Governance + Group Dynamics
Combating Racism, One Community at a Time
Posted on March 26, 2018 by1 Comment
Catholic Worker communities throughout the Midwest examine themselves, make changes, and reach out in an effort to overcome the insidious influences of white supremacy.
Class, Race, and Privilege in Intentional Community
Posted on March 24, 2018 byA co-owner of Heart-Culture Farm Community explores ways to use her privilege to help create a society where people are truly equal.
I’m Not a Racist, But Racism Is In Me—and in My Community
Posted on March 22, 2018 byPredominantly white communities are going to stay that way until they acknowledge and address racism. Here is some guidance for doing that.
Reflections on Class from a Newbie at Rocky Hill Cohousing
Posted on March 20, 2018 by2 Comments
A cohousing project’s budget can help address class and classism—but the community also needs to articulate and explore its culture’s underlying or hidden rules.
White Bias, Black Lives: When Unconscious Bias Affects Your Community
Posted on March 18, 2018 byMembers of Sunward Cohousing recognize and attempt to transform their community’s differential treatment of white-skinned and dark-skinned neighborhood children.
Moving Beyond Diversity Towards Collective Liberation: Weaving the Communities Movement into Intersectional Justice Struggles
Posted on March 8, 2018 byThe co-organizer of the People of Color Sustainable Housing Network shares strategies for deepening your community’s work on issues of race, class, and privilege.
Consensus: Learning to think and act cooperatively – The Community Builders Forum – Webinar #2
Posted on September 13, 2017 by2 Comments
In the second addition of The Community Builders Forum, the FIC’s new webinar series for members, Laird Schaub takes us through what makes consensus work. Members can participate in these webinars live. For more info on becoming an FIC member, click here. For most people consensus is an unnatural act. It calls for participants to… Read More
Participatory Budgeting in an Income-Sharing Community
Posted on June 11, 2017 by1 Comment
How does one share income and expenses among a hundred people? Twin Oaks discovers how to supplant apathy with widespread engagement.
This Novel Explores A Tuscon Community’s Response To Climate Change
Posted on April 10, 2017 byA new novel by Susan Feathers, called Threshold, explores one community’s response to climate change. Inspired by her experiences with the Building Resilient Neighborhoods program in Tuscon, Arizona, Threshold combines interlocking plot-lines with the latest scientific research to bring the concept of community resiliency to life. You can purchase the book online or read an… Read More
Race, Class, Gender and Climate Change: An Excerpt From Together Resilient by Ma’ikwe Ludwig
Posted on March 6, 2017 byThis post is an excerpt from Together Resilient: Building Community in the Age of Climate Disruption by Ma’ikwe Ludwig, published by The Foundation for Intentional Community. Visit our fundraising campaign to learn how you can support the publication of the book and get yourself a copy! **** Climate change is deeply intertwined with race, class and gender. I’d like to focus… Read More
The Cool Block Program Helps Neighbors Work Together to Fight Climate Change
Posted on February 16, 2017 byWhen we hear the words “intentional community,” we may think of residential communities like back-to-the-land communes and urban housing co-ops. But you don’t have to live in the same house to have a shared vision and make an impact. A non-profit called Cool Block brings entire neighborhoods together to support each other and build community over… Read More
An App Called Teem Helps You Delegate Tasks Within Your Community
Posted on January 30, 2017 byOne of the challenges of living in a community with lots of new residents or guests is getting everyone oriented to the tasks and projects at hand. When I lived at Foster Village, a 10-person community in Portland, Oregon, we had a membership committee in charge of welcoming new residents, and a liaison assigned to… Read More
Public vs. Private: Group Dilemma Laid Bare!
Posted on January 11, 2017 by1 Comment
For some neighbors, the logical leap from “glimpse of skin” to “nudist colony” is a surprisingly short one to make.
Five Tools to Help Groups Thrive
Posted on December 21, 2016 byA clearly articulated evolutionary purpose, a welcoming of the whole self, and governance through self-management are keys to collective success.
Digital Security For Your Intentional Community
Posted on December 19, 2016 byFor some high-profile communities, visibility is a good thing. The Dancing Rabbit ecovillage in Rutledge, Missouri, depends on workshops and other business endeavors to support itself. Many communities maintain a social media presence as a way to attract new members and promote co-operative living on a global scale. But some communities have good reason for wanting to… Read More
This Year, We’ll Need Community More Than Ever
Posted on December 15, 2016 byI woke up on Election Day ready to get the whole thing over with. My life was already in a state of transition: the eco-village I’d lived in for two years was on the of cusp of disbanding. The new collective house I was moving into into had a lot of things to get in order:… Read More
How Homeowners Can Be More Intentional Landlords
Posted on December 5, 2016 byNext month, I’ll be moving into a house owned by a “community landlord.” Rather than simply renting out rooms in the house, the homeowner (who no longer lives on the property), specifically sought out a group of people who wanted to build community there. Three of us will be the primary tenants who set the vision and… Read More
The Class Cultures Toolkit Can Help You Host More Inclusive Meetings and Events
Posted on December 1, 2016 byTalking about class can be difficult – especially in intentional communities that include people from a variety of backgrounds. It can be a challenge to balance the needs of members from different classes: residents with stable jobs and incomes; property owners; activists who choose to live frugally; those with families to support. Some concerns –… Read More
How Does Your Community Create Space for Romantic Partnerships?
Posted on October 31, 2016 byIn the popular imagination, intentional communities have a reputation for being free-for-alls when it comes to love and relationships. But in reality, that’s rarely the case, and many communities have guiding principles around how members are expected to relate to each other romantically. Gender dynamics, power imbalances, and more, can all come into play when living… Read More
These Tools Can Help Your Community Make Better Decisions
Posted on October 6, 2016 by1 Comment
One of the biggest hurdles an intentional community can face is figuring out how to make decisions. There are dozens of decision-making strategies to choose from, from consensus to sociocracy. But in today’s busy world, simply gathering around the table together as a community can be a challenge. At my community, meeting attendance takes a dive during the… Read More
A New Game Called “Rise Up” Explores Cooperative Social Movements
Posted on September 26, 2016 byThe Toolbox for Education and Social Action (TESA) is launching a Kickstarter for a new board game on September 27th. Called “Rise Up: The Game of People and Power,” the game is a great way to spend time with friends, while exploring social movements and learning to cooperate to achieve shared objectives. According to TESA, “The game weaves… Read More
This Women-Only Village In Kenya Is Challenging Traditional Gender Roles
Posted on September 22, 2016 byFor over 20 years, a small community in Kenya has been embarking on a rare experiment: a community without men, where women are the homeowners and breadwinners. Around 50 women and 200 children live in Umoja, a small village several hundred miles north of Nairobi, in the dry grasslands of the Samburu region. According to… Read More
This Alaska Community Took Its Own Approach To Treating Mental Illness
Posted on August 15, 2016 by1 Comment
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
A New Movie Tells The Story of A Danish Couple As They Start An Intentional Community
Posted on July 28, 2016 byA new movie called “The Commune” follows Erik and Anna, a Danish couple living in Copenhagen in the 1970s, as they invite an assortment of friends and acquaintances to move into a home they inherited: “We should live with fantastic people, shouldn’t we?” Anna asks her husband. He agrees to try it out, and they… Read More
How This French Philosopher Inspired An Early Version of Cohousing
Posted on July 23, 2016 by1 Comment
Although not as famous as some of his contemporaries, the French thinker Charles Fourier was one of the early visionaries of the intentional community movement. A utopian socialist, he proposed that society should be organized into Phalansteres, or “grand hotels,” each housing several hundred to several thousand people. At the peak of his popularity, he… Read More
Case Study: How One Community Handles Maintenance Expenses
Posted on July 14, 2016 byHere at Foster Village, my community in SE Portland, we share access to three houses on adjoining plots of land. Although we have plans for collective ownership, for now the houses are owned individually, but most of our expenses are shared. This means we have to think creatively about maintenance agreements. Each member contributes an… Read More
Moving Through Times of Transition
Posted on May 23, 2016 byWhat is it that keeps a community’s identity consistent over time? Is it the people? The place? The culture? Here at Foster Village in Portland, OR, we’ve had around a 50% turnover rate over the past year. Some long-term residents have moved on to live in rural communities. Some recent arrivals decided that the level… Read More
Common Fire’s Top Ten Hard-Earned Tips for Community Success
Posted on April 11, 2016 by1 Comment
The sometimes triumphant, sometimes traumatic experiences of the three Common Fire communities yield wisdom relevant to anyone working to create a community.
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.
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.
