Self-sufficiency refers to the state of not requiring any outside aid, support, or (in hardline cases) interaction, for survival; it is therefore a type of extreme personal or collective (group-based) autonomy.
The term self-sufficiency is usually applied to varieties of sustainable living in which nothing is consumed outside of what is produced by the self-sufficient individuals. Sustainable living refers to a specific Lifestyle that attempts to reduce an individual's or society's use of the Earth's natural resources Examples of attempts at self-sufficiency in North America include voluntary simplicity, Luddism, homesteading, survivalism, and the back-to-the-land movement. Simple living (or voluntary simplicity) is a lifestyle individuals choose to minimize the 'more-is-better' pursuit of Wealth and consumption. The Luddites were a Social movement of British Textile artisans in the early Nineteenth century who protested&mdashoften by destroying mechanized Broadly defined homesteading is a lifestyle of simple agrarian Self-sufficiency. Survivalism is a commonly used term for the Preparedness strategy and subculture of individuals or groups anticipating and making preparations for future possible disruptions The phrase " back-to-the-land movement " refers to a North American social phenomenon of the 1960s and 1970s
Practices that enable or aid self-sufficiency include autonomous building, permaculture, sustainable agriculture, and renewable energy. An autonomous building is a building designed to be operated independently from infrastructural support services such as the Electric power grid municipal water systems The word permaculture, coined by Australians Bill Mollison and David Holmgren during the 1970s is a Portmanteau of perma nent agri' Sustainable agriculture integrates three main goals environmental Stewardship, Farm Profitability and prosperous Farming communities Renewable energy is Energy generated from Natural resources mdashsuch as Sunlight, Wind, Rain, tides and geothermal
The existence of an effectively closed system makes self-sufficiency a necessity for any form of space colonization, and to an extent ocean colonization. Space colonization (also called space settlement, space humanization, Space habitation, etc Ocean colonization is the theory and practice of permanent human settlement of Oceans Such settlements may float on the surface of the water or be secured to
The term is also applied to limited forms of self-sufficiency, for example growing one's own food or becoming economically independent of state subsidies or (in the case of larger political entities) foreign aid. In Economics, a subsidy (also known as a subvention is a form of financial assistance paid to a business or economic sector Aid (from the french word aide, also known as international aid, overseas aid, or foreign aid, especially in the United States) is
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Post-modern self-sufficiency
The term ‘post-modern self-sufficiency’ or ‘escape capitalism’ refers to a mode of life that seeks to exist outside industrialized non-agrarian ‘western’ norms. This mode of life-style is usually seen as alternative because it seeks to rely on cutting edge technology to eliminate or greatly reduce the reliance on a capitalistic structure i. e. wage labor.
Paradoxically, escape capitalism usually begins inside the capitalist framework where highly skilled and highly educated labor is exchanged for capital which is then progressively invested into long-term self-sufficiency.
Examples
- Long-term residential and transport energy provided by investing in automated solar/wind/fuel-cell plant and equipment for the home.
- Long-term residential and agricultural water provided by investment into automated well/dam/rain & grey water systems.
- Long-term residential investment into automated hydroponics/green house/orchard fruit and vegetable production.
The key focus of the movement is the use of modern technology to create a significantly high level of quality of life rather than sacrificing quality of life for non-participation in capitalist society.
Most individuals who proscribe to escape capitalism work greatly reduced hours in highly educated ‘contract’ roles that require great expertise. This income supplements their life style for areas like travel, health care and building passive income investment streams.
The following is an assessment of needs to be fulfilled progressively:
- Housing and land for necessities production e. g. including entertainment, sporting and agricultural considerations.
- Water and waste management e. g. rain, grey and brown water .
- Energy including household, transport and capture and processing agricultural consumption e. g. fuel cell plant and equipment.
- Means to produce marketable goods and services e. g. home call-centre to support highly specialized or skilled industries globally.
- It is expected that all needs are fulfilled at a level that will support a high level of quality of life
Influential People
- Eustace Conway
- Carla Emery
- Helen and Scott Nearing
- John Seymour
- Joel Skousen
- Don Stephens
- Mel Tappan
- Claire Wolfe
See also
External links
- Teach A Man To Fish - Self-Sufficiency in Education
- International Homesteaders Blog Ring
- Foundation for Self-Sufficiency in Central America
- Path to Freedom
- Self Sufficient(ish) UK based online guide
- AchieveAbility: Education is the key to self-sufficiency
- The Good Life
- Home Power Magazine
- Self Sufficient Life - rural and country style living
- The Modern Homestead
- Five acres and independence, 1973 book, by Maurice Grenville Kains, Dover books. Eustace Conway (born Eustace Robinson Conway IV in 1961 in South Carolina) is an American naturalist and the subject of the book The Last American Man Carla (Carlotta Louise Harshbarger Emery DeLong ( January 19, 1939 &ndash October 11, 2005) Helen Knothe Nearing (1904-1995 and Scott Nearing (1883-1983 were well known American back-to-the-landers who wrote extensively about their experience John Seymour ( 12 June 1914 &ndash 14 September 2004) was an influential figure in the Self-sufficiency movement Joel M Skousen is an American conservative political scientist Non-fiction Survivalist author and retreat consultant that specializes in preparedness Don Stephens is a Futurist, eco-home Sustainable design innovator and author who has published under his Stephens Press imprint in the field of what he terms "optimized Born Melrose H Tappan III Mel Tappan (1933–1980 was the editor of the newsletter Personal Survival ("P Claire Wolfe is a Survivalist - Libertarian Author and Columnist. An autarky is an economy that is self-sufficient and does not take part in International trade, or severely limits trade with the outside world ISBN 0486209741www. varnasrama. org
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