B M K : “W c i D ?” ill c iBBen hat an o Life in Cooperative Culture Spring 2017 • Issue #174 COMMUNITIES and CLIMATE CHANGE Paying for Our Carbon Meal Climate Crisis, Dystopia, and Community Lessons from Dancing Rabbit, ZEGG, Living Energy Farm, Heart-Culture, Ridgewood Ranch, and more Soil, Permaculture, Biochar, and Energy Democracy New Culture is Everywhere! You’ve probably heard of Network For a New Culture’s (NFNC’s) Summer Camps (www.nfnc.org/sc)... but we’re so much more! Fall camps  Winter camp  Spring camp  Intentional Communities  Intentional Village Upcoming Camps: NCNW Cascadia: July 1-8, So. WA CFNC East Coast: July 7-16, W. VA NFNC West: July 28-Aug 13, So. OR Allegheny Crest Intentional Villag e Mount Storm (swwcuaowhrnrmi wdloe mWu. sccnoufoedncnn ici niawnt.ygule e scccal)hcrtr ieapen o an ragmWotg eavweesise.di t nsh ewvT te reathaowhlniallnse. ud ng m n bNed sbeaeeg :esowWrsmrrwuenivo s ske lidbw anCti fsnaeuotgtuh idirnr aonlst, tih maa ounq reo ubfrsuop e rifihepnlnoa isatlieg tslyype klio r ,lt tince ilphspvgltovsletieeeoemiy,t ,r namnle siebjnaloxdoieis zlnpynet m.ahfeearute rbsillio ,ee, n anrs,snceedx , e eafsnfe,d co tirniviseeing w thaatstyi o o nf slWi,v iensgt. Virgini a NCSeTaSowhsuuuHc nCCratdsfehooduedaliademyxrlinpty aur pOtu ie nmSminlFcrmreo t aeWspu,otr l oahtbelaNnea nce eMnmissoryta dhubyb2 rilan , ,ites e mcn2hnrMtia hC0ag2wduu1aii9at nn6c etosnm—yihatsngCe tb pofeapiuf.lm iniRttnhyp!e t,We gois si Gue soa ptouw r3prargo ½otpirero ko dta n wtrat oe oyeW l pcrat ioetefnionnnodrntsn w c cesAraachiutrmtiid gpcd p uaIefn lrs weetts peeoi1tlndc,hy itio, a inwbomlf nuooa, i:nar clklnddr se c htnaroitwbep.e us,, s C ONTACT US: aH-c- -oi -Lv -L -nCi @-Sif -Df e-leLo eeEc Ssi eAc ovnaftiuaninyeruutasd cr r cttl tces.e sooauc oip irtniLhmdssmnyrooaheeam vmn min b opegeuiufy lie u 3ninc n t r0io y ii c s ttP4 mhiaya e- ti8tmpiaio 2vcun5ee n - 3i t 5yC 5 u 5r i o -s-h -i -T tt-P -Sytr -E o-pRak -Rff Pwn a:iBa /lCee dls/eCed-coparsiirositcn cnhac iosam ivgarsa vhn leeel r .pa r“acni fnenaarraflct iesnctgsgn y pCtesccrgiio d.hvuo ounioolw nsstsmimutcihbreei” l i t y Visit www.new-culture.org for a list of all NFNC related organizations and events. at Earthaven Ecovillage | Black Mountain, NC 2nd Bi-Annual CONFERENCE TOPICS, FEATURES & HIGHLIGHTS: Restorative Culture Restorative Circles Restorative Economics Non-Violent Communication • • Financial Co-Repsonsibility Open Space Technology Practice & Application • • Conference Daily Meditation • Farm-to-Table Meals • Unplug & Connect with Nature Pre- and Post-Conference Intensives for a Deeper Dive June 2-4 PRE- AND POST-CONFERENCE INTENSIVES: THURSDAY MONDAY June 1 @ 1-4pm June 5 @ 1-4pm 2017 SPACE IS LIMITED! 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Event Brought to You By: Culture’s Edge REGISTRATION NOW OPEN: culturesedge.net | (828) 669-1965 Spring 2017 Communities 1 Issue #174 • Spring 2017 s 12 16 e i COMMUNITIES AND t CLIMATE CHANGE 10 i The Question I Get Asked the Most Bill McKibben “What can I do?” It’s the right question—almost. n 12 Living Energy Farm: An Answer for Climate Change Alexis Zeigler A fossil-fuel-free community empowers its members to dramatically reduce their dependence on the corporate economy. u 16 Limiting the Damage of Climate Change: Lessons from Dancing Rabbit Ma’ikwe Ludwig Committed communitarians cut their carbon emissions to around 10 percent of the American average. m 22 Soil, Communities, and Climate Change: An Interview with Nikki Silvestri Chris Roth As a climate solutions advocate explains, carbon is not a bad thing; it’s just in the wrong places right now. m 25 Addressing Climate Change: Two Generations at Heart-Culture Farm Community Kara Huntermoon For the next generation, planting trees, growing food, and living in community are only the start. 28 Permaculture, Community, and Climate Change o Tom Henfrey Community-led action, with permaculture as a key tool, is the basis for many of the most innovative and effective responses to climate change. 30 Ridgewood Ranch: A Mecca For Adaptive Community Steve Hellman and Daniel Spiro C Numerous projects on a community’s 5,000 acres contribute to climate-adaptive land stewardship. 34 Variations on a Theme: Low-Carbon Communities of All Sorts Ma’ikwe Ludwig Three innovative non-residential groups use community as a tool to address climate change. 2 Communities Number 174 30 44 58 36 Hurricane Lunch: Global Warming Affects Island Nations Philip Mirkin 4 Letters A community in Fiji responds to a category one hurricane— a taste of events yet to come. 6 Publisher’s Note No Hope? 38 Local Solutions to Global Warming: Sky Blue Paying for Our Carbon Meal The situation may appear Daniel Greenberg hopeless, but what we do together can transform the world. Compared to carbon offsetting, carbon onsetting may be a more effective strategy to build sustainability. 8 Notes from the Editor 41 Climate Crisis, Dystopia, Intentional Electricity: and Community The Challenges and Rewards of Community Power Chris Roth Woody Hastings From the personal to the global, In Community Choice Energy agencies, we are witnessing the emergence with hard times undeniable, of Energy Democracy. community may be our life-support. 44 The Carrot in Front of Our Nose: Lessons from ZEGG 64 Reach Tobias Bayr 76 Review Life in an ecovillage demonstrates that less can be more. Permaculture and Climate 46 Change Adaptation Communities and Zero Population Growth Amelia L. Williams Arty Kopecky A new book offers grassroots Cooperative culture helps us evolve beyond the nuclear family toward strategies for responding to conscious kinship and reconnection with the land. climate change. 48 Preparing for the Human Challenges of Climate Change Sara Donna ON THE COVER Deteriorating social and environmental conditions require both spiritual preparation and practical steps. 51 Twenty Principles of Ecoresilience: Personal and Cultural Adaptation to a Changed Planet Linda Buzzell and Craig Chalquist How do we strengthen communities as climate change intensifies? 54 Affordable, Developer-Driven Ecovillages: Meeting an Unmet Need Mac Maguire A replicable ecovillage model is our best hope for achieving essential, global-scale changes. Students in the fall 2016 Holistic Sustainability Semester at Lost Valley Education and Event • Neighborly Questions and Critiques Center (Dexter, Oregon) learn how to craft a biochar stove—a practical, fuel-efficient, multi- 58 Wurruk’an: An Experimental Intentional Community purpose tool to combat climate change, capable Bill Metcalf of cooking or heating water while producing a carbon-sequestering soil amendment that A book on “life beyond industrial civilisation” inspires the creation replenishes and retains soil nutrients and of an ecovillage. enhances plant health. Photo by Jesse Hickman. Spring 2017 Communities 3 C Letters ommunities Life in Cooperative Culture EDITOR Chris Roth (Lost Valley/Meadowsong) ART DIRECTOR Yulia Zarubina-Brill AChDrVisEtRopTIhSeIrN KGin AdNigD ( EBaUrtShI-NTrEibSeS. oMrgA)NAGER ReturninBg farocmk Bty Eh thtaen o HVughi ersLtuiafl eto: t h e Real WEB SUPPORT Pavan Rikhi (Acorn) CMKSSSAKkaOiiIDmmcRyuCCM ClB uIKSOUAIlncNaufLLhen-eI AHeM Sn P(TieTeTdoIEwaRyOrtDr tAi(tNenIRsTAr eI OM( VdSTaEwA UkE iNSsaPn)UrAP tOhPGOa PEFRkaORTsr)RmTs) 1r4tehbm “ ate IbAat woe s baawns vhochc ml ae eoeookfetCata t uhf nn enswets hpmoporved IrntoadIeisoMhe emlene t eo frdswrhrnhelrit , mutcyory t fhra dehamFhsIultsa tvhupPvostts ihteeft tielwn o aepnrneinme wroa1iaie romo.nn gnyr iooid r i s3srthnesfs1 iSa tSrtagutmuni .eln ym ri elgot9 e h ilatmla atIlocstgnteedsacrt9hfnielcveah,us i s ta h lo 9omeegirl ttthteha ftlsth-o rl sscmrd sreoht wei afa trpaIc gie muaorira aeveiio ncpntt oee rnebsn d ecab eluaseemetnduisam ottedeyhn sd i trtdssomotrtutcueev os oei eoe dorat dllas migatrsrria ryanrnnlgss,,d aividn ei rd i emnsm ecvdepupt te sritnb uet e n ennoaioidusl3ShyCi uivt s anoeefln g n oitct ecea hrye,0atrtd go,uo re aatr hv o ieoa..twa uhn tenn r ntde t ehtmnod-omSereynrmneeh r cfeegtyx nrus ct r eeis( tdabe heeompeyseeedphl cwuhit rreimaas e-olctdheeenows,sfo.gafnar ah nrcaaa,te eieinreymhd hIesenmrknerard ws nd a.iryn ce!f obole y woi”twt-iaa y ontHcor n,fl easncfo,hrspyea uIra ol -d)thdttea esssw rarlohoer,rm w,a shqaodd tid an,w negannrueiu . nmooIil p lce Iia oefndyrhr i I gs elnr-ngrsne2er.nnhals eboehh e,oa tdf tos, c sa ue dt0iort tidw tah aacl1 goajioohm esulayenmh ean aatnc uaet1nra bdaddanesc d d rs tlespyhdendhoid ht 0 de e vpteeewcesm a wtfirchsjind a nabproroolin ooetafn ocvaso ne d hhf-( ngudtsreima vied lcf eobao n.ndearpsIenitta drtwis eua nhg-s oTh vjyhsaie mslrssossIdie aia n. tnteahstee nt y rwoto hhyd dwh. eSneegeg fr oo, a Pes do ai,y g wauly gubucaasm a roson ahl otooiac tlcctfgk a stennk ur srsTprots eo loe dsiruidae eiohfsiLa dnb- ntrtrd shfatoeeief-reg; dieemineta ito t l erlt dr abadhent oIyumie Lnb hem a.octtcnn ,stm sIedhli taeosyu hAatisus ct e,dltp/eao rera two eelp t vovt a wmlAcc ia thv aPpsrpee aaraiatciolete lce eegrlu helniuhihlii tn tanfela bgetlhtoha yaekesupi ais ashyoe,c tcnu annatt m ptwte lrra -egtathmeah ioo iaene nset frhasntaehwaena am,erf,hfakdnt ctgn t keua yhen t eehe aessyMMtserloh tme ne s niue,bh,r i u tva o)or mi bdmhazceoaaoateu r.fiiueeonn ta ds clspswds hraiog rmrtels on Hsoaoan hmtetee,ifeoaorsn goc huipate- iifty(trmt s touo gnree tsdu usno ologt wranhtor tttnrsu u-uh ioo neehtiev.fehgemiuTso rfeffctrdeI e,t.au u l rs rsuehm , m osnen sa b klmopscnttA ucmwndbcedeai operouhoclceatallehye arl led ieohdln,rrtIheaemp yeoan )pune,gn cnseiv u ng,r aroaetcw nonaacesg nnmiieeit cWn,a ifcsnelneairrt cd u ltnonapcdhtecgsahl otiryleltit fnt rh gev,tne nvhieurcdt. -ihu oeadtn haovi,yhgofoeein,I gurpnnasomer rnler et r eigt’ome dlaanteno esowe c oa hpgcl ehbf jiiilpsatgctyeaute rrosRcoe,yanisosiic u r rngseosnp n asl-Nnteottoceuisyecgatvocefc on, enuooc ossmj .ociae sooma vemeopee-niiismitun.fnienlnmcIe nlch stba oet sC,tdC ac ecntsebh e.sinbtppntrp i ,ot hrloehoueIiydaahli oeuilnly ne1aptruiaoret awietev u .atetr6 tnsphustechicfircol ,er 5onavuore ryeaewc Torebtresinsglnlu h torst l-aoy eelV .e hescPsoe tif slif :coien,ct rc ify e eosec aulaet ovcameaWseen neeruy lgc ec it w,s -fte ee-ioteansrhn rs lsaal kto, t en ennrd - Ethan Hughes EDITORIAL REVIEW BOARD Dear Readers: We recently discovered to our distress that due to a website malfunction, Marty Klaif (Shannon Farm) all messages sent through our “Contact Communities Magazine” online form had been Parke Burgess entering a virtual black hole rather than reaching any of us, for a period of at least two Valerie Renwick (Twin Oaks) years. (!) (Or perhaps %@#&*%! says it better.) We have attempted to contact all those who tried to contact us. Among the messages we missed the first time around are the following two letters, which we share with you now: Communities (ISSN 0199-9346) is published quarterly by the Fellowship for Intentional Community at 23 Danc- ing Rabbit Ln. Rutledge MO 63563. Postmaster: Send Technology and Disability address changes to Communities, 138 Twin Oak Rd, Louisa VA 23093. Index in the Alternative Press Index. I really really enjoyed the Winter 2014 issue about technology in community [#165]. It came at a time when I was going through a lot of upheaval in life, and reevaluating the level of simplicity SUBSCRIPTIONS: $25 US, $35 outside US for four issues and sanctuary that I have in my small city life, as well as the lives of those I am in community with. via periodical/surface mail. Single copies are $7 US, However, I didn’t notice anything in that issue at all about technology in regards to living with $9 outside US. All payments in US dollars. Available from Communities, 138 Twin Oaks Rd, Louisa VA 23093; disabilities. One of the biggest concerns I have heard about advocating for low-tech lifestyle choices [email protected]; 800-462-8240; ic.org/subscribe. is that it really excludes people for whom their autonomy, happiness, and basic mobility and sur- vival rely upon things like motorized chairs or medical speaking devices. This has been a huge BACK ISSUES: 23 Dancing Rabbit Ln. Rutledge MO complaint about phrases like, “The revolution will not be motorized!” After all, any revolution most 63563; [email protected]; 800-462-8240; ic.org/back-issues of us want to be a part of must include people of varying ability levels, right? I have to admit, I’ve EDITORIAL OFFICE: Chris Roth, Editor, Communities, been skeptical of this criticism, even though I want so bad for us humans to have room in our com- 81868 Lost Valley Ln, Dexter OR 97431; 541-937-5221; munities for people of all kinds, including those living with disabilities. I’m skeptical because I also [email protected]. really want us humans to live in right relationship with the earth. I simply don’t believe that we have to pick one, and I don’t believe we need to harm the earth in order to have inclusive communities. © 2017 by Fellowship for Intentional Community. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA. Opinions expressed How can we do both? There must be a way! Perhaps some folks are already learning this together. by authors and correspondents are their own and do not Perhaps it’s time for a Communities magazine theme about community and ability variance. And necessarily reflect those of the publisher. let us remember, as some folks at Free Cascadia Witch Camp say, “Able bodies and minds are often temporary experiences.” FELLOWSHIP FOR INTENTIONAL COMMUNITY: 23 I also want to say that my favorite article was “Back to Life” by Ethan Hughes. It felt so good Dancing Rabbit Ln. Rutledge MO 63563; [email protected]; 800-462-8240; ic.org. to read that. Like someone spoke my heart to me. The part that felt most difficult to read was the challenge to do any change-making work in the world without relying on technology that carries REPRINT PERMISSION: Community groups may destructive effects to the earth. It left me thinking, is that even possible for certain things? How can reprint with permission. Please contact Communities, I visit prisoners without cars when prisons are often in the middle of nowhere on roads unsafe for 81868 Lost Valley Ln, Dexter OR 97431; 541-937-5221; [email protected]. bikes? And if a prison is closer to a city, is it safe for a small woman like me to be alone on a bike in a place like Attica, where I know (and it brings sadness to my heart) what the guards there are ADVERTISING: Christopher Kindig, Communiities capable of? Must we make compromises? Must we choose between compassion for fellow humans, Advertising Manager, Baltimore MD; and compassion for the earth? Again, I don’t believe we have to choose. But until I figure out how to 443-422-3741; [email protected]. do both at the same time, I’ll be trying my very best to be true to myself in every moment, listening WEBSITE: ic.org/communities-magazine. to my heart and accepting my imperfection. Yours with wonder, This magazine printed by Johnson Press of America, Mars Goetia Pontiac, Illinois, USA. Santa Cruz, California 4 Communities Number 174 Is “community” a movement or an organizing Wholeo Dome principle? Friday, my wife and I attended a high My name is Laura, I live on The Farm in Summertown, Tennessee—which since 2004 has been school choral concert in a poor, small Connecti- home to the Wholeo Dome. The Wholeo Dome is an incredible work of stained glass art; a dome cut town (our nephew’s girlfriend was in it). that is 7 feet tall and 14 feet across, and holds over 120 stained glass panels all created by an amazing The concert was an expression of the town and woman named Caroling Geary. an experience of shared community with those So I was shocked to see a photo of the Wholeo Dome in the latest issue of your magazine [#168]. in the audience. Saturday night, we drove into It’s on the very last page heading an article called “Establishing a Community: Perspectives from the Manhattan for the annual Paul Winter Solstice FEC.” It was at first a pleasant shock...and then a disappointed one. There is absolutely no informa- Concert at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. tion about the photo whatsoever...nothing referring to the artist, or even to the person who took The thousand or so folks may have shared the the photograph. event their $50 or $100 tickets bought them, You see, the Wholeo Dome has recently had to be taken apart due to damage and need for relo- but aside from whatever friend and family con- cation on The Farm...we have a committee of passionate members who have been working VERY nections, we were not a community. hard to promote this magnificent piece of artwork so that we may put it back together and con- What would Communities be like, and tinue to share it with the world. [Supporters have created a Facebook page for this effort at www. could it be more sustainable, if it explored facebook.com/save.the.wholeo.] It is something that should definitely be shared and displayed in and dramatized what the experience of com- magazines and publications like yours, but with no credit to Caroling and her hard work, it is a bit munity has to offer the US and global society? disheartening. What are the core principles which collec- The Wholeo Dome is very near and dear to my heart—it is the entire reason I am living on The tively make up what distinguishes that experi- Farm, and in an intentional community at all. I just had to write and stand up for it! Thank you ence? Without losing the potent example of for hearing me. intentional communities as perhaps the most complete expression of community, is there a Laura Look bridge to other movements/events which are Summertown, Tennessee mutually intriguing and challenging? A few days ago, my wife received a note from Editor’s Note: We apologize for omitting that information. We received the photo as an illustration for Senator Chris Murphy, accounting for the re- the article without any accompanying description, and so printed it that way. Thank you for letting us cent passage of a landmark mental health bill. know more about it; we’re happy to pass this information along to our readers. The story of building a passionate consensus, in my mind at least, rose to the level of com- munion. It coalesced a part of the population Thanks to Communities’ Indexer that included the President, Senators and Rep- I would like to call attention to the work of Lyman Tower Sargent for indexing all of the articles resentatives across party lines, healthcare leaders of Communities magazine and one of its predecessor journals. This is a great service for activists, like my wife, and above all, tens of thousands academicians, students, and reporters researching community. Go here: www.ic.org/communities- of parents and children who share a common index. While Sargent has only one article in the index, his many other writings on utopianism are bond of distress. here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyman_Tower_Sargent. Chris’ essay, as well as the occasion of a small There are about 3,150 article titles in the index, listed by author. Currently a user has to copy- town chorale are the kind of pieces that I think and-paste the 200+ page index into a document then search key words or topics. Hopefully it will we need if the communities movement is to of- be continually updated, made easier to download, and someday be searchable by subject! fer an alternative to the divisiveness the next few By facilitating the analyses of the communities movement the Communities index enhances our years are likely to present. voices on any aspect of intentional community over time, making more evident the joy, love, and Cheers, wisdom of those who participate in the art of cultural self-determination. Paul Freundlich Allen Butcher Higganum, Connecticut Denver, Colorado Editor’s Note: “Community Where You Are” The Mission of Communities (meaning not necessarily in intentional communi- I appreciate your work as Editor, and the call for support. You’ve got me thinking about the mis- ty) has been part of the magazine’s explicit focus for sion. Forty years ago, when I became a part of the Communities publishing collective, as an editor, more than a decade, but it’s true that the amount we moved the magazine from an almost exclusive focus on land-based intentional communities as a of that to be found in our pages varies from issue to movement, to a wider perspective about a movement towards community, cooperation, and social issue. We welcome more of this broader meaning of justice. The return to the niche of intentional, land-based communities over the past few decades has community in the magazine, and thank Paul for produced some excellent insights, but maybe tends to limit identification, participation, and sales. drawing attention to this. We welcome reader feedback on the articles in each issue, as well as letters of more general interest. Please send your comments to [email protected] or Communities, 81868 Lost Valley Ln, Dexter OR 97431. Your letters may be edited or shortened. Thank you! Spring 2017 Communities 5 Publisher’s Note by sky blue Communities Editorial Policy Communities is a forum for exploring intentional communities, cooperative living, and ways our readers No HOPE? can bring a sense of community into their daily lives. Contributors include people who live or have lived in community, and anyone with insights relevant to cooperative living or shared projects. Through fact, fiction, and opinion, we offer fresh ideas about how to live and work cooperatively, how to solve problems peacefully, and how individual lives can be enhanced by living purposefully with others. We seek con- tributions that profile community living and why people choose it, descriptions of what’s difficult and what works well, news about existing and forming communities, or articles that illuminate community experiences—past and present—offering insights into mainstream cultural issues. We also seek articles about cooperative ventures of all sorts—in workplaces, in neighborhoods, among people sharing common interests—and about “creating commu- nity where you are.” We do not intend to promote one kind of group over another, and take no official position on a community’s economic structure, political agenda, spiritual beliefs, environmental issues, or decision-making style. As long as submitted articles are related thematically to com- munity living and/or cooperation, we will consider them for publication. However, we do not publish articles that 1) advocate violent practices, or 2) advocate that a com- munity interfere with its members’ right to leave. Our aim is to be as balanced in our reporting as Intentional communities have no hope of meaningfully addressing climate change. Yeah, you possible, and whenever we print an article critical of a particular community, we invite that community to heard me right. Why would I say that? Am I just trying to be provocative? Maybe. But as much respond with its own perspective. as I’m an idealist, I’m a pragmatist, and when it comes to the future of the world and humanity, I’m not willing to leave it to hope. Submissions Policy Intentional communities are clearly more ecologically friendly than most other social arrange- To submit an article, please first request Writers’ Guide- lines: Communities, 23 Dancing Rabbit Ln, Rutledge MO ments. Even the communities out there doing very limited resource-sharing are still consuming and 63563-9720; 800-462-8240; [email protected]. To obtain wasting less than the American average (though, admittedly, that might not be saying much). As a Photo Guidelines, email: [email protected]. Both are also model, intentional communities could, in theory, meaningfully address climate change. available online at ic.org/communities-magazine. True, they currently represent a very small percentage of the population. In the US, from what Advertising Policy I know, I estimate that there are approximately 100,000 people living in some form of intentional We accept paid advertising in Communities because community, which represents about 0.03 percent of the population. However, the number of in- our mission is to provide our readers with helpful tentional communities and the people living in them could dramatically increase, and the lessons and inspiring information—and because advertising revenues help pay the bills. they’re learning could be systematically applied to the broader society. Can this happen? We handpick our advertisers, selecting only those A favorite quote amongst social activists comes from Margaret Mead: “Never doubt that a small whose products and services we believe will be help- group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever ful to our readers. That said, we are not in a position to has.” But here’s the rub: a small group of citizens doesn’t change the world. Lots of small groups of verify the accuracy or fairness of statements made in advertisements—unless they are FIC ads—nor in REACH citizens change the world. Sure, maybe it starts with one group, but it doesn’t end there. listings, and publication of ads should not be consid- Major change in the modern world is brought about by social movements, and while we like to ered an FIC endorsement. talk about the “communities movement,” this movement doesn’t currently have widespread recog- If you experience a problem with an advertisement or nition as such, even by those within it. I would guess that relatively few people in intentional com- listing, we invite you to call this to our attention and we’ll look into it. Our first priority in such instances is to make a munities right now think of themselves as being part of a movement or feel a sense of day-to-day good-faith attempt to resolve any differences by working connection between the communities in which they live and the rest of the communities, not only directly with the advertiser/lister and complainant. If, as around the country, but around the world. someone raising a concern, you are not willing to attempt While many communities are actively engaged in outreach and education, putting themselves this, we cannot promise that any action will be taken. Please check ic.org/communities-magazine or out to the public in hopes of reaching significant numbers of people, for many others that is a low email [email protected] for advertising information. priority, and even those groups which are doing this work often feel less than fully successful at it. The organizations that are working to expand this movement (including the FIC, publisher of this What is an “Intentional Community”? An “intentional community” is a group of people who magazine) are small and underfunded. A movement implies direction, not exactly focus, but for- have chosen to live or work together in pursuit of a com- ward motion towards something that large numbers of people identify with, are inspired by, and feel mon ideal or vision. Most, though not all, share land or a drive to perpetuate and expand. This is not entirely absent right now, but it’s not pervasive either. housing. Intentional communities come in all shapes It is a movement in the sense that there is this decentralized network of individuals, communities, and sizes, and display amazing diversity in their com- mon values, which may be social, economic, spiritual, and organizations all working to develop projects and models that are linked together by relation- political, and/or ecolog ical. Some are rural; some urban. ships and definitions. Certain definable characteristics, aspirations, and values are shared; inherent Some live all in a s ingle residence; some in separate to the work being done is a desire to change society. I think the communities movement is one of households. Some raise children; some don’t. Some the most important out there. I wouldn’t be working for the FIC otherwise. are secular, some are spiritually based; others are both. For all their variety, though, the communities featured I want the communities movement to transform the world, and I think it can. But I don’t think in our magazine hold a common commitment to l iving transformation is possible unless you’re honest and accepting of what is. If it’s not clear that our cooperatively, to solving problems nonv iolently, and to trajectory is towards success, it’s not realistic to sit back and hope that what we’re doing now will sharing their experiences with others. get us where we want to go. Dynamics and patterns have a tendency to persist and self-perpetuate. If we don’t continually assess and re-evaluate our efforts, look for unrecognized motivations and 6 Communities Number 174 influences, acknowledge the impacts of our ac- tions, and seek to understand what’s missing Cohousing California and what’s in the way of creating what we want, we’ll just keep recreating more of the same. We honors the work of have to keep trying new things, experimenting, analyzing, critiquing, starting over, retooling, Communities both within ourselves, and in the work we do in the world. and the Climate change is terrifying. Seriously. If Fellowship for you don’t occasionally stop short in terror at Support the kind of world we may be creating, one that Intentional Community many of us alive today will have to live through, you’re not paying attention. The factors at play in growing a sustainable, the FIC are so monumental, the problems so complex, peaceful, and and the power to effect change on those levels so beyond the reach of any one of us, that to try democratic world. to face it is overwhelming. And part of what’s Become a member today! so terrifying is that there’s no escape. If your house is on fire, you can run outside. Outside When you join the Fellowship for Happy 30th of planet earth isn’t an option. Given what we’re Intentional Community, your faced with, I don’t have much hope. But does contribution supports projects like Anniversary, FIC! the Communities Directory, that mean I’m giving up? Of course not. Years ago, I watched a video of a moderated Communities magazine, —Raines Cohen & Betsy Morris and the Intentional Communities conversation between author and activist Alice Website (www.ic.org) Walker, and Buddhist nun Pema Chodron. Al- ice talked about the hope of activism, and Pema Join online at responded with the classic Buddhist perspective www.ic.org/Membership on hope, which is that it’s just another form of attachment. But without hope, Alice asked, how can you work for change? You don’t do what you do because you hope it will change things, responded Pema, you do it because you Become an believe that’s the right thing to do. Doing the right thing isn’t easy. Denial won’t sky Geds Ecological help. Blind hope won’t help. We have to face Gaia Education the reality. But falling into despair won’t help. Design for Sustainability Designer Martyring ourselves won’t help. Programme E-Learning I’d like to rephrase the statement I started this essay with: supporting thriving Intentional communities, acting alone, have no hope of meaningfully addressing climate community life change. And even when we act together, the word “hope” may not accurately reflect what we find. But we do find something—some- thing that we lack when we think of ourselves 8 Weeks Online Course as alone—when we explore what it means to Programme Starting be a movement, and act to nurture that move- 2 January 2017! ment. We may be able to leverage our impact in a way that transforms a “hopeless” situation into something better. I have faith that what we Our online course covering carbon can do together can transform the world, and neutral energy systems, agro-ecology, I’m committed to putting effort towards that. Acceptance will help. Love and compassion water technology & green building will help. Solidarity will help. Caring for our- will empower you with the skills selves and others will help. Faith that all people to create self-regenerating can be healthy and happy, and that all life on sustainable settlements. the planet can be protected and nurtured, and effort to make that faith a reality, will help. n Learn more: www.gaiaeducation.org gaiaeducation.org/ecological Sky Blue ([email protected]) is Executive Director of the Fellowship for Intentional Community. Spring 2017 Communities 7 Notes from the Editor by chris roth Climate Crisis, Dystopia, Founded by cohousing development expert AND COMMUNITY Katie McCamant our services Development Consulting Guiding communities with Best Practices Recognizing each group's unique approach 500 Communities Training Program help with Site Search and Evaluation Workshops, such as Getting-It-Built Marketing and Community Building Project Management Budgeting and Project Financing Hiring Consultants Construction Management Making Your Community a Reality! [email protected] 530.478.1970 www.cohousing-solutions.com h ot R s hri C First, we want to thank all those who responded to our appeals for support for the magazine around the turn of the year. By December 2016, FIC’s discouraging financial picture and the magazine’s own negative balance sheet had led to Board discussions about emergency measures, including suspending or ceasing magazine publication. Following our emailed call to readers and contributors, the FIC’s online store experienced its highest-ever single-month revenue (much of it consisting of magazine subscriptions, back issue orders, and donations, supplemented by FIC memberships and other orders). The magazine pushed from the red into the black for the year, as did FIC, and we won a reprieve for the print journal. We have also taken cost-cutting measures, including trimming wholesale accounts (while we like making the magazine available on newsstands, this venue has sometimes been a large financial drain) and a switch of printers (again), and are exploring possible organizational collaborations that could aid the magazine’s resilience. We appreciate all those Communities readers who rose to the occasion, and who continue to do so, in order to assure the continued existence of this venerable journal of the communities movement. • • • Saving a magazine is one thing—saving a livable planet is another. In this issue, we explore how people, banding together, may be able to prevent or counteract those elements and effects of climate change that we have some influence over, as well as to respond to those that we don’t. If crisis brings people together, if adversity builds community, then we as a species have been given an unprecedented opportunity to demonstrate the power of community to help make daunting circumstances “better” than they would have been otherwise. How much better can we make them? This is up for debate. On a smaller scale, as many of these stories illustrate, the opportunity to take positive action and make a difference is substantial. Added together, and replicated more widely, efforts like those described in these pages could measurably mitigate climate change and its destructive impacts around the world, while creating the opportu- nity for a regenerative future for humanity on the planet. Will that happen? We don’t know, but the first step is envisioning a world in which it might—where we do indeed meet the challenges of what has clearly become a global crisis, and survive to tell the tale. To be honest, it is not at all clear to me that we will do the latter. What is clear to me is that the 8 Communities Number 174