Solidarity Prepping

Solidarity Prepping Group meeting report: 28 February 2026

by Kat Soares & Susan Porter, 11 March 2026

We chose two topics to discuss in breakout rooms:

The Breakdown of Systems,
Food Preparedness.

(See below for a complete list of topics.)

The questions we addressed in our breakout rooms were:

Where is our curiosity on this topic?
What information / knowledge do we already have or could offer?
What information / knowledge might we need?
Possible next steps.

The Breakdown of Systems

This was a really broad conversation ranging from acknowledgement of the decline in systems that is already happening and the anxiety associated with that, to examples of how people are responding to the breakdown.

Several sources of information and knowledge were identified within the group including our own experiences in responding to decline or threat in our own community and simple practical skills that we can adopt to insulate ourselves and to support others.

The idea of learning from each other was very present, as it is the method we are aiming to put into practice. We identified several individuals with topics they could share on. We also identified lots of questions and unknowns which will provide useful prompts for us moving forward, which will support our seeking of additional input to our groups. We also settled on a concrete action to invite from our members a topic or project that they could share on at a future event.

Food Preparedness

This was another very lively conversation that ranged from growing food to storing and preserving food that you have grown or bought. Several sources of knowledge were identified that we could draw upon when considering this topic. This includes members of the group who are very experienced in this aspect of preparedness.

Still there remain many questions and, as for previous topics, this should inform our direction when sourcing information and speakers for future discussions. For example, people were interested in how to source the raw materials for food production at home, how to maintain genetic diversity in chicken flocks etc., and about wild foods and foraging, and using the issue of food scarcity as a mechanism for community building.

This group also explored challenges such as small apartment living with no room to grow or store food, the issues of physical limitations that might restrict a persons capacity to participate in the physical activity of food growing and preservation. We even touched on the risks of people turning up with guns to take what we have produced or stored.

Going Forward

In our next meeting we will stick with this meeting format and choose two more topics from the long list we already identified together.

Topics for Discussion

Remaining Flexible

uncertainty about what to expect but trying to prepare
staying mobile and imaginative
relocation (where / when)
keeping the gas tank full, what else?

Bugging in

how to stay warm without power
how to cook without power
storing food / what food / water / water purification

Living a smaller, simpler life

how?
what do we change?
letting go of ego
letting go of unnecessary stuff

Food Resilience

preparing at a community scale
community supported agriculture
growing food and permaculture techniques
edible plants and wild foods

Preparing for the breakdown of systems

medical
financial
social
what will fail and how do we prepare for the losses?
self care
nutrition
how to disengage for institutions that we believe are harming the earth and humans

How do we die well?

nervous system regulation
co-regulation
being realistic about physical limitations
being prepared

The Small Things

water filters
small tools
learning to do more for ourselves

Working with others

collaboration
growing and maintaining relationships
managing conflict / being with conflict
talking to the unaware
resistance to tyranny: distributing whistles, learning Spanish, doing laundry for people
in what ways can we be of support in the place where we live?
baking cookies or other ways to develop relationships with neighbours
community strategy, trainings
how to preserve our humanity, who do I want to be when things are crazy in my neighborhood?

Preparing for Natural Disasters