Peak oil and Scarce resources - how and where will Afrikans survive?

[Obadele Kwame Kambon]

With resources dwindling and being hoarded by non-Afrikans, how can Afrikans survive in concrete terms? Also there has been an ongoing discussion amongst those with whom I carry on discussions about moving to Belize, getting land near a major city, moving to the continent - question - what place is most conducive for Afrikans to survive and thrive?

[Ahmose Nebpeyti-Ra]

good question. with the state of affair in the world, where do we go as african peoples to survive the coming doom of the american economy. my wife and i purchased land in south america (guyana). this is her place of birth. very beautiful. but my heart is still set on returning back to Ta Meri. senegal, ghana, mali, sudan, ethiopia or kenya.

[Obadele Kwame Kambon]

Do you have any type of timetable on moving or repatriation as the case may be?

[Dr. Blaine D. Pope, Ph.D., M.I.A., M.P.A.]

Dear Obadele and Ahmose:

These are important issues. I can only give you my own story, based my own experience. Yours may well end up being quite different.

Here are some of my tips, in no special order:

- See the DVD "Escape from Suburbia: Beyond the American Dream." This will give you some hints, based on what people are doing already, in the face of Peak Oil.

- Tear up the credit cards & get out of debt: this situation only gets worse, as the value of the dollar declines.

- Reduce your financial overhead. Minimize your ongoing monthly payments, as much as possible.

- Assuming you choose to "stay and fight," in urban America: 1) join the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) system; 2) join a church/mosque/fraternal organization, or other similar community-based org--we are each going to need each other as never before; 3) grow your own food, in your own garden; 4) grow your own food in a community garden; 5) ride a bike; 6) use public transportation; 7) cut back on, or quit, eating meat (you'll save money & improve your health!).

- If you move abroad, look for a place which . . .

1) is politically stable (e.g., Ghana); 2) has abundant energy sources (sun, rivers, animals); 3) has relatively easy access to food supplies; 4) has laws in place which will allow "foreigners" to get / buy / own land with minimal hassle (ditto "dual citizenship").

Based on the above, I would put my money on Ghana. It's also got the largest African American expatriot population on the Continent (if that's important to you). But if you are going back to the Motherland, you need to buy that ticket soon: air fares will be escalating rapidly, with increases in jet fuel costs. (Subsequent visits back to the US may be by "steamship," thereafter!)

As for me . . .

1) I will now live and die in LA (ironic I know; but I inherited a mortgage free house!)
2) I am staying active by working with other interested black people on developing community systems which can help mitigate some of the impacts of Peak Oil
3) I am studying landscaping, so as to redesign my front yard to grow only (southern Calif.) native, drought-resistant plants
4) I will learn how to grow a garden
5) I just repaired my bike
6) I have joined the Post-Carbon / Peak Oil MeetUp group in my area
7) I monitor political-economic and energy events in the media (esp. the Internet)
8) I am deepening my spiritual practice

END

[Akua Auset]

Meda ade paa Dr. Pope for your generosity in sharing some great ideas and the beginning of a concrete plan.

It's refreshing to see some practical contribution.

[Obadele Kwame Kambon]

You have definitely been giving this a lot of thought. My parents have been on this since before I was born in moving south, buying land with a water source are growing their own food, building a house with their own hands (i.e. no mortgage), etc.

I would like your input, if you get a chance, on some of these videos on earthships and cob houses: http://www.abibitumikasa.com/forums/afrikan-nationbuilding-systems/

How does your own residence compare to these types of structures shown in the video? Do you have any input on this type of structure?

Obadele

[Haki]

Give thanx, My Queen and I have watched that DVD "End of Suburbia". I concur with much of what you are saying. I appreciate the idea of joining a Post Carbon/Peak Oil meetup. I will do the same here. I joined an environmental meetup though most are Yurugu's. I may go just to learn for free. There is a brother that wrote a book called "Green Collar Economy". I believe he is in Oakland.

I also like the gardon idea. We just got the books about where to get the
"heirloom" seeds. I believe that is the term, non hybrid.

[Ra Ptah Muir El]

This is the opportunity for us who have "successfully de-whitenized ourselves" to repeat the efforts of our ancestors proven by a thorough adept innerstanding of our-story. Here and now, North Amerikkka is the training ground. The mastery of several disciplines should be paramount, such as survival techniques, various lanqauges, progressive/regenerative ancestral farmings, ancestral law concepts, universal history of indigenous peoples across the globe, symbol literacy, and progressive/regenerative(natural materials) construction techniques for building inhabitable structures. Focus for us should be on preparing ourselves and families to be what our ancestors where to eachother, and the rest of the world. The current world paradigm is shifting, amongst certain peril ahead is also the grand opportunity for we all to form linkages with eachother, and strategically identified indigenous populations/regions of the world where the consciousness level is prime for the cultivation and realization of a new world paradigm. This is my current path. I am looking at Bahia, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Bolivia, Southern Morrocco. I encourage this conversation because I know that we must be thorough with the plans that we put forth in a time such as this.

[Obadele Kwame Kambon]

How long do you think the window of opportunity will remain open to get to Bahia, Ghana etc.?

[Abenaa/ Taundra]

This is a question that I know I'm personally running out of time to answer.
I know that the Trilateral Commision has plans to make four quadraints around the globe and then form a gobal community.A community that does not included Afrikans and Hispanics. About a month ago our borders were disolved and we now live in what's called the North American Union. Bush did this without permission of the house or Senate or the American people. This quadraint contains Mexico, Canada, and The U.S.
Our money is as worthless as the paper it's printed on; with tracking devises .
I say all of this to say ; personally I would like to go back to my mother land to live out the rest of my years; however I know no one there; or what I would do when I got there.
I am frustrated because I don't have a definiative answer that I can give at this point. I personally have to do more research and make more connections.
Under Rex-84 all farms, cars, etc. will be seized by the government here in case of a State of emergency.
I'm going to meditate on this one and ask my ancestors for guidance.
It's crazy when you just start to wake up to your REAL surroundings. I haven't had time to truly plan anything . I'm still in shock to the truths I've just been faced with and now I have to plan for my survival.
I also know that none of my personal family has a clue to what is taking place; I'm that voice that that continuously talks to death hears. Would I be able to leave them?
People are unaware of the inherient energy we have as a collective; which is the reason there are laws in place that keep us from truly uniting.. One person's body has enough energy to light up a city.
With right spiritual teachings we could put an end to this madness. Collectivley. I kow it may not sound like a plan of survival to most people, however we do have untapped spiritual resources. This is were I am paying my focus for now.

[Obadele Kwame Kambon]

You are on point with this Taundra. Time is running out. What spiritual traditions are you looking at researching?

[moondaughta]

Yes, a very important question. As someone that tends to be abroad as much as possible, I find myself here currently, and questioning the wisdom of that. I feel like right now is the time for a great deal of quiet and meditation. Each one of us has a work to do and a place to carry out that divine work in this coming shift and being in-tuned will allow for us to receive clear guidance on this. I recently lived in sustainable communities, off grid on 2 different Hawaiian islands and know that folks out here, esp. white folk are very aware of the need to detach from all of these 'comforts' that will surely leave us enslaved as things transform. We lived in yurts, tents, simple structures, grew our food organically, utilized and treated the water in the local creeks, had communal kitchens, community vehicles, etc..It's a very basic way of life and it is, I think, where things are heading for those of us that 'get it'. We all have to be willing to just let go and adapt a lifestyle more similar to that our folks in the "third world" live.

Some places I've either researched or visited that seem stable enough to live in as things begin to shift are:

1. Costa Rica
2. Panama
3. Brazil
4. Belize
5. Ghana

[Obadele Kwame Kambon]

Intriguing! Do you have any images or videos to share?

Feel free to post either here on the ning network or in the forums here:
http://www.abibitumikasa.com/forums/afrikan-nationbuilding-systems/

Also, you ranked non-english speaking countries higher than Belize and Ghana. Do you think language (spanish, portuguese, Twi, other indigenous languages on the continent) and effort to learn them has an impact on your decision to move?

Obadele