Welcome to the Vegans in Community home page. If you're vegan and looking for community, it's a chance to get a "vegan's eye view" of various communities with resident vegans. If you're vegan and already living in a community, it provides the opportunity to connect with vegans in other communities, as well as with potential visitors and new members for your community.
While most intentional communities are not vegan or vegetarian, many do accommodate vegans in their midst to varying degrees. This is not true of all communities, however; a few make no provisions at all for vegans, and as a consequence, vegans don't join. If you're an individual looking for a community, this page can help you get a vegan's-eye view of how vegan-friendly a given community is.
Vegans living in intentional communities are almost always in a minority--sometimes a minority of one. While communities may be nurturing and supportive in many ways, vegans may feel partially left out of the fundamental bonding ritual of food sharing or ill-understood about the values behind a vegan dietary commitment. On the other hand, others may feel perfectly fine where they are, but want to add to their richness through contacting other vegans in community.
For more info on veganism, contact Vegan Action or just search the web for other resources.
VEGAN:
v10. You live with other vegans, you never see or smell animal products at
home, your food is cooked in pots free of animal fat residues, you never need
to ask what's in something, and any lips you kiss will be vegan lips.
VEGAN-FRIENDLY:
(In these levels, people around you tend to use the word "consistent" instead
of "strict" and dietary "commitment" as well as "choice" to refer to your not
eating animal products.)
v9. You live with people who may or may not be personally vegan, but where all
common meals are vegan.
v8. All common meals and dishes are vegan; any dairy products are optional, on
the side.
v7. All dishes, including desserts, if not vegan, have sumptuous vegan
equivalents; everything is well-labeled, and non-vegans don't consider it a
hassle or burden to provide vegan food.
VEGAN-TOLERANT:
v6. Your basic nutritional needs are met in common meals, but you get left out
of some desserts and other "special treats"; there's often confusion around
labeling (communication), and some people may complain about what a pain in
the butt vegans are.
VEGAN-OBLIVIOUS:
v5. You have to supplement the common meals, or miss some because they're so
vegan-deficient.
v4. There's little or nothing vegan to eat.
VEGAN-HOSTILE:
v3. There's little or nothing vegan to eat, plus people deride you for your
"pickiness" or resent the hassle you create for non-vegans.
v2. Vegans are banned.
v1. Vegans are tarred and feathered on the spot.
v0. Vegans are slaughtered and bar-b-qued for dinner.
Just remember: You don't have to leave behind who you are. Your fundamental values deserve respect by any community worth its salt, just as the values of community members who disagree with you deserve respect.
In pursuing your search, your vision, stay in touch with supportive friends and family, keep your critical thinking well honed, and visit a variety of communities both before and after you join one. The literature on cults can be very useful, but sometimes has glaring blind spots--many of the identified characteristics and control techniques of cults are also true of mainstream institutions of family, government, schools, the military, and religion.
Rather than forcing members into groupthink, a good intentional community helps members achieve personal growth and autonomy.
Outside the U.S., countries are listed alphabetically, with names of communities within each country also listed alphabetically.
We ask that you include as much info as possible with a limit of 50 words; include your community's home page address if it has one. Please lead off with (a), (b), and (c) below; include at least information through (g); and put in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS the information that's indicated in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS below
(a) NAME OF COMMUNITY (all letters capitalized)
(b) Part of the state (east, northwest, central, etc.; lower case type)
(c) STATE or PROVINCE (all letters capitalized; if other than U.S. or Canada,
add COUNTRY NAME in all capital letters)
(d) First name of contact person
(e) Number of vegans in community over total number of people, including
children (e.g., 3/16)
(f) Your "v-rating" of the community (see "Vegan-friendliness," above), or
something else indicating the status of veganism in the community
(g) Email address (for the vegan contact, not the community generally)
(h) Other info about your community that you'd like potential visitors or
members to know.
Here are two fictitious examples, the first bare bones, the second more
extensive (but still within 50 words):
If you live in a community in which you don't feel free to say how it is for you being vegan there -- if you cannot be open, frank, and balanced in what you say to people who inquire -- it's better not to list, to avoid misleading people.
If you are a vegan seeking to visit or live in community, get general information on a community you're interested in, either online (some communities have their own home pages) or from the Communities Directory. Contact the community's official contact person as well as the vegan contacts listed here; the latter is not a substitute for the former. Make a list of issues other than veganism that are important to you--child-rearing practices, forms of sexuality and partnership, spirituality, eco practices, air quality, conflict resolution, decision making, etc.--and ask about them. We also encourage you not to rule out even a visit to a not-so-vegan-friendly community if it embodies some of these other things important to you. Such a visit can enrich your life enough to be worth the dietary inconvenience.
Questions? Email Billy