The Twin Cities has many resources to help you make the transition away from dependence on fossil fuels and toward a more resilient household and connected community. You’ll find a list of resources on each of the pages describing What is Transition, or look below. (If you’d like to add a resource to this list, contact the webmaster.)
Transition Twin Cities has crafted a quick Energy Descent Plan guide for those just getting started - or looking to expand - on reducing their carbon footprint. You can download it for free.
Energy - Climate - Economy - Transit - Food - Waste/Recycle - Community Building
Check out local bloggers who are writing about their personal sustainability journeys.
Energy
- NATIONAL
- The Post Carbon Institute provides a reality check on the story we’re being told about how much oil and gas there really is. This organization promotes energy literacy and connects the dots between energy and the economy.
- The Solution Project for an interactive map on renewable energy and its benefits in each of our 50 states
- Fresh Energy Provides comprehensive information about Minnesota’s transition to a clean energy economy in areas of legislation, regulation, policy and public outreach. They have a good newsletter.
- Center for Energy & the Environment Provides practical assistance with energy efficiency programs and upgrades for homes and businesses
- Citizen’s Utility Board
- Clean Energy Economy Minnesota
- Clean Energy Resources Teams Operate regionally across the state of Minnesota, providing financial and technical assistance
- Community Power MN Advocates to make solar projects available to people of all income levels
- Cooperative Energy Futures An energy efficiency and community-owned clean energy cooperative based in South Minneapolis
- Conservation Minnesota Working to ensure that each person in our state has dependable clean energy and convenient transportation systems
- Environment Minnesota Follow their updates all the way to 100% renewable energy
- Great Plains Institute for Sustainable Development A partnership network transforming our energy system to be environmentally and economically sustainable through innovations in production, distribution, and consumption.
- Green Step Cities Helps cities and townships reduce their energy use and improve efficiency
- Interfaith Power and Light Provides practical assistance with energy efficiency upgrades for religious communities, as well as leadership on community solar projects and energy organizing for faith communities
- Midwest Renewable Energy Association Hosts the huge Midwest Renewable Energy Fair every summer
- Minneapolis Clean Energy Partnership A partnership between the City of Minneapolis, Xcel Energy and CenterPoint Energy to support the City’s Climate Action Plan and 2040 Energy Vision.
- Minnesota Renewable Energy Society A member organization promoting the use of renewable energy (particularly solar) in Minnesota through education, demonstration and advocacy.
- Sierra Club Initiated a highly successful campaign connecting the burning of fossil fuels and oil extraction to health impacts
Climate Preparedness
- Minnesota
- Minnesota Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment 2014 - mnclimvulnreport [pdf]
- Minnesota Climate and Health Profile 2015 - mnprofile2015 [pdf]
- Climate Change 101
- Climate and Health: Air, Water, Heat, Food
- Minneapolis
- City of Minneapolis Office of Emergency Management
- St Paul
- Ready & Resilient: A Guide to Extreme Weather for St. Paul Residents
- City of St. Paul Emergency Management
- City of Bloomington Community Based Emergency Preparedness Toolkit
- NATIONAL
- Post Carbon Institute Building Resilience Program
- FEMA Preparedness website
- Transition US Emergency Preparedness
Follow Minnesota Climate News
- Paul Huttner, chief meteorologist for Minnesota Public Radio on “ClimateCast” every Friday
- Mark Seeley, U of M professor, climatologist and meteorologist who writes the weekly newsletter “Minnesota WeatherTalk.” Follow this link for videos and materials
- Paul Douglas, meteorologist, who writes on weather for the Star Tribune
- MPR Weather Primer
- Minnesota Climatology Working Group
- Minnesota Environmental Quality Board Produced an extensive report on the impacts of climate change
Economy
- MNvest Investing in local businesses for average people
- Cooprincipal Investment Club for the 99%
- Slow Money Minnesota Investing in our local, family owned farms
- Northeast Investment Coop Investing in Northeast Minneapolis
- Hour Dollars A Time Bank - using time as currency for exchange
- Couchsurfing The free shared housing alternative to AirBnB that doesn’t pull homes off the market for local residents or drive up housing prices
- Dual Currency Systems a currency system developed by Minnesota local Joel Hodroff
- NATIONAL
- Legal Basics for Time Banks and Barter Exchanges
- The Transition ReConomy Project
- Sustainable Economies Law Center
- Slow Money Institute
- Berkshares - Alternative currency in the Berkshires of Massachusetts
- Bay Bucks - Community currency in the San Francisco Bay Area
Transit
Food & Farming
Urban Farming & Gardening
- Minneapolis
- Homegrown Minneapolis – community gardens, leasing land, food rules, food businesses
- Minneapolis Parks & Rec Urban Agriculture Activity Plan
- Appetite for Change - using food to build health, wealth and social change in North Minneapolis
- St. Paul
- St. Paul Urban Agriculture Ordinances
- Cities
- Twin Cities Urban Ag Connection
- Grow North! Look here for everything from commercial kitchens to food hubs, farmer training programs to soil tests
- CityKids Farms (Urban Ventures)
- Minnesota Grown Directory
- Minnesota Food Association
- Dovetail Partners Local Foods, Farms & Business Listing
- Metro Blooms
- The Good Acre
- The Beez Kneez – beekeeping classes
- Gardening Matters In hibernation while they regroup
- State
- Master Gardeners
- From the Ground Up North From Dovetail Group
- Land Stewardship Project
- Renewing the Countryside
- Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture (MISA)
- Minnesota Mycological Society
- The Minnesota Project
- Green Lands Blue Waters
- Seed Sages
- Dreams of Wild Health
- Organic Seed Alliance
- EcoEducation Sustainable Learning
- Spark-Y
- U of M Aquaponics
- Minnesota State Horticultural Society
- Minnesota Department of Agriculture
- College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences
- Women’s Environmental Institute (WEI)
- Cooperative Development Services
- Minnesota Food Charter Network is a statewide network that supports shared action towards food access
- National
- Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy
- Midwest Permaculture
- Sustainable Farming Association
- Food Alliance Midwest
- Sustainable Agriculture Newsletter
Permaculture
- Permaculture Research Institute for Cold Climate A community of learners
- Permaculture Classes
- Cody Mastel and the Permaculture apprenticeship at Land By Hand
- Rob Czernik and Big River Permaculture PDC
- Southwoods Design
Cooking/Eating
- Slow Food Minnesota – where to eat, where to shop for sustainably grown food
- The Perennial Plate
- University of Minnesota Extension Service Food Safety
- Appetite for Change – community cooks workshops
- The Heavy Table
- Wild Fermentation website