The book is based on:
a) The premise that "we" (humanity) are the problem, that "we" have created the environmental problems that threaten our future.
b) The premise that we need to mature and evolve our collective human consciousness. We have used an immature, unevolved thinking process based on early childhood conditioning to create and function in the modern world.
c) The premise that we need to intentionally tame, evolve, and mature our collective primitive ego-consciousness.
d) The premise that we created the existential force-multipliers that threaten to create social and civil collapse...systemic force-multipliers that include neo-liberal global capitalism, global warming, climate change, massive wealth inequality, massive debt, the illusion of separateness from the world we live in, the need to be "right," the inability to embrace systemic thinking, the inability to understand exponential growth, our species primitive ego resistance to change, the greed-based belief embedded in capitalism that unlimited growth and unlimited consumption of non-renewable natural planetary resources is possible on a limited planet, ignoring the fact that we need to intentionally simplify our lives, ignoring the fact that we need to begin powering down from the use of fossil energy (which is currently depleting very rapidly), population growth headed toward 10 billion by mid-century...all of which will create unavoidable social and civil collapse in the near future.
e) The premise that a growing number of people globally recognize that we are headed for an unsustainable future and are searching for a future that embraces a realistic path of "hope."
f) The premise that there is currently little to no social or political will to confront these existential force-multipliers and the solutions that are being offered and discussed are based on grossly unrealistic Tinker Bell thinking…the belief that "someone" will create some magical/technical solution that will solve all our problems.
g) The premise that small, self-reliant, local communities and local economies that have intentionally tamed and matured their collective thinking is the future of human civilization and human culture on our planet.
• My Goals in Writing This Book
a) Educate people on the existential dangers and massive changes that are coming when the force multiplier threats begin to systemically collapse human civilization as we know it.
b) Encourage the importance and need to tame and mature the collective consciousness of members in the local community they create.
c) Promote and create workshops that will teach and educate those interested in creating a local self-reliant community the skills and resources they will need to be successful.
d) Build multiple "seed" local communities that could begin to network with other self-reliant local communities and local economies in order to strengthen their ability to survive and begin to create a viable human culture on our planet.