Willits, CA: A Relocalization Inspiration
A few summers ago, I had the pleasure of spending some time in Willits, CA. This small, progressive town in Mendocino County harbors one of the best relocalization efforts in the United States, if not the world.
“Relocalization” is the idea that communities should produce food, energy, and goods locally. The movement developed in response to peak oil and climate change concerns, and may just be our best hope for surviving our current environmental crises.
The Willits Economic Localization organization (WELL) was founded in 2004 by a concerned local climate scientist named Jason Bradford. While the organization started out by showing the peak oil film “The End of Suburbia” (an excellent film that I highly recommend), it soon expanded its efforts into a number of areas, including business, education, energy, food, and health.
Despite the small size of Willits, WELL has made incredible strides towards its goals in the past few years.
For example, the organization has established multiple community gardens, submitted grants to establish a local food system, and is in the process of developing a one acre school farm.
WELL has also started a program called the The Grateful Gleaners that collects unharvested fruits and vegetables from local farms. In 2006, the project harvested three tons of produce that would have gone to waste.
Willits’ efforts have inspired a number of other relocalization efforts in California and around the world. Check out The Relocalization Network for examples and to gather ideas for starting your own relocalization organization.
photo credit: The Laughlin Nevada Guide
word, Willits…a truly inspiring little town.
Thank you for the good words! There are a lot of good things happening in Willits, and WELL is only a part of it. What we have found most important is developing a collaborative approach with the many other organizations in town including: The City Government, the Willits Action Group (they are the ones working on the Local Food System grants), the Little Lake Grange, the Willits Ecological Center, the Renewable Energy Development Institute, the Mendocino County Sheriff, the Willits Chamber of Commerce, and many others. It is important for us to remember that it is the changes on the ground that we seek, not the credit.
Thank you again,
Liam UiCearbhaill
Willits Economic Localization
Operational Facilitator
Great find, Ariel! This is exactly the type of inspiring local action that’s invisible to most people that EcoLocalizer is meant for…
I’m so glad you all enjoyed the piece! Liam - I’d love to talk to you more about what WELL is currently doing with the community.
Ariel, give me a call or an e-mail. WELL’s office phone is (707) 459-7076 and the e-mail is office@willitseconomiclocalization.org
[...] “sustainable localization” and embark on a path toward energy independence. Willits, as Ecolocalizer reported earlier this year, has inspired other relocalization efforts throughout the country and [...]