisis, and see devastation of lives, communities, and the environment, powerful feelings arise within us. We want to push away the warning signs and continue to live our lives as if nothing is wrong. We feel fear, worry, anxiety, and many other emotions. We feel powerless and overwhelmed. It is easy to withdraw, deny, and distract ourselves – hoping the dangers will go away, or that some miracle solutions will be discovered and implemented by others.
Yet only by allowing our emotions to come into our minds, and by sharing our thoughts and feelings with others, can we come back into balance and be a part of the growing movement to save, protect, and nurture a resilient and healthy world.
In this evening of reflection, you are invited to explore your own strengths, vision, styles of healthy response, and forms of connections with others. Coming together in our concern we will share in silence and in conversation, as you find meaningful for you. A framework of responses and transformational tools will support you in your own path of courage and unfolding.
Cost: By Donation, $10 or more suggested. Please help support expenses. No one turned away.
Eco-Dharma Action Group is the main organizer. Ummah Mosque is the main co-sponsor. Other groups to be invited to be co-sponsors, particularly faith and environmental groups. Email us at info@transitionbay.ca if your group would like to be involved.
To reserve tickets in advance, please visit our eventbrite listing.
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The most thriving Transition groups are paying as much attention to their culture, processes, structures, and relationships as they are to their practical projects, activities and outputs. And we know that individuals and groups risk burn-out or collapse if they don’t balance action, decision-making, and activity with rest, reflection, connection, and celebration (balancing being and doing).
There is a rich and developing body of knowledge about what we call Inner Transition which can help individuals and groups to look after themselves well and to be much more effective catalysts for change.

Inner Transition resources and teachings figure strongly in the Essential Guide to Doing Transition and are threaded through the seven essential ingredients.
You can find out more about the context and history of Inner Transition here.

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Tina Clarke has a B.A. from Macalester College and an M.A. from the University of Chicago. Tina has been a program director, trainer and facilitator since 1985. She has directed several national and regional citizen initiatives, facilitated multi-stakeholder coalitions, led educational and training programs on environmental issues, and led several grassroots nonprofit organizations. Since 2008, Tina has been a Transition Towns Trainer (www.TransitionNetwork.org) and served over 240 communities worldwide, delivering 65 Transition Training courses and providing hundreds of presentations. She is currently in a four-year consulting contract in Denmark and Sweden, supporting several NGOs, universities, and a collaboration of six networks across Europe. Tina can be reached at: TinaClarkeOz@gmail.com.

Keeping a Level Head about Sea Level Rise
2020-02-16 14:15 - 16:45 | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Road, Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Canada
Are you an oceanfront property owner, business owner, municipal manager, or otherwise concerned about our rising ocean levels and related risks?
Transition Bay is hosting a 2 1/2 hour workshop on sea level rise, storm surges and coastal erosion at the Tantallon Library on Sunday, February 16th from 2:15pm to 4:45pm.
Nancy Anningson, Coastal Adaptation Senior Coordinator, Ecology Action Centre, will be presenting on the Coastal Protection Act; coastal climate change; the importance of our coastal ecosystems in withstanding climate change; and coastal adaptation. Nancy has spoken widely across the Maritimes as part of the ECoAS joint project with DFO and other organzations. Visit: www.sealevelrise.ca to see infographics you can print, a video, an interactive map where citizens can enter occurrences in their communities, a community discussion toolkit and all kinds of information above coastal climate change, adaptation tools, etc.
Nancy has a Biology degree from Acadia University and has been working in the non-profit sector since 2000 in policy, research, community engagement and facilitation. Nancy works closely with NS Environment on the Coastal Protection Act, offering support and advice. The EAC’s Educating Coastal Communities about Sea Level Rise (ECoAS) Project www.sealevelrise.ca helped the Coastal Team share information with coastal communities about coastal climate change impacts and adaptation tools.
Li Zhai, PhD, Ocean Stressors and Arctic Science Section, Bedford Institute of Oceanography, who will be presenting Past and Future Sea Level Change in Canada. This presentation will summarize the observed and projected changes in sea level for Atlantic Canada. The latest knowledge on sea level will be drawn from the recently released Canada’s Changing Climate Report and the IPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a changing climate. The Canadian Extreme Water Level Adaptation Tool (CAN-EWLAT) will be introduced. CAN-EWLAT tool is a science-based planning tool for climate change adaptation of coastal infrastructure related to future water-level extremes and changes in wave climate.
Dr. Zhai is a physical scientist at Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) and is based at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography in Halifax. Her research includes developing ocean models and analyzing observations and model results to support sound management of Canada’s marine and fisheries sectors. Recently, she has worked with Dr. Blair Greenan on developing climate change adaptation tools to provide science advice to DFO on issues related to coastal infrastructure. Dr. Zhai received her Ph.D. from the Department of Oceanography at Dalhousie University.
The event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.
If you would like to make a donation to Transition Bay St Margarets to help with the costs of our events and community programs, please visit our
donate page. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Off-Grid Living
2020-03-15 14:15 - 16:30 | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Road, Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Canada
Back by popular demand ! We are presenting this lively and information workshop again. Mark your calendar.
Wondering what it’s like to live without a connection to the electric grid and with no electric bill? Then this 2 hour presentation and discussion is for you.
Some of the topics that will be covered are:
o Introduction to off-grid
o Types of off-grid systems
o Off-grid for new construction
o Off-grid as a retrofit for existing houses
o Components of off-grid systems
o Energy use reduction techniques
o Trade-off choices
o Cost of some sample off-grid packages
o Discussion of off-grid living
o Ample time for questions
The primary presenter at this workshop will be Cam Farnell, who has been living happily off-grid for over six years and has no plans to go back.
This event is free, but does require registration. Tickets will be available at Eventbrite on March 1st, and we recommend that you sign up on Eventbrite to be reminded when tickets are released. This workshop tends to fill up quickly!
Chronicle Herald Article featuring Cam’s installed Solar Power System in Tantallon. http://thechronicleherald.ca/artslife/77109-slideshow-couple-lives-off-the-grid plus more details at: http://www.fundysolar.com/installed-systems.php?id=8
If you would like to make a donation to Transition Bay St Margarets to help with the costs of our events and community programs, please visit our donate page. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Prepare for your Future: Livestock in Suburbia
2020-04-19 14:15 - 16:45 | Virtual, Everywhere, Canada
Do you worry about the future? Will crazy weather and food scarcity impact you?
Find out what it takes to be self-sufficient. This workshop will demonstrate tools for suburban homesteading, from preparing your property for livestock, such as chickens, goats, sheep and bees, to feasting on your own eggs, milk, cheese, meat, and honey.
Join Eli Elias and Charlotte Mendel as workshop presenters. For the past seven years, they have worked, raised kids, and maintained a hobby farm. They’re here to share with you the effort and the rewards.
Karen Llewellyn and Claudy Levy love gardening and raising both egg and meat birds in St. Margaret’s Bay. They will share their joy in chickens, and extensive contacts and resources. Just what you need for success.
Let’s share stories to build communities of success with these and other animals. Anyone want to mention rabbits? Ducks? What else?
The conference will take place over zoom, and details for access will be sent out to attendees the day prior to the event.
This event is free (donations appreciated!) and requires registration through our Eventbrite listing. We will be conducting this event on Zoom with livestreaming to Facebook, and we will send you the Zoom link via Eventbrite prior to the presentation.

Climate Victory Gardening
2020-05-03 14:15 - 16:30 | Virtual, Everywhere, Canada
Victory Gardens harken back to World War I and World War II, as a way to support the war effort through home gardening. This presentation and workshop will discuss a modern day version – COVID-Climate Victory Gardens.
We will discuss the exposure we may have in the future from food shortages and higher prices, as we enter an era of increased global food insecurity. Solutions will be discussed, including the incredible capacity to grow significant amounts of our food supply on little land and with only a modest labour input. Discussion will include how to easily convert parts of your lawn to gardens, how to begin or expand your suburban ‘micro-farm’, what to grow that’s easiest and most nutritious, and ways to increase your larder and food stores.
Speakers include Robert Cervelli, who runs a 2 acre ‘micro-farm’ in St Margarets Bay and Erin Clements, who grows a lot of vegetables at her suburban Halifax home and has converted a large portion of her front yard to a garden.

This event is free (donations appreciated!) and requires registration through our Eventbrite listing. We will be conducting this event on Zoom with livestreaming to Facebook, and we will send you the Zoom link via Eventbrite prior to the presentation.

If you would like to make a donation to Transition Bay St Margarets to help with the costs of our events and community programs, please visit our donate page. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Visions of Survival in a Climate Altered World - Salon Discussion - Postponed
2020-09-03 19:00 - 21:00 | Virtual, Everywhere, Canada
EVENT POSTPONED – STAY TUNED
Join us on-line for a lively virtual salon discussion about our visions for a post-COVID and climate-altered new reality in the years ahead – Visions of Survival in a Climate Altered World.

What will St Margarets Bay and our region look like in 20 years time? In 2040, how will our community have pivoted, flexed and adapted to the new reality, fraught with frequent climatic disruptions and global fragilities? How will Transition Bay and other organizations in our community enable the necessary changes to ensure our continued well-being?
The discussion will be held on Zoom – STAY TUNED for new date and time.

Also, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Transition Bay !!! We are nine years old. Celebrate during this discussion with a virtual piece of our traditional gluten-free carrot cake. Here’s the recipe for making your own:
Transition Bay Traditional Gluten Free Carrot Cake
1-1/2 cups rice flour
1/2 cup soy flour
1/2 cup potato starch
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup mayonnaise (aka 220 grams)
1 16 ounce can crushed pineapple
3 cups grated carrots
1 cup chopped walnuts
Note: 2 cups of one-to-one all-purpose gluten-free flour can be substituted for the flours and xanthan gum.
In a bowl, stir together the flours, xanthan gum, baking soda and spices. Set aside.
In large bowl of the mixer, beat together at medium speed the eggs, sugar, mayonnaise, and pineapple not drained. Gradually beat in flour mixture until well mixed. With a spoon, stir in carrots and walnuts.
Pour batter into a greased and rice floured 9″ x 13″ pan. Bake in pre-heated 350 degree oven for 45 to 50 minutes, or until cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan.
