A Wisconsin nonprofit is working to find sustainable and resilient living solutions which are not reliant on technology.
Scott Johnson, director of the Low Technology Institute, located in the town of Cooksville, said he created the organization out of concern for society's unsustainable reliance on finite resources like fossil fuels. He studied the collapse of ancient civilizations and sees similarities in the present day.
"They're hurting the environment and causing climate change," Johnson pointed out. "Even though we recognize the problem, we are unable to come together to come up with realistic solutions."
Johnson pointed out his nonprofit focuses on small-scale environmental solutions to provide comfortable living in the future. They are developing a strategic plan for Cooksville to become mostly self-sufficient by 2100, relying on existing technologies rather than future innovations. Part of the plan includes building homes primarily from materials sourced from within a 10-mile radius.
Johnson views technology as neutral rather than inherently good or bad. However, he believes society is too reliant on technology cutting down on manual labor. For example, he noted insulating homes with a mixture of straw and clay costs less in materials but requires more labor. He argued encouraging labor to promote physical activity can improve community health.
"There's a lot of evidence that doing things manually is a common trait among these 'blue zone populations,' people who live into their hundreds, still healthy and independent," Johnson explained. "They end up doing a lot of things manually rather than just relying on laborsaving devices."
Johnson added Americans are more receptive to changes which can be implemented on the local level, while they tend to resist federally-mandated change.
"All the solutions that we, you know, promote are something that you could probably build yourself or somebody in your neighborhood could build it who's handy," Johnson stressed.
The Institute offers workshops on practical skills like turning flax into linen in an effort to preserve traditional crafts.
