I've talked to many people about preparation for the manifestations of Peak Oil in the U.S., in Texas, in Austin. I've known about peak oil for around 4 years, but haven't given much thought to serious preparation. Now that it seems like an accelerating reality, I've been talking to people more and more about how to prepare, and I've come up with a basic plan that takes into account my 'meager' income and savings, and the fact that I live in a rented apartment.
Being a single guy and in relatively good health and physical shape, I think that the most important things for me to think about are my psychological health, and short term, 1-3 month needs in case of an emergency. That means thinking about storing food and water to sustain me, having cooking materials and water filtration systems, thinking about my personal safety and security, as well as the security of my belongings.
After having taken care of the physical aspect (food water etc) which I think is #1 no question, I need to tackle the element that I think is less appreciated, but that will, in the long run, be most important: my psychological well being.
The response to a crisis (which I believe will be a short-lived but serious break down in services, food delivery etc) will either be panic leading to poor decisions, or apathy leading to inaction. I believe mental rehearsals for such an emergency to be important, as well as concrete plans to deal with situations that may arise.
In reading other blogs + articles about peak oil, I keep seeing the idea of "flexibility". Our plans need to be flexible, our power sources need to be flexible, our psychological make up needs to be flexible.
That doesn't mean a lack of commitment, it simply means fostering an ability to adapt. And this of course is different for everyone, but I think if people take an honest look at their lives, they will realize how brittle most of the systems they depend on. Much of this can't be helped, hence preparation in terms of food storage etc. But certainly our concept of ourselves as committed to one and only one way of life, to one mode of living needs to change, and change fast.
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Perhaps part of what makes peak oil so insidious is that its effects aren't apparent in the snap of a finger, but more gradually. Increasingly, these effects are becoming more apparent--not just through an increase in oil costs (today, the price per barrel teeters at the brink of $146, as Iran provides threatening missile test evidence), but also in skyrocketing food costs, which has caused worldwide protest, because so many people lcan barely afford to live day to day on meager incomes, and the price explosion, directly resulting from the rising oil costs, devour their incomes.
Ultimately, peak oil awareness must compel human behavioral change. Numerous national and transnational groups are now emerging, such as "we," a global warming awareness organization that is an offshoot of Al Gore's Inconvenient Truth. Set America Free is another rapidly expanding organization committed to raising public awareness, from a national security perspective. The Apollo Alliance, which has been around for perhaps five years (or longer), tries to promote civic action through business alliances. Change occurs one person at a time though. Groups such as Crude Awakening, and Peak Oil Awareness, are key to helping draw larger numbers of concerned citizens to helping change our community lifestyle, to become more self-sufficient.
At some point, we have to communicate these imperatives to our elected officials. Then, the goal of effecting political change, through legislation and policy change that encourages individual adoption of sustainable practices, can occur.
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