Issue 172


Happiness in Communal Life: A Scientific Project

Posted on November 1, 2016 by

Statistics don’t lie: communal living seems to help people be happier.



Grassroots Activism Starts at Home

Posted on October 11, 2016 by

At the RareBirds Housing Co-operative, community life and outside activism deepen and strengthen each other.


Not the Last of the Mohicans: Honoring Our Native Predecessors on the Land

Posted on September 30, 2016 by
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How can we do right by the native peoples whose ancestral homelands now host our intentional communities?


Coming of Age in Service Community

Posted on September 21, 2016 by
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Growing up in a community with a strong commitment to changing the world can be both enlivening and challenging.


Activism and Service at Black Bulga Community: Inspiring, Nurturing, Challenging, and Not All Hard Work

Posted on September 11, 2016 by

At Black Bulga, the experience of community provides vital support for members to be effective change agents in the wider world.


The Gesundheit! Institute: A 45 Year-Old Communal Hospital Experiment

Posted on September 1, 2016 by

In a decades-long project with worldwide reach, medicine, humor, and community become vehicles for social change.


Innisfree Village: Lifesharing in a Service Community

Posted on August 24, 2016 by

Adults with disabilities and residential caregiver volunteers share the challenges and joys of community life at Innisfree.


Service and Activism, #172 Contents

Posted on August 18, 2016 by

Our Fall issue explores Service and Activism in intentional communities. Authors share their stories of living and working in both service- and activist-oriented groups, including Camphill communities, Innisfree Village, Gesundheit!, Konohana Family, Magic, Black Bulga, and more. How do service and activism build community, both within a group and in the larger world? How can communitarians contribute to the well-being of the planet and its people? We also explore how long-standing, mission-focused communities—including Harbin Hot Springs, ZEGG, and EcoVillage at Ithaca—have evolved over time, and the latest research about happiness in community.