Communities Articles
Here is a selection of articles from previous back issues of Communities magazine. All back issues up to issue #184 are available for download here.
For more information about Communities magazine, visit its new publisher at GEN-US.
Embracing a Terminal Illness
Posted on December 7, 2009 byA community rallies in support of a long-time member diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s Disease, discovering opportunities and possibilities for new connections with each other and becoming more present to the priceless experiences of both living and dying.
Throwing in the Founder’s Towel
Posted on September 7, 2009 by1 Comment
After many years of dealing with the unique struggles inherent in starting a community, a community founder discovers her vision manifested elsewhere, and becomes a community joiner.
Householding: Communal Living on a Small Scale
Posted on September 7, 2009 byEspecially in financially uncertain times, those seeking the advantages of intentional community living can often find them within a single shared house.
Shared Living—When Home Is a Community
Posted on September 7, 2009 by3 Comments
An ex-resident of Casa Caballeros reflects on the wealth she found in the realms of personal growth, shared resources, spontaneous celebration, and financial freedom even in economic downturns.
Emergency Community
Posted on September 7, 2009 by1 Comment
After serving thousands of meals, a community of post-Katrina relief kitchen volunteers moves to the West Coast and acquires a mortgage, a baby, full-time jobs, and the challenges of the mundane.
Hard Times at Orinda
Posted on September 7, 2009 by1 Comment
Watching their collective fortunes decline, the members of Orinda adopt a new spirit of frugality, find that they are living more sustainably, and discover true wealth in relationships with friends and family.
Sharing and Climate Change
Posted on June 7, 2009 byA simple solution could drastically reduce the energy consumption and carbon emissions of the modern citizen, and it does not require new technology or a drastic reduction in quality of life. We all learned about it in Kindergarten, and statistics from Twin Oaks prove its effectiveness.
Visions of Utopia, Part Two
Posted on June 7, 2009 byAuthor: Tim Miller Published in Communities Magazine Issue #143 Visions of Utopia, Part Two Experiments in Sustainable Culture A Documentary by Geoph Kozeny Available from store.ic.org or 1-800-995-8342. ($30 plus… Read More
Lighten Up
Posted on June 7, 2009 byOrganized around common ecological values and a shared appreciation for the epic of evolution, a group of neighbors reduces its collective energy consumption by 25 percent.
Environmental Activism
Posted on June 7, 2009 byWith a long history of protecting the local watershed, Trillium Farm Community in southern Oregon grows not only organic food, but ecological activists.
How Ecology Led Me to Community
Posted on June 7, 2009 byThe author recounts some of the off-beat marching orders he received from an eco-oriented “different drummer”—and how, instead of becoming a hermit, he became a communitarian.
Chicken à la West Birch Avenue
Posted on March 7, 2009 byAuthor: Hilary Giovale Published in Communities Magazine Issue #142 We used to be a typical neighborhood. People were friendly enough and we waved to each other on our way into… Read More
Network for a New Culture Camps
Posted on March 7, 2009 byParticipants in NFNC’s Summer Camps explore intimacy, transparency, freedom of choice, personal responsibility, sexuality, and new ways of being, teaching, and learning.
Festivals and Gatherings on The Farm
Posted on March 7, 2009 byA long-time events organizer reflects on the rewards, challenges, logistics, and community dynamics involved in hosting gatherings large and small.
All We Have Is All We Need
Posted on December 7, 2008 byA group of North Americans establishes a community in Costa Rica and
learns new lessons about simplicity, wealth, change, growth, balance,
and happiness.
The Richness of Giving
Posted on December 7, 2008 byMany traditional cultures around the world have an economy based not on buying and selling, but on giving, which fosters an intricate network of social connections.
Best Meetings
Posted on December 7, 2008 byThree group-process experts answer the question: “Please tell us a story of one of the best meetings you ever attended (as participant or facilitator). What was great about it? What do you think made it turn out so well?”
Abundance and Scarcity in the Goodenough Community
Posted on December 7, 2008 byA community confronts economic adversity by remaining constant in relationship, holding financial losses in common, and working together in fundraising, educational programs, and new projects.
Free to Serve
Posted on December 7, 2008 byWhile in similar circumstances to his neighbors from Clan Super Size, our author replaces a desperate sense of scarcity and need for low-cost goods with feelings of hope and abundance.
Running for Office from the Commune
Posted on September 7, 2008 byAuthor: Nick Licata Published in Communities Magazine Issue #140 I opened my morning paper anxious to read the first article on my race for a position on Seattle’s City Council.… Read More
Business and Well-Being
Posted on September 7, 2008 byAuthor: Tree Bressen Published in Communities Magazine Issue #140 Q: Historically, our group has felt fairly unified in our core values. Our business discussions and decisions rested on certain basic… Read More
Every Politician Should Live in a Commune
Posted on September 7, 2008 byAfter living in the PRAG House collective for 25 years before running for office, a Seattle City Councilor recommends that anyone entering politics consider experiencing intentional community first.
Searching for Republicans…and Other Elephants in the Community Living Room
Posted on September 7, 2008 byAn informal survey raises several compelling questions: Can communitarians
learn to focus on larger-scale politics as much as on internal politics? Should they? What’s proper political etiquette in community? And have you ever met a communitarian who is not left of center?
The Marriage of Natural Building with Conventional Building
Posted on June 7, 2008 byO.U.R. Ecovillage has audaciously invited inspectors, architects, and regulatory officials to participate in their green building programs for the past eight years. In the process, they have fostered cooperative social connections–and received full approval for an eco-housing cluster.
Natural Building and Community
Posted on June 7, 2008 byThe communities movement and the natural building movement share the goal of forming meaningful relationships–with other people and with one’s own home. In fact, natural building practically demands community.
The Quest for Community
Posted on June 7, 2008 byTree Bressen traces her own path of exploration from commune to collective household, discovering that community isn’t always drawn in black and white.
What’s Masculine, What’s Feminine, and What Am I?
Posted on March 7, 2008 byMollie Curry hoists a chainsaw and finds herself entangled in a perplexing webs of sticky questions. Here she attempts to untangle the threads, both within herself and within her community.
Building a Business in Community
Posted on March 7, 2008 byThere wasn’t much chance that her lifelong dream of owning a bookstore would come true in her rural Missouri community. So Alline Anderson set off down the exciting and terrifying path of launching the Milkweed Mercantile–creating jobs, providing a market for community products, and offering a warm place for visitors to put up their feet.
The Power Balance
Posted on March 7, 2008 byWhat can you do if some people in your group seem to have more power than others? Our consensus trainers and group process experts respond.
A “Wife Swapping” Adventure
Posted on December 7, 2007 byCan an ecovillage gal live for a week in a mainstream household–with a microwave oven, processed food on paper plates,five SUVs, and six tiny pedigreed show dogs–and make a difference?
