A Lawrence group took a look toward the future Sunday. And it was a bleak one.

The Lawrence Coalition for Local Reliance and Sustainability met Sunday to watch a film and have a discussion about a topic many have struggled to come to terms with – that the world’s oil and natural gas supplies are running out, and there isn’t much anyone can do about it.

“It’s pretty sobering, pretty overwhelming,” coordinator Julie Vernon said Sunday at the Lawrence Public Library.

The group of about 15 people had just finished watching “The End of Suburbia,” a documentary that explored the slow demise of suburban living once gas prices rise above affordability and the commuting life becomes chaotic.

The mood was somber. For many of the attendees – even those who had thought actively about dwindling fuel supplies – the text of the movie was a startling display of realism.

The general message was that “peak oil,” the moment when oil production and supply matches usage, was happening now. From here on out, the world will use more oil and natural gas than it can produce, creating gaps between what we need and the amount of fuel we can provide.

The effects could be drastic, the group indicated afterward. Shipping could stagnate, leaving stores without food or supplies. Plus, oil-based farming would suffer as well.

But the group’s discussion was more of a search for local answers than a reaction to the film.

To help soften the eventual economic blow, communities would have to work together to create sustainable products and energy for communities.

Bob Lominska, a local organic grower, said he would be willing to teach gardening techniques in exchange for work. The idea, he said, is to get people ready to work with what they had for their food.

Plus, the group said, local folks were researching and starting a small-scale cooking oil-to-biodiesel operation, and, according to the group, city officials have said they would buy all they could make.

But biodiesel and organic farming aren’t going to fix all of our problems, the group said. But solving all of the issues isn’t the groups focus.

Rather, they are taking what they see as the first step toward fixing the pending problems: educating people about the coming crisis, so the number of minds thinking about the issue continues to grow.

“I have a lot to learn,” coordinator Rich Wenzel said. “But I’m fascinated by what I’ve found out.”