When everything goes sideways, we're largely compelled to make do with the resources in our immediate vicinity. But there's a good argument to be made for continuing to organize and work locally, too. At this most granular scale, it ought to be possible to reassert at least some control over our conditions and to witness the results of our efforts.

That "witness" is vital in ways that aren't simply about functional assessment. In dark times, we need to be able to see the impact of our actions to keep despair at bay. We need to feel like there's something more or less gearing between the choices we make together and the concrete extension of shelter to those in danger. We need, in other words, to feel our power. That only really becomes possible when the questions we are deciding involve things that are close at hand.

— Lifehouse by Adam Greenfield (Page 154 - 155)