Community

Editor's note: Building intentional communities is a movement that has grown by leaps and bounds in the last few years. Books and magazines have supported the growth of interest in groups with common concerns who live in community. This month, we're visiting two intentional communities to see how they each address social and ecological concerns, and how they function as communities. We'll visit L.A.'s Eco Village first, a community whose stated goal is "to demonstrate a healthy and regenerative urban community in which the ecological, economic and social systems in the neighborhood are integrated for long term health and sustainability." Next, we'll visit The Farside Community in North Georgia, the nation's only consortium of monolithic and geodesic dome homes. Residents at Farside hold common interests in alternative medicine, organic and biodynamic gardening, and personal growth.

L.A.'s Eco Village: A Conscious Community
by Marianne Moro

Intentional communities have been around since the 1960s and even before. While the tenants are the same, with advances such as the Internet to spread the word, it's easier than ever to locate kindred souls. While the majority of intentional communities are in rural areas, or in some far - off country bearing an exotic name, exceptions to the rule do occur. Eco - Village, located in central Los Angeles, is a vivid and triumphant example of what a small group of dedicated individuals can do to improve the livability of their community, not only for themselves, but for the community as a whole, Eco Village is the name of a two block/two building complex located in the Koreatown/ Mid-Wilshire section of Los Angeles. Nestled between a LA Unified School District primary school, and the usual strip malls and supermarkets, Eco-Village is an oasis - a bit of old - town countrified charm in the midst of a gritty Los Angeles neighborhood.

L.A. Eco - Village was founded in 1993 by Lois Arkin and a core group of activists. Lois is one of the most knowledgeable and dedicated leaders involved in the intentional community process. Lois' apartment on White House Place contains shelves of books and materials on the intentional communities movement and other social and ecological concerns, while her front yard is a veritable sampler of lush plants and fruit trees laid out in a botanical pattern known as permaculature. "Permaculture has a natural resilience and design to it. It's a self - perpetuating thing and is by no means perfect. Nothing's been done here in two years. You design it and you observe nature and you create placements."

"Eco - Village is about looking at our planet's life support system - air, soil, and water - and the political issues in respect to those three things. What resources do we have and what can we do?"

All decisions regarding business and contracting practices go through the village's eight member committee, which meets once a week. "There is no waiting list, per se, to move into Eco Village," Lois comments, "I think there are a lot of people who would like to move in, but we like people to go through a process to hang out with us enough so that it's
a real mutual decision." And who is the ideal Eco - Village resident? "There are some standard qualities we want people
to have. We want people to have an ecological and cooperative orientation. We try to balance a number of diversity issues, income, household composition and generational representation so that we can have that kind of a balance. On the other hand, we need to be very clear about our vision and needs. There are a number of building systems that are quickly deteriorating. We would love someone that understands all these building issues and has a passion for doing things in an integrated building system. I would also like someone here who has a passion for permaculture. As an urban Eco - Village, it's our responsibility to be doing a lot more public education than we are currently doing. We would like to have someone living here who would help in developing that kind of public education outreach program."

There are a number of ways that Eco-Villagers are attempting to make their community more user friendly, among them: Traffic calming experiments: traffic calming is a moniker for methods used to slow and divert the onslaught of traffic. It is usually accomplished with signage, bumpers and other equipment. "We're reclaiming our streets for a lot more social use than car use," says Lois. "A portion of the street is planned as a street plaza for social gatherings, and neighbors have planted fruit trees." Even the Eco - Villagers' simple method of traffic calming - having a picnic in the middle of a side street on a sunny L.A. afternoon, works wonders. Even in the harried streets of L.A., motorists passing by the picnickers were all smiles and waves, some of them even asking, "What's for lunch?"

The L.A. Unified School is next door (the LAUSD own the duplex at White House Place and the Eco-Village has been successful in thwarting the efforts of the school district to replace the building with mobile classrooms). "We have many different kinds of contact (with the school)" says Lois, "We have had many interns here who teach environmental ed and bring small groups of kids to see the gardens and the animals. We have done joint festivals, parties, working very closely with the parent association. There have been many members who have worked with us very intensely to grow this corner. Kids have really gotten the full benefit of coming to the garden everyday. When groups of kids were coming to the garden everyday they actually tested much better on their science stuff."

"We had a principal there with whom we worked quite closely for several years, and she's actually on our board now that she's retired. There's not an advocacy group within the school that understands the potential value of our relationship to the school, so we have to constantly help them to understand that." Lois stresses the value of dedication and goal - setting in Eco - Village. "The way things get done is that people with a passion for something make it happen. Look at what goals are in relation to your vision. There are so many people here who have certain interests and maybe they are part of a mix who should come here next."

Even though Lois is anxious to spread Eco - Village's message and enlighten the populace regarding social and environmental responsiblility, she has turned down offers from large media outlets for major stories. "I've thought about it and talked with people in the community and with groups who've had feature stories in major media. If you're not ready for it, it can cost you a lot of energy and money. There's the potential of 5,000 people traipsing through your community, particularly people from the mainstream who have no hooks in the community. If you don't hang out with us, if you don't come to a community dinner, you don't have any idea what's really going on with us."

There are several ways for visitors and potential residents to participate in the Eco - Village activities. Sunday night community dinners provide a chance for Eco - Villagers to get together and discuss the community's events informally. Tuesday night board meetings are the business forum for social and building issues. The seven-member board approves applications for residency.

On any given week - end, there are a number of activities: bus tours of the area, potlucks, the community dinners, work parties, all of this in a multi - ethnic corner of Los Angeles. Working within the community instead of separate from it, Eco - Villagers are assisting in the 2000 census, ensuring that the largely Hispanic neighborhood is not undercounted in the census. The buildings (a forty unit complex purchased by Eco - Village in 1996, and eight units purchased in 1999) are prime examples that it's possible for concerned and dedicated individuals to foster change in the community at large. Instead of focusing on their own tightly cloistered group as an end in itself, Eco - Village is part of CRSP, a non - profit organization that Lois founded in 1980.

"We know we touch people's lives and they get inspired, but it could be much more powerful. The joy of living here actually is that there are 15 - 20 people living here who are all activists on behalf of Mother Earth, and they love living here and interacting with each other. They've all got their causes and they can come to a community dinner and say 'Hey, we've got this big demonstration going; please come out and help' and use each other that way and bounce ideas off one another, as activists. The founders of the county bicycle coalition live here. One of the board members of the Friends of the L.A. River lives here and organizes a lot of the river walks. People organizing the fair trade demonstration for the Democratic convention live here. A person working for the revocation of the Unical charter - they're (Unical) involved in a lot of human rights and environmental violations - lives here. There are people who really have a penchant for gardening. Most of the residents have a background of living in intentional communities; some are professionals, such as Jesse Moorman, an immigration lawyer who sits on the Eco - Village Board.

"We have weekly meetings about work in this building, but there's not any kind of group designing or implementing. There are other issues; for instance, we'd like to start a community school or a charter school. That
could be very small like 10 - 20 students to begin with. A demonstration private school, rather than a public charter school, where we really have control. And the parents would really commit in terms of giving their children positive leadership for the community."

After spending an enlightening afternoon in Eco - Village, the possibilities for intentional communities to truly touch and effect the community at large become apparent. A small group of people can make a difference; the Eco - Villagers are living proof of that.

Marianne Moro is a freelance writer who lives in Hollywood, CA.
For more information on the Eco - Village, write c/o CRSP,
3551 White House Place, Los Angeles, CA 90004 or email crsp@igc.org

Life On The Farside
by Mark Burr Woodhouse

Originally inspired by the vision of Peter Kelly (perhaps best known for his research into subtle energies and invention of the BETAR) and his wife Marianne in the late 80s, the Farside Community is located in Lakemont, Georgia near Lake Rabun. It is arguably the nation's only consortium of monolithic and geodesic dome homes, which are known for their strength and energy efficiency.

No formally agreed upon vision or set of intentions connects its diverse neighbors, which include a retired community planner, an astrologer, several business people, a computer consultant, a floral designer, a former law enforcement officer, a gardening and agriculture consultant, and two university professors, among others. A community atmosphere is generated through active overlapping interests in such areas as alternative medicine and healing, personal growth, subtle energy technologies, ecological awareness, spiritual exploration, art, and extraterrestrial contact.

No land is commonly owned, although wherever possible resources are shared. A few 3+ acre lots are available from private owners and larger parcels may be purchased through the Farside Land and Development Corporation, which also rents nearby dome cottages for week-end retreats (Info: 706-782-2524). A community chapel supports various workshops and other local gatherings.

Those who reside in the community are usually happy to give brief tours of their homes and immediate surroundings. Most have a strong interest in gardening according to advanced principles not recognized by organic or biodynamic growers. Group meditations and meetings to discuss matters of mutual concern are intermittently undertaken.

While geographically close to one another, residents of the community selectively participate in multiple networks of like-minded individuals extending north to Asheville and south to Atlanta. With the time and resources, one could attend a substantive meeting or workshop within a twenty - five mile radius most any week of the year.

Several members, this author included, offer week - end workshops on various aspects of healing and the new consciousness. Immediately adjacent to the Community are other neighbors with highly regarded expertise in medical invention and research, financial planning, and spiritual teaching and transmission - making the overall Lakemont community, in my opinion, one of the more interesting locales in the region. Residents of the Farside Community are very aware of the many transformational challenges facing humanity. We are drawn to the area, however, not by a desire to avoid their import, but rather, by common interests, the desire to share talent and resources, and the belief that, in our own ways - sometimes communally, sometimes individually - we will positively help shape a world in transition.