Ecovillages: New Frontiers for Sustainability (12) (Schumacher Briefings)

I don't think it is big enough yet to call it a trend, but there is certainly a movement, an interest of mostly isolated people to live with less of an impact on our society. We see this in the occassional solar powered house, the growth of the self-sustaining small (or even tiny) farms, the commune system that began to be set up in years past. All of these, of course, had problems associated with them. The solar house may well not, probably doesn't meet building codes, so they may have to be built outside a cities limits, they are difficult to sell, difficult to find someone who will issue a mortgage on them. The tiny farm takes an awful lot of work, more than most people want to do. And the cost of the food is expensive in terms of working at a real job and buying at the supermarket. Communes work only when everyone get along with each other. But soon people begin to feel that they do more than their fair share. The next logical step is to put together a small village. Perhaps a dozen famlies, perhaps 20 or 30. Here you begin to get the small town mentality that is so famous in literature. This book talks about local communities that have come together with shared goals. It offers a lot of the advantages of the traditional small village, with a vision that transcends and enhances the individual goals of the residents.