Life in Community
Coming of Age in Service Community
Posted on September 21, 2016 by1 Comment
Growing up in a community with a strong commitment to changing the world can be both enlivening and challenging.
This Eco-Community in Peru is Known for Its Cone-Shaped Structures
Posted on September 12, 2016 byJust over an hour north of Lima, Peru, a circle of cone-shaped buildings rises beside a sandy beach. These structures are called “trulys,” and they’re part of a spiritual eco-village built by Hare Krishnas on the Peruvian coast. The village is a popular stopping place for travelers looking for a peaceful, meditative retreat in rural… Read More
Activism and Service at Black Bulga Community: Inspiring, Nurturing, Challenging, and Not All Hard Work
Posted on September 11, 2016 byAt Black Bulga, the experience of community provides vital support for members to be effective change agents in the wider world.
At This Hawaiian Eco-Community, You Can Stay In A Bamboo Hut In A Volcanic Crater
Posted on August 29, 2016 byA few weeks ago – as the prospect of spending another winter here in rainy Portland began to dawn on me – I started looking into some travel opportunities in warmer climates. One of my goals as a blogger is to get to visit some of the intentional communities that I write about – and… Read More
Innisfree Village: Lifesharing in a Service Community
Posted on August 24, 2016 byAdults with disabilities and residential caregiver volunteers share the challenges and joys of community life at Innisfree.
KCET Visits the LA Eco-Village for A Look At Sustainable Urban Living
Posted on August 22, 2016 byWhen you hear about life in Los Angeles, you probably think about traffic, smog, and sprawling suburbs. But LA has a thriving network of intentional communities, many of which exist just under the radar of activity in neighborhoods like Silverlake, Mar Vista, and Koreatown. I spent several years living in the city and got to… Read More
This Alaska Community Took Its Own Approach To Treating Mental Illness
Posted on August 15, 2016 by3 Comments
The philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti once said, “It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society.” It’s a quote often repeated by alternative healers and counter-cultural thinkers. In the 1980s, four families from Boston – who suffered from depression, schizophrenia, and other mental illnesses – put that philosophy to the… Read More
True Sustainability: Indigenous Pathways
Posted on July 21, 2016 byAt Maitreya Mountain Village, mainstream pragmatism meets radical idealism.
A New Movement Is Rethinking Our Relationship With The Earth
Posted on July 18, 2016 byLast month, I had the chance to visit the Windward Education and Research Center, an intentional community in rural Washington, for an event called the EcoSex Convergence. Over 5 days, 150 participants explored topics related to environmentalism, spirituality, sexuality, and more. The event’s guests of honor were Annie Sprinkle and Beth Stephens, who combine academic… Read More
This 1800s Commune Tried Free Love and Income-Sharing Long Before It Was A Thing
Posted on July 11, 2016 byMany of the intentional communities that we hear about are recent ones: the back-to-the-land communes of the 1970s, the student co-ops and cohousing spaces being formed today. That’s why it’s especially fascinating to get a glimpse into a commune from a different era – as I did recently in a book called “Oneida: From Free… Read More
The Bridge to a Greener World
Posted on July 1, 2016 byThis Australian community’s bridge is a lot more than just a bridge.
Want an Ecovillage? Stay Put!
Posted on June 21, 2016 byHow can we care for a place if we’re not there, day after day, year after year, paying attention?
European Projects Explore Cohousing for LGBT Elders
Posted on May 2, 2016 byOver the past year, a U.K. group called Tonic Housing has been exploring ways to offer safe, affordable housing to older members of the LGBT community. Supported by several charitable foundations, Tonic hopes to build a housing complex called Tonic Centre in or near London: “There is currently no LGBT-specific housing for older people in the… Read More
Queer, Person of Color, or Low-Income; Is Cohousing Possible for Me?
Posted on May 1, 2016 bySome creative solutions are starting to counteract cohousing’s demographic homogeneity, but significant obstacles remain.
Three Tucson Communities Open Their Doors For National Cohousing Day
Posted on April 18, 2016 byNational Cohousing Open House Day is coming up in just over a week, and dozens of communities will be welcoming guests for tours and other free activities. You can check out the map at Cohousing.org to find a community near you. Please RSVP to the Facebook event and invite your friends so we can get… Read More
Life in an urban eco-village
Posted on March 23, 2016 byHi, I’m Saul, the new Social Media Manager here at FIC. I’m excited to join the team from my home at Foster Village, an urban eco-community in Southeast Portland, OR! If you have any feedback or suggestions for a future blog post, you can reach me via e-mail or on Twitter. Living in an urban… Read More
Intentional Communities: Something Old, Something New
Posted on February 1, 2016 byIntentional communities—people gathering to share life together, to discover meaning, and to have an impact beyond themselves—have been part of the human landscape for centuries. Many predate Christianity. Hinduism, Buddhism, and Judaism have all had communal aspects which many have chosen. Sufism (Islam), Protestantism, Anglicism, and Catholicism have had and continue to have thriving communities… Read More
The Unexpected Journey
Posted on January 11, 2016 by1 Comment
A three-month living/learning seminar in alternative communities still resonates three decades later.
Getting to Community and Life after Community: Collectivism vs. Individuality
Posted on January 1, 2016 by1 Comment
Togetherness and solitude, action and reflection—our lives give us times for each.
Three Kinds of Community—Three Kinds of Experience and Learning
Posted on December 1, 2015 byWhether with refugees, in the inner city, or in intentional groups, community holds life-long lessons.
Nobody Likes Bosses
Posted on November 1, 2015 byEven an anti-authoritarian household needs agreements—but who and how to enforce them is another question.
My Struggle to Legalize Sustainable Living
Posted on October 1, 2015 by8 Comments
After nearly three decades of activity, a pioneering eco-community collapses under the weight of legal attacks by a small group of neighbors.
My Intentional Community and the Law
Posted on September 11, 2015 byBreitenbush has a long history of dealing with legalities and illegalities, from installing a volcano as their “boiler” and blocking old-growth logging to successfully petitioning for a zoning variance.
Zoning Nightmare: Hartford’s Scarborough Street House
Posted on September 1, 2015 byAn unconventional family fights to stay in their collective house in the face of antiquated local ordinances which suppress community living.
It’s the Law
Posted on August 25, 2015 by3 Comments
Communal living is no escape from dealing with legal issues and challenges coming from both within and outside the group.
The Balancing Act of Farming in Community
Posted on July 24, 2015 by1 Comment
Is Cobb Hill a model of how to do community and farming cooperatively, or a case study in their challenges?
The Community’s Garden Orchestra
Posted on July 14, 2015 byEngaging in collective food-production is like making our own music together: it’s both difficult and rewarding, especially with diverse players involved.
Hot Topic, Raw Emotion, and the Spice of Life: Chewing over Food Choice in Community
Posted on June 24, 2015 byAt La’akea, members’ various approaches to food reflect the quest for emotional as well as physical sustainability.
How the Kitchen Is the Heart of a Community
Posted on June 14, 2015 byA shared kitchen provides not just physical sustenance, but emotional benefits and greater connection to our food and one another.
Cookin’ Dinner for the Revolution
Posted on June 4, 2015 by1 Comment
A vibrant, reliable, and nourishing home-base can provide activists with a much-needed feeling of sustainability.
