Several of us folks from the Peoria area attended the 17th Midwest Renewable Energy Fair on June 23-25 near Stevens Point, Wisconsin, and it was an excellent experience despite some intense thunderstorms. Numerous informative workshops made up a full schedule, plus many dozens of vendors, exhibits, and other activities. The highlight for me personally was James Howard Kunstler's address on Saturday afternoon, in which he emphasized the folly of our typical obsession with seeking miraculous techno-fixes that would somehow allow us to continue our suburban lifestyle despite the waning of petroleum. He noted the prevalence of this naive idea among college audiences. Instead, we must face the necessity of profound changes in our culture and begin making what Kustler calls "other arrangements" beginning with rehabilitation of our railways.
Photo attached below: my moment of glory meeting Kunstler (right).