We were excited to have Laird back for our first returning WebChat presenter. He took on the topic of participation, which is, as he says, the single most common challenge facing intentional communities he works with. Participation refers to the non-monetary contributions people make to communities and it tends to get messy. Laird shared a... Read More

Does your community have work days? Why? That second question matters and may be worthy of review. In the broader culture of the US, there is a lot of focus on tasks, work and material accomplishments. This is good. We like beautiful flower beds, roofs that don’t leak and clean common house kitchens. The work...

Rob Sandelin, a member of Sharingwood Community for nearly 30 years, was a prolific poster to the cohousing-l email discussion group, and positively influenced the development and growth of communities throughout the U.S. with his wisdom. Although he passed away nearly 2 years ago, his words continue to guide cohousing communities. Below is a post... Read More

From the first thought of really living in cohousing, an essential requirement is being able to depend on each other to share the work. It’s a collaborative effort and requires all hands on deck. If you don’t know how to do something, learn. Even if your group is can afford to hire a development company,... Read More

Iowa City Cohousing, aka Prairie Hill, is a sponsor of the National Cohousing Conference. Learn more here: Join Iowa’s first cohousing community–Prairie Hill, in Iowa City The members and prospective members of Prairie Hill Cohousing have been curious about how other cohousing communities get their work done. We’re all assuming that we will cooperate in... Read More

It’s been a long six years and a particularly long last six months but we’ve finally arrived. Persistence pays off! We moved into CHUC (Capitol Hill Urban Cohousing) on June 14, 2016. Backstory [My husband] Spencer and I have long been interested in community and in cohousing. We explored it with our friends Larry &... Read More

Bob and Claire Miller are providing ideas and considerations on community cooperation to “get the work done,” in maintaining and sustaining their Wolf Creek Lodge cohousing community. Cooperation and Fairness Here are some “frequently asked questions” by members of forming cohousing groups: • How many hours per month must each person commit? • How do... Read More

Rather than teams focusing on support for aging in place, I think it would be better to have a team focused on (1) what all community members need and (2) extending our notions about the abilities of all individuals to support others. Just because people are aging doesn’t mean they have more needs than anyone... Read More