ABSTRACT
Scientists have long predicted the dire consequences of climate change and other ecological crises. Stories in the daily news about super-storms, record droughts, out of control fire seasons and contaminated municipal water systems confirm that these predictions are not something out of a dystopian science fiction novel, but a realistic assessment of the costs of not shifting to a more sustainable organization of society. Self-sufficiency is a cultural movement in which participants seek to minimize reliance upon institutions such as the state and markets, preferring a do-it-yourself lifestyle that puts them more directly in control of their own subsistence needs. Individualism is a strong cultural narrative, shaping Americans' perceptions of self and ideal relationships between individuals and institutions. O'Brien theorizes individualism as a cultural mechanism that can be employed to justify culturally relevant practices. Rather than minimize the perception of risk, Americans did in fact change their practices in response to it.
