Dear Friends,

I sat in on a steering committee meeting recently for the planning of the monthly Sonoma Y2K forum that has been meeting at Newman Hall at SRJC.

The question has come up -- where do we go from here? We have covered many topics over the past months, thanks to the wonderful pioneering efforts of Carolyne Stayton (thank you, Carolyne, we owe you one!) Now it is time, in light of all the information we do have about Y2K, and the experience we have garnered in beginning our preparations, to ask the question...where does the Sonoma Y2K Forum go in the coming months?

Send us some feedback as to what you liked about the Forum, what helped you and what you thought was a waste of time.

Send ideas for speakers and programs you think would be of benefit to yourself and others. Send us ideas on issues you think might need repeating. Or if you think we should shut down the Forum and instead focus on community organizing in our own separate cities and towns, say that.

We are anxious to hear from you in order to keep the Forum vital and relevant as the remaining months to December 31 rise ahead of us.

Send all comments to jean@sonic.net or BJLarsen@aol.com

Thank you for your interest.

Jean Wasp

-- (jean@sonic.net), March 24, 1999

Answers

The threat of Y2K has not only galvanized us as a community, it has also highlighted the nature of our interdependencies and the thin threads that keep us alive. With this heightened awareness and sense of community, I would like to see us not only prepare for Y2K, but also discuss ways to move toward a more sustainable, more local economy.

To anyone looking for a larger context to frame the whole question raised by Y2K, I recommend that they read "The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight" by Thom Hartmann. This book talks about where we are as a civilization(?), how we got here, where we are likely headed, and what we can do about it. I found this book to be hopeful and inspiring despite the subject matter.

-- Bob Stolzman (Stolzman@sonic.net), March 24, 1999.