All Blog Posts


The Origins of the FIC – 30th Birthday, Day 2

Posted on November 1, 2017 by
1 Comment

Harvey Baker has been involved with the FIC since the beginning, having served on the Board for 29 of our 30 years, and continues to be one of our most… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts

Life Lessons for Community Longevity

Posted on November 1, 2017 by

The founder of Bellyacres Artistic Ecovillage profers advice inspired by the nearly three decades he was immersed in the experiment.


Movement at a Crossroads – 30th Birthday, Day 1

Posted on October 31, 2017 by
2 Comments

Sky Blue is the Executive Director of the Foundation for Intentional Community.  For more 30th blog posts click here. It’s been quite a year. From the rise of white nationalism,… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts

30 Years of Service to the Intentional Communities Movement

Posted on October 31, 2017 by

      Happy 30th Birthday!!! Foundation for Intentional Community 30 Years of Service to the Intentional Communities Movement For 30 years the FIC has provided networking and support to… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Newsletter

New Report Explores How to Rethink Cities of the Future

Posted on October 27, 2017 by

This post by Nithin Coca first appeared on Shareable. In 2009, the world hit a watershed moment. For the first time in human history, a majority of people were living not… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts

Want to Change the System? ‘Become the System’

Posted on October 27, 2017 by

This article first appeared on Shareable .  We live in turbulent times: many certainties are disappearing and changes are difficult to understand. Can transition management help us to explain where the… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts

Why I Study Communal Societies

Posted on October 21, 2017 by

The study of intentional communities, both past and present, is a rich and rewarding enterprise for the student of political theory. The members of intentional communities, whether historic or contemporary,… Read More


Intentional Communities: How do we grow this movement fast?

Posted on October 19, 2017 by

It’s been quite a year. This is a synthesis of what I’ve been hearing and what I’ve been thinking about intentional communities, or whatever you want to call them. There’s… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts

Landing Your Community – The Community Builders Forum – Webinar #3

Posted on October 18, 2017 by

The Community Builders Forum – Webinar 3 – Landing your Community The practical and spiritual aspects of real estate for intentional communities We host monthly webinars, which members can participate in… Read More


Empowerment, Intersectionality, and Collaboration at an Urban Laboratory

Posted on October 17, 2017 by

      Empowerment, Intersectionality, and Collaboration at an Urban Laboratory Arcosanti Convergence November 10-12, 2017 An FIC co-sponsored event The FIC is a proud co-sponsor of the first Arcosanti Convergence… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Newsletter

Overcoming Our Americanness

Posted on October 11, 2017 by

Unless we learn from past and present communities, and collate lessons from our own, we will bob as separate crafts on the ocean of our uncooperative and ahistorical Americanness.


Can we grow old in community?

Posted on October 3, 2017 by

Community Bookstore Special Best of Communities The Cream of Our Crop Elders in Community by Kim Kanney, Community Bookstore Manager Best of Communities Volume IX Elders in Community A special… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Newsletter

Intentional Community in a Nicaraguan Jungle: Honoring my duality through community practices

Posted on October 1, 2017 by

Through her experience temporarily “unplugging” to join a community emphasizing genuine connection and values-based living, an international law student gains lifelong lessons.


Cohousing’s Diversity Problem

Posted on September 29, 2017 by

This article by Amanda Abrams first appeared in CityLab here. The topic, however, is not new; take a walk back through FIC’s archives to read Adriane Dellorco’s take from 2001 here.  Small… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts

Full Circle Memories from Dancing Rabbit

Posted on September 29, 2017 by

This post was first published on Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage’s blog here. If this account stirs you, get your application in now to join their final visitor session of the year, happening Oct… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts

Standing in Love in the Face of Hatred

Posted on September 29, 2017 by

This post by David Spangler first appeared on the Findhorn Foundation’s blog here.  There is a dramatic moment in the Fellowship of the Ring, the first book in J.R.R. Tolkien’s acclaimed trilogy, Lord… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts

Intentional Eco-Village Communities: Are Geodomes A Sustainable Answer to Homelessness?

Posted on September 29, 2017 by

Note: We acknowledge that homelessness is a complex sociopolitical and community issue, and aim to be respectful of all the various causes and experiences of homelessness. We also believe that… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts

Tracing Windward’s Memeology

Posted on September 21, 2017 by

The Haudenosaunee, the Oneida Community, and The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress, with its vision of a “polyamorous line family,” all form part of Windward’s conceptual ancestry.


A New Look at Modern Aging

Posted on September 18, 2017 by
1 Comment

This article first appeared on Cohousing USA’s blog here. By Charles Durrett. The last nails are being hammered in. Fresh paint still clings to the damp air. In Port Townsend,… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts

Our Commitment to Social Justice

Posted on September 18, 2017 by
1 Comment

Intentional communities are intrinsically idealistic. They’re based on a radical analysis of social problems and are an attempt to address them. They represent a personal desire to live in a… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts

The Secret to Living in Community

Posted on September 16, 2017 by

Community Bookstore Featured The Secret to Living in Community by Kim Kanney, Community Bookstore Manager Deep Listening The Secret to Living in Community A new film available in digital download… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Newsletter

Providing Regenerative Ecovillage Solutions for the Bonn Climate Summit

Posted on September 15, 2017 by

This November the UN Climate Summit (COP23) will be held in Bonn, Germany, where the imperative will be how to massively scale-up and effectively implement the Paris Climate Agreement. The… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts

Consensus: Learning to think and act cooperatively – The Community Builders Forum – Webinar #2

Posted on September 13, 2017 by
2 Comments

In the second addition of The Community Builders Forum, the FIC’s new webinar series for members, Laird Schaub takes us through what makes consensus work. Members can participate in these… Read More


Two amazing community events in California

Posted on September 5, 2017 by

  Two Amazing Community Events In California West Coast Communities Conference Sept 29 – Oct 1 Building Resilient Communities & Permaculture Convergence Oct 5 – Oct 8 Co-Sponsored by the Foundation… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Newsletter

The Value of Community: What Defines Success?

Posted on September 1, 2017 by
2 Comments

Short-term experiences of intentional community, and short-lived communities, can still have powerful, life-changing, and society-changing effects.


The Communal Studies Association

Posted on August 29, 2017 by

CSA and FIC partner to spread awareness of communal groups past and present and the vital lessons they offer, in areas ranging from conflict resolution, sustainability, and equality to the dangers of authoritarianism.


Learning from the Past, #176 Contents

Posted on August 28, 2017 by

Our Fall issue, sponsored in part by the Communal Studies Association, focuses on Learning from the Past. Current communitarians reflect on lessons from their own and their communities’ histories, and on inspiration from historical communities that inform their own efforts. Students of communalism share the outcomes of their research, including recipes for success and failure and other insights from past and present communities. Community seekers and founders describe what they’ve learned so far. Throughout, we explore how learning from the past can help us navigate the present and move toward a more vibrant, functional, cooperative future.


West Coast Communities Conference 2017

Posted on August 8, 2017 by

Welcome to the 3rd Annual West Coast Communities Conference, Sept 29 – Oct 1 in Souther California! Taking off from last year’s subject of economic justice, we are organizing this… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts

Living Out a Gift Economy in Community with Others

Posted on August 1, 2017 by
2 Comments

Putting love into practice can be done even when you have nothing materially.


Public Banks and Credit Unions: What’s the Difference?

Posted on July 24, 2017 by

As we’ve been thinking about intentional communities as alternative loci for power, the question of money and other ways for storing and using it naturally also came up. This article… Read More

Filed Under: All Blog Posts