Ideas for Transition: La Caminata (Transition Walkabout)

A walkabout  (Caminata) in the neighbourhood of Poble Sec and Montjuic hill, Barcelona, was organised by Barcelona-en-Transición (Transition Town Barcelona), with the collaboration of local individuals, organisations and small businesses. After around 4 months of preparation and fieldwork, one Saturday in September 2010, we visited various places of interest, related to the international Transition Towns movement. We saw, for example, community allotments, local artisans, craftspeople and artists, who use local material (wood, wool, leather, metal etc), as well as shops, cafés and food co-operatives, which sell local, organic and/or loose (unpackaged) produce.

The caminatas we organise are opportunities for the people of the different neighbourhoods of Barcelona, to get to know their area better, as well as getting to know the Transition movement and its aims. And at the same time, so the people of Barcelona-en-Transición can get to know the different areas of Barcelona better, with the goal of getting that quarter set up as a Transition neighbourhood.

It’s a regular event, in which we aim to visit all the various neighbourhoods in Barcelona. We always finish the Caminatas with a shared picnic, in which everyone brings local food and drinks to share, and we reflect on the event, answer questions, and generally have fun, while getting to know each other better. 

A piece of local joy, without the use of petrol… something to be celebrated!

More information can be found on Barcelona-en-Transición (currently only available in Spanish and Catalan): 

http://barcelonaentransicio.wordpress.com (blog) http://barcelonaentransicio.webs.com (web)

For more information on the Caminata of Poble Sec, contact: Claudia French: poblesecentransicio@gmail.com

For more information on the Caminatas and Transition walks in general, or to contact the Barcelona Transition group, contact: barcelonentransicio@gmail.com