Brick building with white upper section and multiple windows, surrounded by greenery.

Bower House

  • Communities

About the Communities

  • Established
  • Social
  • Urban

Founding year

  • 1971

What we do

Bower is a co-op house that feels like a home! While it’s close enough to MSU’s campus to walk or ride a bike to class, it’s far enough away from the hustle and bustle of a college town. We’re a vegetarian based co-op with a meal plan including vegetarian/vegan dinners 5 days a week. We love to play video games, have open mic nights, play with our cats, and have potlucks every Thursday. At 19 members, Bower is a little smaller than some of the more popular houses, but we still love to bond and have fun together as housemates. We work hard to be sustainable and environmentally friendly by having our own compost and garden, and by recycling! Bower is a great place to meet people and get adjusted to the East Lansing area! If you want to live in a place with a diverse group of caring, open minded people, Bower is the place to be!

Our Mission

Live cooperatively

  • Purpose
  • Social
  • Community type
  • Student Co-op
  • Sustainability practices
  • Waste reduction / composting
  • Activities
  • Education
  • Experiences
  • Networking

Commemorative dates

  • January 1, 1971
  • Started planning
  • January 1, 1971
  • Started living together

Gallery

  • 19 Total members
  • Open to new members
  • Open to visitors
Total
19

How to join

Submit the application on http://www.msu.coop/apply/
Tour houses virtually on our website.
Once accepted, contact Membership Officers of the houses you’re interested in touring!
Tour the houses you’re interested in.
Go to a house dinner AND a house meeting at the houses you like.
Wait to hear from the house’s Membership Officer about the status of your approval.
If approved by a house, make an appointment with MSU SHC office to sign a contract for your favorite one!
Voila! You are a member-owner of the MSU SHC!

Basic expectations or agreements for members

Visitors for a tour or shared dinner are welcome any time. Visitors wishing to stay overnight or wishing to be in the house unaccompanied need to contact the community at least one week in advance (preferably two) and ask if they may stay as a guest. Overnight guests are limited to a few nights. If the house cannot be reached directly, the co-op’s business office can very helpful in opening lines of communication. Go to Bower’s house page and email the membership officer.

Primary decision-making authority

  • Small Leadership Group

A few people (not elected by the broader community) make the major decisions.

Decision-making process

  • Leadership Decides

A single person, couple, or small group makes most major decisions.

Governance structure

  • Founder/Leader-led

Primary authority rests with the community’s founder(s) or designated leader(s).

Economic model

  • Partial Income-Sharing

Members contribute a percentage of income to community funds.

Economic scenarios for this community

  • There is a one-time fee, investment, or share purchase to join the community separate from accessing housing
  • Members need to pay fees, dues, or similar to live there on a per month or per year basis
  • There is a labor obligation

Additional economic information

Join fee: $405
Regular fees: Yes
Labor: Yes (2 hrs/week)

Shared resources and amenities that are accessible to everyone in the community

Garden(s), Internet

Frequency of communal meals

  • 2-5 times per week

Community activities and engagement

  • School, Educational Institute or Experience
  • Organization, Resource, or Network
  • Festivals, Conferences, Events

Substance use culture

  • Substance use is frequent and public in the community
  • Substance use appears in public spaces but no pressure

Age demographics

  • Mixed adults (few or no children)

Guest Book

Written reviews are available for plus members. Click here to upgrade.

Location

  • Michigan, United States

Bower House

Needs and Offers

Connecting people and communities through an intentional online marketplace

  • Promoted
  • Events
2 days ago

Coastal Regeneration Immersion: Permaculture Design Certification in Jalisco, Mexico

Tropical Dry Forest Permaculture Design & Regenerative Stewardship Certification (PDC)12-Day Intensive | 120 Hours | Costalegre, Jalisco, Mexico APPLY AT XOCHIRAIZ.COM Join us for an immersive Permaculture Design Certificate course set in the tropical dry forest bioregion of coastal Jalisco. This 120-hour intensive blends internationally recognized PDC curriculum with hands-on regenerative practice — combining ecological design, agroforestry, natural building, and community stewardship into one integrated learning experience. Lead Faculty Jorge Luis Gtz. Olarte (Arborescencia RedGenerativa) – Regenerative Design, Soil Biology & Agroforestry Ozzy Lusth (Survior & Xochiraíz) – Wilderness Resilience & Survival Skills Dave Collins (Capacha Coastal Conservation Center) – Bioarchitecture & Ecological Development What You’ll LearnThe course moves through six progressive phases: Permaculture & Ecological Literacy – ethics, principles, and reading the tropical dry forest landscape Water & Soil Systems – keyline design, water harvesting, living soils, and compost systems Horticulture – food garden design, propagation, and biological pest control Regenerative Food Systems – tropical agroforestry, food forest design, and guild planting Ecological Infrastructure – bamboo bioarchitecture, bioclimatic farm design, compost toilets, greywater, and rocket stoves Integrated Design Studio – team-based final design projects covering watershed strategy, agroforestry, food forest layout, infrastructure, and phased implementation Daily RhythmMornings begin with optional surf/yoga and journaling, followed by field practicums and hands-on workshops. Afternoons include design studio and construction lab work, with reflection circles, communal dinners, and evening talks, films, or campfire discussions rounding out the day. Final ProjectParticipants work in teams to produce a full regenerative design package — landscape analysis, water plan, agroforestry design, food forest plan, ecological infrastructure, and bioclimatic farm plan — presented to a faculty review panel on the final day, followed by a closing ceremony, certificate delivery, and community feast. CertificationGraduates receive the Tropical Dry Forest Permaculture Design & Regenerative Stewardship Certification (120 contact hours), hosted by Capacha Coastal Conservation Center and Tierralegre, A.C. Curriculum integrates international PDC standards with tropical ecology, agroforestry, ecological restoration, bamboo bioarchitecture, bioclimatic design, GIS/photogrammetry, and regenerative leadership. Highlights Hands-on bamboo construction (temazcal, bathhouses, sculpture) Tropical dry forest silviculture practicum Community mapping and design project for Ekoa Green Community Talent show and sea turtle release
January 10, 2027 00:00 – January 24, 2027 23:59
  • Promoted
Offer
  • Events
4 weeks ago

Healing Love Healing Money: Trust As The Foundation For A New Culture

Money, love and power are among the hardest things any community works with, and many of us carry the same fears into both: not having enough, losing what we have, and the sense that if someone else gets money or love, we won’t. Healing Love, Healing Money: Trust as the Foundation for a New Culture is taught by two intentional communities. Karen McAllister and Duncan Cryle are from Clear Sky Meditation and Retreat Center, a Buddhist-lineage community in the BC Rockies. Monika Alleweldt and Benjamin von Mendelssohn from Tamera Healing Biotope, a community of about 160 people in southern Portugal that has spent decades studying love, trust and relationship. Clear Sky has spent years working on its relationship with money, and our two communities found surprising parallels in the fears beneath both. Over four sessions we explore the roots of fear around money and belonging, love, possession and power, trust as infrastructure (community as a container for healing), and ethical livelihood. We use short meditations, body-based practices, reflection and small-group conversation. You do not need to be in a romantic relationship or live in community. When: October 27, Nov 3, 10, 17. All four sessions: 12–2pm Vancouver, 1–3pm Alberta, 7–9pm UK and Portugal, 8–10pm Central Europe. Note: US and some Canadian provinces change clocks on November 1, so the US west coast is 12–2pm on October 27, then 11am–1pm for the remaining sessions, and Eastern is 3–5pm on October 27, then 2–4pm for the rest. Cost: sliding scale Details and registration: https://www.clearskycenter.org/event/healing-love-healing-money-online/  
October 27, 2026 13:00 – November 17, 2026 15:00

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