Film report and analysis

¶ … Escape from Suburbia: Beyond the American Dream. Specifically it will discuss five new terms in the film and their meaning. "Escape from Suburbia" is a radical look at life as we know it in the United States, and the world, and what some people are trying to do to reduce our impact on the land and reduce our dependence on foreign oil and fossil fuels. It also predicts the collapse of our current technological and ecological system, to a time when survivalism will be the norm and not the exception.

Peak Oil."

Peak oil is an important concept in this film, and the pretense that it revolves around. Peak oil is essentially the peak or tipping point in time when the world reaches the greatest rate of global petroleum extraction. It is the tipping point, and everything produced after that is in a terminal decline. Peak oil bases the calculation on production rates observed of specific individual oil wells, combining that with the production rate of related oil wells in a field. Many people believe we have already reached that tipping point. The film follows the scenario that if we do not end our dependence on oil, oil will deplete at a rapid rate, and when we run out, we will see the collapse of our technology-driven fossil-fueled society.

Community Gardens."

Community gardens are gardens placed on land centrally located in a city or town, where community members work in the gardens, planting, tending, and harvesting, and those who work in the gardens share in the bounty of the gardens. Each group or member tends their own plots, and sometimes they charge membership dues, or share their harvest with the needy or social organizations. The problem with the garden in the film was that it was not protected by law, and a developer took over the garden patch and the garden disappeared.

Relocalization."

Relocalization is at the heart of this film. It is a movement that believes in peak oil, and that society will have to relocalize to a more rural, sustainable way of life in order to survive the crisis when oil runs out. These small, rural societies will produce their own food, energy, and products, and could even devise their own governments, money, and culture. It sounds like the survivalist movement kicked into high gear and many people are joining them to learn what they need to know to survive when technology fails.

Ecovillage"

Ecovillages are another aspect of relocalization. They are supposed to provide social, economic, and ecologically sustainable villages for residents of about 50 to 150. This is based on sociology an anthropologies studies that indicate this is the perfect amount of residents for social networking. They promote a balanced and ecologically sound lifestyle, as well. Ecovillages already exist in many areas of the world.