Despite the rising cost of oil, and increased drought, things are not too bad yet in Wilbur County. This is due to the foresight of many good people, and it’s why EcoSurvival Village chose to locate here on the edge of the Ochocos.

About 15 years ago the citizens of Germaine and Wilbur County decided to invest in the future. They believed that investing in alternative technology could help a small community in a cold northern desert survive, and even thrive. They invested in organic agriculture, solar and wind energy, and alternative farming methods.

The brave experiment proved that a small town and county could live nearly self-sufficiently. Most of our power is off the grid. Much of our fuel is non-petroleum based. And a large percentage of our food is grown organically in greenhouses, using sustainable methods.

Of course we are lucky to live in a little sheltered valley, protected from the bitter winds of the high desert, atop a number of artesian springs fed by the mountain aquafirs.

The people of our large, overbuilt cities, dependent on automobiles for transportation, and trucks for hauling produce and food are or will soon be sorely hurting. Energy collapse, and ecological disaster will leave many areas of the world uninhabitable. Borders will no longer have meaning as more and more refugees arrive.

What can we do to help? We can not hold any more people here in our fragile desert ecosystem. But maybe we can tell our story, and become an example.

And we stress, and will continue to do so, that alternative energy is not the whole answer. We must overthrow consumer capitalism. That is the name of the beast.