Directories / listings / networks of intentional communities, eco-villages etc. |
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Camphill England & Wales | network of communities for people with learning disabilities and special needs |
The Camphill Movement | international directory |
Diggers & Dreamers | UK listing – this site is all you need for the UK |
Eurotopia | catalogue of communities in Europe |
Federation of Egalitarian Communities | network of intentional communities in North America |
Global Eco-village Network | global federation of ecological communities |
Global Ecovillage Network Europe | list of sustainable settlements / initiatives in Europe |
Intentional Communities | listing of US and international communities, plus ‘Communities’ magazine |
Communes & land-based collectives – general information |
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Umbrella term seems to be intentional community, but also ecovillage, land co-op, commune (bit dated now, but it’s what they are, really) | |
Daily Mail (yes, really) | article: inside America’s oldest hippie commune |
D&D FAQ | things to consider if you’re thinking of joining a community |
The Ecovillage Movement | paper on the potential for ecovillages |
FIC | how to visit an intentional community |
The Independent | good article about Lammas and new communites’ potential for offering a viable alternative to the rat race |
International Communal Studies Association | research, documentation and international conferences on communal living – past & present, academic & practial |
International Communes Desk | networking / communication group started in 1976 in Tel Aviv – publish the CALL newsletter |
Kibbutzim Site | information about volunteering on kibbutzim in Israel |
Living Village Trust | environmentally-friendly developers |
New York Times | article about a new wave of young professionals flocking to communes in San Francisco |
Redfield Community | where Lowimpact.org was born |
What is an Ecovillage? | paper outlining the historical attempts to define the concept |
Wikipedia | entry for ecovillage |
Wikipedia | entry for intentional community |
WWOOF | go and visit and work on communities via WWOOF |
Starting communities |
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including new-build and working with / challenging the planning system | |
Asset Transfer Unit | supports the transfer of land and buildings from public bodies to community and voluntary organisations |
Ecological Land Co-op | ground-breaking group in Devon, trying to change the planning system to allow new-build communities in England |
FEC | starting a community – step-by-step guide |
Lammas Group | ground-breaking group in Wales, instrumental in challenging the planning system to allow new-build communities |
Consensus decision-making & conflict resolution |
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Living closely together, it’s very important to have a clear decision-making process and a way of resolving conflicts | |
People links | see our ‘personal & interpersonal’ links page for links on conflict resolution and consensus |
Communal living in history |
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The Diggers | agrarian collective led by Gerard Winstanley in the 17th century |
Ejido | communal agricultural based on an Aztec system, and re-introduced as a constitutional right (but scrapped by NAFTA) in Mexico in the 20th century |
The Essenes | the first (intentional) communards? 2nd century BC next to the Dead Sea |
FIC Communities Wiki | list of historical communities |
Fourier, Charles | 19th century French philosopher with quite intricate ideas about communal living; started communities in the US, including Utopia, Ohio |
International Communal Studies Association | research, documentation and international conferences on communal living – past & present, academic & practial |
Owen, Robert | started utopian communities in Scotland and the US in the 19th century |
The Shakers | religious group who lived communally in North America in the 18th and early 19th centuries |
Ujamaa | communal agricultural system introduced by Julius Nyerere in Tanzania in the 1960s; the World Bank refused loans until it was disestablished from the state |
Wikipedia | list of American utopian communities from the 19th century |
Religious communes |
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Amish | simple-living Christian communities in North America |
Ashrams | Hindu spiritual communities |
Bruderhof | international network of Christian communities |
Hutterites | over 40,000 people in around 500 ‘colonies’, mainly in North America |
Mennonites | 1.7 million strong Christian sect that can be found in tight-knit communities in 82 countries |
Monasteries | Buddhist or Christian spiritual communities |