Friday, January 1, 2010

What is a "pod"?

A "pod" is our term for a local area within the Los Angeles area which is actively working to implement Transition ideas.

Due to the size of Los Angeles (approx. 10 million people in the county), "Transition Los Angeles" is instantly by definition a regional-level effort.

Within the area that comprises Los Angeles, we've organized our Transition efforts in "pods." These pods might be from any of the following:
  • pods based on existing FUNCTIONAL ORGANIZATIONS like churches, schools, community groups, Rotary -- places where people already gather (even if they have to drive cars to get there);
  • pods based on LOCAL NEIGHBORHOODS defined by close physical proximity -- a more pure relocalization effort;
  • pods based on INTEREST TEAMS such as those used by Transition Town Totnes -- Heart & Soul groups, Local Food groups, Transport groups, etc.
Some of these pods might be a few individuals trying to raise citizen awareness. Other pods might become full-fledged Transition Intiatives under the criteria of the international Transition Network. We needed a term to describe all of these local centers of activity, at whatever level of development (and the word "hub" was already taken).

As our Transition efforts blossom in Los Angeles, we hope to grow, connect with, and support many, many more pods. If you or your local group are working with Transition ideas in the greater Los Angeles area, contact us, and let's get to know each other!

More on TLA structure