Eighteen people came to a meeting at the Friends Meeting House last week to explore one possible future for Ross - a future involving less dependence on those climate changing 'fossil fuels', which we hear so much about now, but also one where the local community is stronger.

'Stronger' in the sense that it is more resilient to the changes that 'global warming' and 'peak oil' will bring, through the better utilisation of resources we all depend on (e.g. energy and food), and increased co-operation between local people.

Changes to the way we live now are inevitable. Everything we do that depends on fossil fuels is going to become a lot more expensive, and possibly even rationed by the government. The question is how soon and how fast? Sudden changes are very hard to cope with, particularly if you are elderly or not very well off. We had minor 'tasters' of what is to come with the recent petrol price hikes, and longer ago - the petrol tanker delivery drivers' strike.

The 'Transition Town' initiative is about making communities less fragile, and thus more able to withstand the shocks to come. It is about making changes to lifestyles sooner, while we have some control over them, rather than waiting until they are thrust upon us, in a manner not of our choosing. In essence, it is about the transition from our present 'oil addiction' to a new way of life, which can only be dimly glimpsed now, but is something to be looked forward to, rather than feared.

Ross is surrounded by Transition Towns already. Will Ross join them? Right now, we don't know - but there will be further opportunities in coming months to consider the possibilities.