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Paperback – 264 pages
7.5 Inches × 9 Inches (w × h)

Weight: 465 Grams
BISAC: SOCIAL SCIENCE / General
Publisher: New Society Publishers
ISBN: 9780865715783
Pub. Date: 2007-05-01

About the Author

Diana Leafe Christian

Besides editing Communities magazine since 1993, Diana Leafe Christian offers workshops nationwide on the process of forming new ecovillages and intentional communities. She is a member of Earthaven Ecovillage in North Carolina.

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Finding Community

How to Join an Ecovillage or Intentional Community

by Diana Leafe Christian



Finding community is as critical as obtaining food and shelter, since the need to belong is what makes us human. The isolation and loneliness of modern life have led many people to search for deeper connection, which has resulted in a renewed interest in intentional communities. These intentional communities or ecovillages are an appealing choice for like-minded people who seek to create a family-oriented and ecologically sustainable lifestyle -- a lifestyle they are unlikely to find anywhere else.

However, the notion of an intentional community can still be a tremendous leap for some -- deterred perhaps by a misguided vision of eking out a hardscrabble existence with little reward. In fact, successful ecovillages thrive because of the combined skills and resources of their members.

Finding Community presents a thorough overview of ecovillages and intentional communities and offers solid advice on how to research thoroughly, visit thoughtfully, evaluate intelligently and join gracefully. Useful considerations include:

  • important questions to ask (of members and of yourself)
  • signs of a healthy (and not-so-healthy) community
  • cost of joining (and staying)
  • common blunders to avoid.

Finding Community provides intriguing possibilities to readers who are seeking a more cooperative, sustainable and meaningful life.

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