Using Dunbar's number to rebuild a self-supportive community of people. Could communities of roughly 150 people be enough to help sustainable, self-sufficient small-community life thrive?
Kemble, have you thought of adding a feature to your site that would allow readers to note their locations so they may get in contact with like minded folks in their area? The internet is a great medium for sharing information and even forging social bonds, but it cannot connect us in the communitarian ways you describe and others are longing for. Keep up the good work. I am lucky that I have always been "that guy" who people call when they need help wiring, plumbing, constructing, gardening, butchering, and other tasks. We need communities so we can pass down these invaluable skills. By they way, I am in the Central Texas/Austin area (but NOT in the city!).
Hey Dan! That feature concept you floated is something we've discussed at length. I think it could be an amazing tool if done right.
We have noticed in comments on our videos that many people are very, very wary of entering their homestead's exact location into an app, and I totally understand that. Most people don't trust tech companies, because of the misdeeds of Google, Facebook, etc. I don't trust big tech myself. With their track record how can anyone trust them? Some people think we're making the off-grid app to harvest their locations and sell the list to government... XD. While that is not the case, we are trying to be thoughtful about how we handle location data. We need to preserve trust first. Even a trustworthy company can have a data breach or a hacking event, so I lean away from storing exact locations.
However...
Perhaps the feature you have in mind could use "general location" rather than exact addresses. You just plug in your neared large city, or just enter your county area. The off-grid sim would show people how systems function in their location based on average weather records, sunlight, etc.
While I am not one to be overly concerned about anyone knowing my location, I realize that others have a more protective view of that information. So I understand your point and the considerations needed to help facilitate in-person communications via an electronic medium. Perhaps something like a user's "general location" would prove workable. On the other hand, maybe your readers prefer to remain relatively anonymous on here because they already have a local community (like-minded or not) that provides support and they will utilize this forum for educational/technical purposes rather than as a community building resource.
However, I would hope that others of your audience find it valuable to foster relationships, both economic and social, that will further their goals of creating a homestead/smallholding/resiliency and the multifaceted skills that requires. Youtube, Substack, and other platforms certainly have their places, but the depth, adaptability and just plain fulfillment (hopefully) of interacting with an person human being cannot be replaced. (Trying to remotely teach butchery and sharpening skills comes to mind. It can be done using an electronic or print medium, but I have a feeling the learning curve is steeper and the tactile sensations of the task that provide feedback are more difficult to convey through text or video as opposed to in-person.)
I look forward to reading your posts in the future. An awareness of the importance of passing on and learning the skills of the traditional trades, farming and other areas seems to be growing, at least a significant subset of the population.
I could not agree more with your last line Dan, "An awareness of the importance of passing on and learning the skills ... seems to be growing"
As a software engineer, I felt way too far removed from all the basics to living well. 7 years ago, we had a normal 100% grid-tied suburban home and very few practical skills. We only started really learning and changing 3 years ago. Now we have an establish flock of chickens, two pigs onsite, 6 pigs offsite, the permaculture garden spaces, rabbits, rainwater catchment (small system for the garden), a small backup PV generator system, composting systems, and a few dozen other small systems. I still have yet to learn to butcher, but I have a friend who is willing to teach me!
Your other well made point is in-person learning. My hope is to simply expose people to these ideas online -- but they need to sink into local community to make the real work happen. The old fashioned "barn raising" mentality needs to have a revival :) Friends and family building together, growing gardens, canning, harvesting, etc.
I have often found myself as a young adult looking for this type of community. The type of community that seeks to simplify life by cutting out all the mainstream minutia, and seeks to build one another. We often find ourselves looking for this community in all the wrong places.
There is so much more to life when you live in community. To be able to hold one another accountable, challenge each other, raise families, all while doing it together. Thank you for this vision! Have a blessed day!
Absolutely Noah! Thanks for your support and encouragement. Rebuilding our own local community is how we reclaim the lives we want to build. Alone we can't do much, but as community we can truly redesign how our lives work for the better.
This piece is so on-the-nose. It's actually one of the most important, but hardest, pieces of the puzzle. We're on a journey to find the right place for us and finding a community that is already in place, welcoming of newcomers, and thinking the same way/pulling in the same direction is so key. And so hard! Suggestions welcome.
I don't even know how I got this to my email inbox and I never read newsletters but I'm so glad I did! Really engaging natural writing style and I loved what the newsletter had to say! I will be sharing it with others. Great job!!
Kemble, have you thought of adding a feature to your site that would allow readers to note their locations so they may get in contact with like minded folks in their area? The internet is a great medium for sharing information and even forging social bonds, but it cannot connect us in the communitarian ways you describe and others are longing for. Keep up the good work. I am lucky that I have always been "that guy" who people call when they need help wiring, plumbing, constructing, gardening, butchering, and other tasks. We need communities so we can pass down these invaluable skills. By they way, I am in the Central Texas/Austin area (but NOT in the city!).
Hey Dan! That feature concept you floated is something we've discussed at length. I think it could be an amazing tool if done right.
We have noticed in comments on our videos that many people are very, very wary of entering their homestead's exact location into an app, and I totally understand that. Most people don't trust tech companies, because of the misdeeds of Google, Facebook, etc. I don't trust big tech myself. With their track record how can anyone trust them? Some people think we're making the off-grid app to harvest their locations and sell the list to government... XD. While that is not the case, we are trying to be thoughtful about how we handle location data. We need to preserve trust first. Even a trustworthy company can have a data breach or a hacking event, so I lean away from storing exact locations.
However...
Perhaps the feature you have in mind could use "general location" rather than exact addresses. You just plug in your neared large city, or just enter your county area. The off-grid sim would show people how systems function in their location based on average weather records, sunlight, etc.
Thoughts?
While I am not one to be overly concerned about anyone knowing my location, I realize that others have a more protective view of that information. So I understand your point and the considerations needed to help facilitate in-person communications via an electronic medium. Perhaps something like a user's "general location" would prove workable. On the other hand, maybe your readers prefer to remain relatively anonymous on here because they already have a local community (like-minded or not) that provides support and they will utilize this forum for educational/technical purposes rather than as a community building resource.
However, I would hope that others of your audience find it valuable to foster relationships, both economic and social, that will further their goals of creating a homestead/smallholding/resiliency and the multifaceted skills that requires. Youtube, Substack, and other platforms certainly have their places, but the depth, adaptability and just plain fulfillment (hopefully) of interacting with an person human being cannot be replaced. (Trying to remotely teach butchery and sharpening skills comes to mind. It can be done using an electronic or print medium, but I have a feeling the learning curve is steeper and the tactile sensations of the task that provide feedback are more difficult to convey through text or video as opposed to in-person.)
I look forward to reading your posts in the future. An awareness of the importance of passing on and learning the skills of the traditional trades, farming and other areas seems to be growing, at least a significant subset of the population.
Keep up the good work.
I could not agree more with your last line Dan, "An awareness of the importance of passing on and learning the skills ... seems to be growing"
As a software engineer, I felt way too far removed from all the basics to living well. 7 years ago, we had a normal 100% grid-tied suburban home and very few practical skills. We only started really learning and changing 3 years ago. Now we have an establish flock of chickens, two pigs onsite, 6 pigs offsite, the permaculture garden spaces, rabbits, rainwater catchment (small system for the garden), a small backup PV generator system, composting systems, and a few dozen other small systems. I still have yet to learn to butcher, but I have a friend who is willing to teach me!
Your other well made point is in-person learning. My hope is to simply expose people to these ideas online -- but they need to sink into local community to make the real work happen. The old fashioned "barn raising" mentality needs to have a revival :) Friends and family building together, growing gardens, canning, harvesting, etc.
Thank you for sharing this Kemble!
I have often found myself as a young adult looking for this type of community. The type of community that seeks to simplify life by cutting out all the mainstream minutia, and seeks to build one another. We often find ourselves looking for this community in all the wrong places.
There is so much more to life when you live in community. To be able to hold one another accountable, challenge each other, raise families, all while doing it together. Thank you for this vision! Have a blessed day!
Absolutely Noah! Thanks for your support and encouragement. Rebuilding our own local community is how we reclaim the lives we want to build. Alone we can't do much, but as community we can truly redesign how our lives work for the better.
This piece is so on-the-nose. It's actually one of the most important, but hardest, pieces of the puzzle. We're on a journey to find the right place for us and finding a community that is already in place, welcoming of newcomers, and thinking the same way/pulling in the same direction is so key. And so hard! Suggestions welcome.
I don't even know how I got this to my email inbox and I never read newsletters but I'm so glad I did! Really engaging natural writing style and I loved what the newsletter had to say! I will be sharing it with others. Great job!!
Tally, I'm glad you're here! Thanks for the encouragement :)
Great read! Super cool concept, definitely something we all need to think about.
Thanks Ben! I think these ideas are how we rebuild real community. We need it :)