| What Are Intentional Communities? |
| How Intentional Communities Function? |
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higher degree of resident interaction than other communities might produce. The members of an intentional community typically hold a common social, political or spiritual vision and share responsibilities and resources communally. Intentional communities include co-housing, residential land trusts, eco-villages, communes, kibbutzim, ashrams, and housing cooperatives. However, the main focus of such communities is to foster a collective spirit and mutuality. *Adapted from www.wikipedia.org article submission. |
*Adapted from www.wikipedia.org article submission. Intentional communities have different forms of legal ownership and organization according to the legal forms of real estate ownership established in the host country or domicile. For example, members of a co-housing intentional community may own their homes by owning shares in a housing cooperative. While, others may establish a non-profit or for-profit corporation to serve as the "owner" of the property acquired for shared ownership. The purposes of intentional communities vary and affix themselves to the infinite creativity of their originators. They may include sharing resources, creating family-oriented neighborhoods and living ecologically sustainable lifestyles. Some communities are secular; while, others have a spiritual basis. Commonly there is a focus on egalitarian values. The principal themes of an intentional community are voluntary simplicity, interpersonal growth and self-reliance. Some communities provide services to disadvantaged populations. For example, war refugees, the homeless, or people with developmental disabilities. Some communities operate learning or health centers. A growing number of intentional communities actually seek to disengage from the "nation states" and governments that they reside within. These communities often seek to be independent of outside resources for their water, energy supplies and even clothing or furniture. Christian intentional communities are usually composed of those wanting to emulate the practices of the earliest believers. For example, the Hebrew Essence community was a Jewish communal community that many believe was the source and foundation for the teachings of Joshua the Christ. Using "The Acts of the Apostles" in the Bible (and, often, the "Sermon on the Mount") as a model, members of Christian communities strive for a practical outworking of their individual faith in a corporate context. Of course, Christian monastic orders are some of the oldest intentional communities. There are Buddhist and Islamic based intentional communities that per-date those of Christianity. The Hindu ashrams famous throughout India and other parts of the world are also indicative of the religious based forms of intentional communities. According to the Communities Directory (1995), published by the Fellowship for Intentional Community, 54% of the communities listed are rural, 28% are urban, 10% have both rural and urban sites, and 8% don't specify. The most common form of governance in intentional communities is democratic (64%), with decisions made by some form of consensus decision-making or voting. Of the remainder, 9% have a hierarchical or authoritarian structure, 11% are a combination of democratic and hierarchical structure, and 16% don't specify. Many communities which were initially led by an individual or small group have changed in recent years to a more democratic form of governance. Most intentional communities eventually become economic self-sufficient and depend very little on the "outside" for their sustenance. It is common for these communities to grow their own crops (farming), produce their own clothing, crafts and furniture or even engage in light manufacturing (cottage industries). |
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| "Iko-ville" projects can be developed in any country (nation) around the world. Organizers of such communities can elect to directly affiliate with the Ikologiks Center for Global Studies using the term "IKO-VILLE SITE # ___ or the organizers can establish a totally INDEPENDENT INTENTIONAL COMMUNITY with some limited guidance, support & development assistance from the Ikologiks Center for Global Studies (*Project Fee Required). To develop an IKOVILLE COMMUNITY requires NO FEES & only the dedication of "volunteers" to attend a planning workshop, acquire land/property & work under the auspices of the ICGS as the community is developed. |
| Want to Build An Iko-Ville Intentional Community in Your Nation or Community? If Interested in Sponsoring One, Please Write of E-Mail Us Today! *See Form Below |
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IKO-Intentional Communities (IKO-VILLES) |
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| "Transforming Lives from Within & Without" |