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Wisdom of Communities Book Series

We have compiled the best of Communities articles from over the decades into the Wisdom of Communities Book Series. Buy each Volume individually or get the complete set of all four Volumes.

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Best of Communities Through the Decades

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Archive of Communities Articles

On Community: A Graduated Series of Consequences and the “Community Eye”

Posted on November 26, 2019 by

Just knowing the community has this process in place deters people from breaking agreements. People don’t want to get a knock at the door by one fellow community member, much less three or four.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Communities Articles, Governance + Group Dynamics, Group Process, Issue 184, Life in Community

Raising Troubled Children in Cohousing

Posted on November 19, 2019 by

When the antisocial behavior of adopted boys at Takoma Village Cohousing begins to impact the larger community, their parents find open communication essential in identifying a path forward.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Cohousing, Communities Articles, Issue 184, Life in Community

Whatever Happened to the Renaissance Community?

Posted on November 12, 2019 by
1 Comment

Despite the lethal combination of power, ego, and spirituality that brought the Renaissance Community to an end, most of its ex-members cherish their time there as a growth experience that made them better people.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Communities Articles, Finding Community, Governance + Group Dynamics, Group Process, Issue 184, Life in Community, Personal Growth, Spirituality

In the Shadow of the Guru

Posted on November 5, 2019 by

Referring to himself as “the biggest asshole” in the county, a group’s spiritual teacher “told us if we could work with him and learn from him, we could deal with anyone in any situation.”

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Communities Articles, Finding Community, Issue 184, Life in Community, Personal Growth, Spirituality

Missed Opportunity at the Goat Ranch

Posted on October 29, 2019 by
1 Comment

Ted and Sally were truthful when they said they had no idea what they were doing, either running the business or establishing a community. They didn’t, much to the dismay of their departing managers and volunteers.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Communities Articles, Finding Community, Governance + Group Dynamics, Issue 184, Life in Community, Personal Growth, Starting a Community, Sustainability

Founder’s Syndrome

Posted on October 22, 2019 by

The original founder, visionary, and main public point person for Bellyacres for over a quarter of a century laments that some members came to consider him “the root of all present, past, and future problems in the organization.”

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Communities Articles, Governance + Group Dynamics, Group Process, Issue 184, Life in Community, Starting a Community, Sustainability

Entrepreneurship and Long-Term Planning in an Income-Sharing Community: A Report from the Frontlines

Posted on October 15, 2019 by

The pace of running a competitive multi-million-dollar business like East Wind Nut Butters can clash with the often slow and seemingly disinterested pace of the community at large.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Communities Articles, Cooperative Economics, Economics, Issue 184, Life in Community

The Expert

Posted on October 8, 2019 by

Wow! This woman has it all! She’s the answer to so many of our current dilemmas! What could possibly go wrong? A lot.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Communities Articles, Governance + Group Dynamics, Group Process, Issue 184, Life in Community

Village-Building Stumbles: A few of the things Earthaven Ecovillage has gotten wrong

Posted on October 1, 2019 by

Those of us privileged enough to find ourselves in an intentional community often imagine that our environment will be free of the horrors and evils of the world. But alas, we bring it all with us.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Communities Articles, Cooperative Economics, Governance + Group Dynamics, Group Process, Growing Food, Homesteading, Issue 184, Life in Community, Permaculture, Personal Growth, Social + Racial Justice, Starting a Community, Sustainability

Community Communication

Posted on September 24, 2019 by

“Can you put the gas in the truck, please?” A seemingly simple request provides a case study in the importance of precise, clear communication.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Communities Articles, Issue 184, Life in Community

The Shadow Side of Community

Posted on September 17, 2019 by

The more friendliness we have towards difficult parts of ourselves and difficult aspects of living in community, the easier it will be to make the journey together.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Communities Articles, Finding Community, Issue 184, Life in Community, Personal Growth

Notes from the Editor: Exploring the Shadow Side

Posted on September 10, 2019 by

A higher standard for interpersonal accountability and care makes the effect even more devastating when feelings of safety, security, and affection in community turn out to be based on illusion.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Communities Articles, Governance + Group Dynamics, Issue 184, Life in Community, Personal Growth

Publisher’s Note: Facing the Hard Things

Posted on September 3, 2019 by

In order to create healthy, thriving communities that are replicable models for a cooperative, sustainable, and just human society, we need to talk about what hasn’t worked.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Communities Articles, Issue 184, Life in Community
Communities magazine issue #184

The Shadow Side of Cooperation – get your free download!

Posted on August 27, 2019 by

A natural follow-up to our Summer 2019 Sexual Politics issue, Communities #184 (Fall 2019) focuses on The Shadow Side of Cooperation. We explore problems and pitfalls, disappointments and betrayals, unintended outcomes of cooperative attempts ranging in impact from trivial to tragic. Authors’ stories describe the clash of idealism with reality, communication breakdowns, cultural patterning, internalized oppression, rights and boundary violations, founder’s syndrome, business and organizational struggles, power, ego, disempowerment, dysfunction, trauma, and strategies to address these and other challenges. Please join us!

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Communities Articles, Governance + Group Dynamics, Issue 184, Life in Community, Personal Growth

Does Community Heal Trauma, or Reproduce It?: Challenges for abuse survivors living in community

Posted on August 20, 2019 by

Survivors of traumatic abuse face many problems in trying to form and participate in community. Trauma-informed community commits to keeping the survivor safe in wide zones of ambiguity, as challenging as that might be.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Communities Articles, Issue 184, Life in Community, Social + Racial Justice