This seminar takes as given that industrialized, growth and consumption oriented societies will be operating on drastically less energy and material. It provides evidence for this assumption but does not dwell on it. Rather, the seminar focuses on what localization is (we presume that it is already happening around us) what it can be (good and bad) what it should be if the transition is to be peaceful, democratic, just, and sustainable. The seminar assumes that the future will involve highly localized social organization, constrained mobility, and a decentralized settlement pattern. While everyday life may be less affluent than that of the present, well-being may be greater. An 80% drop in energy and material use by mid-century would be an historic change. Now is the time to actively debate the magnitude and timing of such a downshift. It is prudent to identify the implications of such a drop, envision adaptations, and plan for the transition. While energy is the resource driving the current debate, this seminar is not a discussion of energy policy and planning, nor does it dwell upon gloom-and-doom scenarios emerging from the debate over peak oil. It focuses on how to craft a wholesome, just, and sustainable transition. Readings include the works of decentralist and localist writers, including investigation of historical and contemporary localist communities. The seminar seeks insights into the processes of localization to aid localities and regions, even nations and the international system. It aspires to awaken citizens to this new reality and help them confront the coming transition, as they work to modify existing institutions and systems while also inventing new ones.