“The Power of Community- How Cuba Survived Peak Oil”: The Community Solution

Cuba’s oil imports were decreased by more than half with the fall of the Soviet Union in 1990, this period of crisis is referred to by the Cuban people as the Special Period and can be related to a post-peak world. Their wonderful response to the oil crisis and their survival is what makes Cuba an excellent example to be followed by the rest of the world. Cuba’s isolation from the rest of the world, due to the embargo/ sanctions, makes it a good preamble to world peak-oil. With energy low, an intensified embargo and the economy in “free fall” Cubans turned to a collective, civil society response. They followed a path of cooperation, conservation and curtailment. A culture of bike riding, rationing and urban gardens was cultivated and proved to be successful. Cuba underwent a transition from an industrialized society to a sustainable one.

Visit http://www.communitysolution.org/ to learn more.