What happens after this is up to us.
The vulnerability that we are currently feeling is due to the amount of abandonment that we’ve allowed for ourselves, for our communities, and our planet. Now, more than ever, we need to practice what we preach; be proactive about our future and take measures to better ensure the safety, security, and wellbeing of our societies.
So, how do we do that?
Transcending 100yrs+ of dysfunctional social and structural development is no small task, yet we CAN do it by establishing healthy interdependent local societies.
Amidst the chaos, this global pandemic has given us the perfect opportunity to see the weaknesses and disadvantages of living in a society which depends primarily on centralized systems of authority and resources.
It will take a collective majority of proactive efforts to decentralize authority and resources, which means we each have a significant role to play in strengthening America, one local community at a time.
Intro:
Restoring Local Resilience is a series that delves into the details of decentralizing 8 major areas of social organization including energy, food, water, community, health, economy, and governance. These 8 focal points represent our most essential systems that ensure adequate resource for our universal needs.
Before we drop into the specifics, let’s define a few things.
- Societal Empowerment
- Centralized vs. Decentralized
- What Creates Resilience and Security?
1. Societal Empowerment
We have let our power as a people gradually dissipate while our reliance on centrally governed systems has steadily increased.
What do I mean by “power”? Our personal power is measured by our ability to influence outcomes, change policy, impact decision-making in all matters that affect our life directly, including (but not limited to) food, water, housing, energy, community, governance, health, economy, etc.
Centralized systems for national (or global) populations do not allow for a meaningful level of influence by the populous. Rather, they diminish collective influence and societal power with higher degrees of separation between you (your community) and the authority. A society that is disconnected from it’s arms of control, grows powerless, apathetic, and depressed.
Thus, our ability to influence outcomes (power) is directly proportionate to the level of centralization/decentralization of a given system.
The good news is our power, as individuals and as a society, was not explicitly taken from us, and it does not need to be given back by any authority or agency. It is up to each and every single one of us to remember our great potential to influence our world and establish an environmentally sustainable, socially just, purposefully interconnected society.
2. Centralized vs. Decentralized
What is centralization? What is decentralization?
“Centralization of authority means the power of planning and decision making are exclusively in the hands of top management. It alludes to the concentration of all the powers at the apex level.
On the other hand, Decentralization refers to the dissemination of powers by the top management to the middle or low-level management. It is the delegation of authority, at all the levels of management.”
keydifferences.com
Note that smaller local systems will benefit from centralized organization, while decentralization is best suited for large (national & international) systems of organization.
Consider the 8 areas of focus aforementioned. Are the systems currently in place centralized or decentralized?
Our social systems have grown more and more centralized in power and authority over time, and we (society) hope that leadership is making the most informed decisions. Some of us have no faith in central authority, while some put all our faith in authorities, so much so, that many have completely disengaged from social-political participation.
We all know that feeling that our vote doesn’t matter… because sometime it really doesn’t make a difference. As more Americans are disenfranchised and lack trust in the government, apathy permeates and kills democracy, further reinforcing central power.
What does centralization of power look like? A disproportionate distribution of wealth, influence, and power.
For example, a centralized global economy is… a handful of multinational corporate giants driving markets and producing the majority of consumer products globally, longer supply chains, outsourcing, factory farming, disconnect between producer and consumer, lower quality products for lower prices, driving down wages, etc.
A decentralized (local) economy is… a diverse group of artisans, skilled workers, professionals, business owners which provide goods and services to a manageable local consumer base for an appropriate value, relationship between provider and consumer, organic, authentic, fair trade, high quality unique or personalized products/services, higher accountability and business integrity, etc.
3. What creates Resilience and Security?
Some characteristics of a locally secure and resilient society are:
- Locally Sourced: able to have all needs met by local providers (goods and services)
- Sustainable: able to self-sustain by living in reciprocity with the environment and each other
- Adaptable: able to respond to change quickly and effectively, Reforming and restoring.
- Self-Organized: able to make collective decisions and take collective actions without a central authority; interconnected
- Cooperative: able to include all voices, values diversity of thought and perspective in collaboration. Honoring relations.
- Abundant: able to access resources from multiple local sources; redundancy, reinforcements.
Would you consider your community to be secure and resilient according to this list of qualities? What qualities have your experienced and which do you find most challenging?
In America, it is very rare/ unlikely to experience a society that fulfills all of these qualities, whereas, nearly every community in remote regions of Central and South America live by these qualities. However, even the security of those remote communities is threatened as globalization of products competes with local markets.
So, what will it take to empower societies and decentralize America?
Doing the work through informed action and strategic collective efforts.
Over the coming months, in the Restoring Local Resilience series, I will outline the 8 major areas of focus that need our attention and leadership, as listed previously. Stay tuned for comprehensive guidance on how to be an active participant in developing each of these local systems. For each area of focus, I will share a clear vision for sustainable development, calls to action, and links to resources
I encourage you to share what you learn and initiate these conversations with your friends and family. While this transition depends on each of our individual choices and actions, it will only be effective if we choose differently TOGETHER.
Remember, what happens after this is up to us.
About the author:
Jenna Jasso is an Empowerment Coach and Community Facilitator. She teaches mindfulness as an integral practice in optimizing your life, your business or community. She transitioned into coaching and culture curating after working the corporate world as a mechanical engineer. She has organized dozens of transformative events and retreats and facilitates mindfulness workshops, yoga, self healing, and meditation. As a community organizer, she founded LoveATX, an Austin, TX based culture shifting initiative that encourages local action for global change. Keep up with her offerings on facebook or instagram.