December 5 & 6: #201 Local Investing Made Easy

We’re “keeping money flowing locally so we’re more prosperous as a community,” says James Frazier, co-founder of the Local Investment Opportunities Network (LION) in Port Townsend, Washington. LION is a clearinghouse between business owners like Matthew Day and potential investors like Kees Kolff. A business owner presents an investment opportunity to LION members. It’s all based on one-to-one personal relationships, so support can be more than monetary, says Kees — such as interest paid in locally-produced cheese and cider! http://www.L2020.org/LION

December 12 & 13: #202 Collapse of the Titans

Learn from the Soviets — personal relationships are the best currency, says Russian-born Dmitry Orlov, the author of Reinventing Collapse: The Soviet Example and American Prospects. The American empire is following the USSR into collapse, he asserts, with financial collapse happening first, followed by commercial and then political collapse. Dmitry, an America resident for several decades, suggests lowering our needs and expectations and replacing money transactions with barter and exchanges. http://www.cluborlov.com

December 19 & 20: #203 Soccer Mom Prepares for the Unexpected

“I have a ball preserving food with my friends!” And at the same time Kathy Harrison is making sure her kids can eat if storms knock out power or roads. The author of Just in Case: How to Be Self Sufficient When the Unexpected Happens gives practical tips on storing food without getting overwhelmed. She looks at dehydrating, canning, and root cellaring; finding and preserving local food, and buying food at discount. For Kathy, preparedness is an empowering, community activity. justincasebook.wordpress.com

December 26 & 27: #204 Oil Puts the Squeeze on the Economy

This turbulent, troubled global economy is precisely what Chris Martenson predicted in early 2010, “When Exponential Meets Reality” (episode 166). He asserts that we can no longer look at the economy without factoring in the terminal decline of its master resource — oil. The author of The Crash Course: The Unsustainable Future of Our Economy, Energy and Environment believes that, as “the generation that gets to deal with hitting up to resource limits,” we first need a new cultural story to inspire appropriate action. www.chrismartenson.com

PEAK TV is sponsored locally by the Center for Excellence in Communication at Clarkson University and the Seymour Family of Potsdam.

Peak Moment explores locally reliant living for challenging times. The Peak Moment Shows are available at the Potsdam Public Library for borrowing and/or interlibrary loan.