All Blog Posts
In community, On the road – Dispatch #6a – Relearning We
Posted on April 16, 2019 by4 weeks and 6 communities later My first cross-country communities tour of the year ended with a 3 day training on Tools for Collective Self-Governance in Oakland, CA with the Nonprofit Democracy Network. I got to spend 3 days with a bunch of badass organizers working for awesome organizations trying to make the world a… Read More
Community, Land, Self: We’re Part of the Same Elephant
Posted on April 16, 2019 byEscaping to an ecotopian or intact natural world proves neither possible nor effective as a way to avoid the realities of human and planetary suffering. Instead, a communitarian receives lessons in interconnectedness that he will never forget.
How will your legacy strengthen community?
Posted on April 15, 2019 byLeave Your Legacy of Cooperation and Sustainability by Harvey Baker, President of the FIC Board of Directors We often think of the last day of the year as an important deadline for making contributions to our favorite charities. When thinking long term, no matter our age, we can plan any day of the year for… Read More
10 Keys to Collaborative Leadership
Posted on April 12, 2019 byBelow is an except from an article published by Round Sky Solutions (www.roundskysolutions.com/blog-10keys/). Shared with permission. 10 Keys to Collaborative Leadership 10 Learnings from the Collaborative Leadership Certification Program for healthy and generative leadership written by graduate, Erica Buswell. 1. Power dynamics exist within organizations and teams; it’s just a fact. Power can… Read More
Your Monthly Freebie: Permaville Handbook
Posted on April 9, 2019 byThe Permaville Handbook: Strategies of Permaculture Design By Brian Newhouse of Permaville.com This nearly 200-paged handbook provides an overview of permaculture’s principles, teaches some core permaculture techniques and practices, and provides direction and resources for connecting with people who share a passion for the work. If you want to live more closely in tune with nature,… Read More
Growing Together through Trauma, with the Land
Posted on April 9, 2019 byWhen La’akea Community’s stability is disrupted and its existence threatened by the aftermath of an earthquake, members discover that their land is a much larger source of “glue” to keep them together than they had thought.
Get ready for new logo and fresh look!
Posted on April 8, 2019 byYou asked and we listened. Thanks to over one hundred FIC supporters who responded to a recent branding survey, we have reimagined our look and created a new logo, name adaptation, and improved website to be released later this Spring. (Get ready!!!) It’s all part of our recent organizational transformation and a deepening of commitment… Read More
In community, On the road – Dispatch #5 – Los Angeles Eco-Village
Posted on April 5, 2019 byIt’s easier to recognize an intentional community when it’s rural. There’s simply less distraction and less interaction with the surrounding population. This has its pros and cons. The escapism and isolationism that was prevalent in the 60’s and 70’s came at a cost to the movement, there are undoubtedly levels of experimentation that being rural… Read More
A New Look for the Fellowship for Intentional Community
Posted on April 2, 2019 byA letter from the new Communications Director, Cynthia Tina In the face of global crises of unimaginable scales and complexity, our strength is found in simple local solutions. Weaving relationships and choosing to take action together defies rampant isolation in modern life. Social isolation is a human health epidemic. Community is the antidote. Intentional communities… Read More
How We Came to Inherit a Salmon Stream
Posted on March 30, 2019 byThe residents of Sahale Learning Center and EcoVillage welcome the salmon who swim from the Hood Canal up the Tahuya River each year to spawn.
🐥Spring Sale 30-60% off Books! 💦
Posted on March 29, 2019 byHello, April! Welcome, Spring! We are jumping into April with a major sale on many of our books. ** Discounts as high as 30% to 60% off ** See them all at our Bookstore Sales page.
Telling the Story of Communities
Posted on March 26, 2019 byTelling the Story of Communities: Vintage magazines as a snapshot in time For nearly 50 years, Communities magazine has been the primary source for inspiration, stories, and quality advice for living in intentional community. Our first issue printed in July 1972 as Communitas: A New Community Journal. Communities, Issue #1 followed that December as the… Read More
In Community, On the Road – Dispatch #4 – Jackson, MS
Posted on March 23, 2019 byI’m obsessed with relevance. I consider myself a global citizen with a shared responsibility to help make the world a better place. For me, intentional communities are not just an end in themselves. They’re also pre-figurative. They’re responses to a critical analysis of the problems in the world showing that something else is possible, while… Read More
Cross-Class Cooperation and Land Access
Posted on March 23, 2019 byIt is important to not only talk about the role class privilege plays in our movement, but also celebrate the ways that cross-class cooperation can be a form of much-needed solidarity.
Best Films for Inspiration🌱🌎🤸🏾♀️
Posted on March 19, 2019 byFrom urban cohousing to rural commune, journey throughout European ecovillages or bicycle across the United States. Get started on these documentary films today for the BEST inspiration on creating sustainable community. Voices of Cohousing: Building Small Villages in the City One of today’s biggest paradoxes is that half of the world’s population lives in urban… Read More
Events we love – We’ll be there, will you?
Posted on March 18, 2019 byFIC is a proud sponsor of a number of great events this year. We’re particularly looking forward to… Village Building Convergence – Portland, OR – May 31 – June 9 National Cohousing Conference – Portland, OR – June 1 – 2 International Communal Studies Association Conference – upstate New York – July 18 – 21… Read More
Video from Koinonia Farm
Posted on March 17, 2019 by
In Community, On the Road – Dispatch #3 – Koinonia Farm
Posted on March 16, 2019 by1 Comment
Koinonia Farm holds a special and largely unknown place in the intentional communities movement. Founded in 1942 near Americus, Georgia, the word Koinonia means fellowship or communion, or as it was interpreted by the founders of Koinonia Farm, community. In their words, “from the beginning, Koinonians emphasized the brotherhood and sisterhood of all people. When… Read More
The Dilemmas of Being a Benefactor: Creating a Community Land Trust
Posted on March 16, 2019 by1 Comment
CommonSpace CLT fulfills its founder’s dream of using her inheritance to create an affordable, not-for-profit example of diverse community on protected land in perpetuity.
Videos from Earthaven Ecovillage
Posted on March 15, 2019 by
Post a Review of Season I of Planet Community
Posted on March 15, 2019 by2 Comments
What did you think about this exploration of community? The web film adventure of Season 1 of Planet Community was possible thanks to the over $11,000 donated from 135 supporters, the cooperating communities, our filmmakers Aaron and Rae of Skillly Media, and co-producers Corneilu Rusu, Runchero University and Aron Heintz. Take a moment to post… Read More
Your Monthly Freebie: Localization of Happiness
Posted on March 11, 2019 byLocalization: Essential Steps to an Economics of Happiness By Helena Norberg-Hodge Edited by Steven Gorelick and Kristen Steele This month’s free resource comes from our friends at Local Futures, who work to renew ecological, social and spiritual well-being by promoting a systemic shift towards economic localization. “From jobs to finance, from food to climate, from education to… Read More
In Community, On the Road – Dispatch #2 – Earthaven Ecovillage
Posted on March 9, 2019 byI last visited Earthaven Ecovillage in 2001, when I came down with some other Twin Oakers for an FIC Art of Community conference. I was this fresh faced 20 year old communitarian, and it was my first substantial point of contact with the FIC, visiting a community that at the time was only 7 years… Read More
Land Speaking through the People: The Great Work of Our Times
Posted on March 9, 2019 byThrough Community Land Trusts, we can reimagine and experience anew our relationship with the land as communities of place-based people.
In Community, On the Road – Dispatch #1 – The Journey Begins
Posted on March 8, 2019 by2 Comments
On March 1st I left my home of Twin Oaks Community and hit the road. I’ve been the Executive Director of the FIC for over 3 years now, and while Twin Oaks has been remarkably supportive and conducive in many ways, it’s also been limiting. I’m heading out to be an agent at large for… Read More
Top 5 Guides to Get You Started
Posted on February 27, 2019 bySpring is near and, if you’re like me, anticipation & ideas for new projects begin fluttering around our brains waiting for the right moment to leap into action. Sometimes it is simply starting seeds. Other times we want to organize our communities for dialogue, discussion and understanding. But do we know how to get started?… Read More
Review: Farming While Black
Posted on February 26, 2019 byThis book is written for young Black, Brown, and Latinx people with dreams of farming, but it is also a gift to all of us who care about farming, equality, and justice.
4 Building Blocks of Community
Posted on February 25, 2019 byStart a Village “If you don’t like the way things are, Start a Village!” This was the essential message that Stephen Brooks delivered at his enthusiastic TEDx talk at Black Rock City. What does a guy at Burning Man know about community? Stephen shares inspiration through his travels, studies of permaculture, and teaching, how he… Read More
Black Land Matters: An Interview with Leah Penniman of Soul Fire Farm
Posted on February 24, 2019 byHeadquartered on a community farm, a nonprofit, people-of-color-led organization works to dismantle racism in the food system by increasing farmland stewardship by people of color, promoting equity in food access, and training the next generation of activist farmers.
