[["Aging in Community","Connecting in Cohousing","Laird Schaub","eldering, senior cohousing, Aging","Many people aspire to make the lessons they\u2019ve collected over the course of their lifetime available to others, but that doesn\u2019t necessarily mean they\u2019ll be asked, or will be able to find a suitable venue to share it. Ouch! In this workshop we unpack the dimensions of Eldering through these subtopics: Dearth of Ritual, No Broom to Jump, It\u2019s a State of Mind, It Takes Patience, Don\u2019t Wait for the Phone to Ring, Turning Over Your Work to Others, Downshifting, Know What You Don\u2019t Know, Low Threshold of Delight, The Dynamics of Social Capital, Intergenerational Challenges\n"],["Aging in Community","Cohousing Over Time","Sage Senior Cohousing Advocates panel, with Alexandria Levitt as Moderator","Senior, senior cohousing, Aging","Senior cohousing communities are on the rise. The challenges of aging grow as well. Our panel is comprised of members from 3 senior communities who will speak to the successes and concerns they have faced over time as they and their neighbors age: community building, recruitment, physical limitations, caregiver suites, end of life issues, resident departures and more.\nParticipants will learn how these groups are faring and come away with ideas to help your own community.\n"],["Cohousing Basics","Stepping Into Cohousing","Diana Lind","community, living in cohousing, Design, culture, culture shift","Diana Lind, author of Brave New Home: Our Future in Smarter, Simpler, Happier Housing\n"],["Cohousing Basics","Stepping into Cohousing","Martie Weatherly","Consensus, Policy-Consensus\/Decision Making","This is a first level introduction to consensus, giving participants an idea of what it is like to use it. Martie will walk you through a decision her community made using their Pathway to Consensus, using slides to illustrate. You will get the basics of consensus during the process. \n"],["Cohousing Basics","Stepping into Cohousing","Bryan Bowen","forming communities, density, rural, urban","As your forming group searches for land, it\u2019s helpful to know what fits on how many acres, so you know what you\u2019re signing up for. We\u2019ll take a look at several projects at different densities, from rural to urban, and quantify density in hard numbers. \n"],["Cohousing Basics","What is Cohousing","Karin Hoskin, Karen Gimnig","cohousing","Cohousing Association of the United States presents What is Cohousing? 2021. This session introduces the jargon of the cohousing community for those are new. Speakers Karin Hoskin and Karen Gimnig are the programming staff for CohoUS\n"],["Cohousing Basics","What is Cohousing","Grace Kim","relationships, intentional","Life is better when you live with neighbors who are intentional about being in relationship with you. Grace Kim will be sharing how intentional relationships make all the difference for cohousing communities.\n"],["Cohousing Basics","What is Cohousing","Madison Panel: Beth Welch from Troy Gardens, Karen Ecklund and Anne Karch from Arboretum Cohousing, Chucho Alvarado from Village Cohousing, and Laurie Frank from Linden Cohousing","Common House, Design","Cohousing Association of the United States presents What is Cohousing? 2021. This session describes how social practices and use of common spaces build community. Beth Welch from Troy Gardens, Karen Ecklund and Anne Karch from Arboretum Cohousing, Chucho Alvarado from Village Cohousing, and Laurie Frank from Linden Cohousing share their learned wisdom.\n"],["Cohousing Basics","What is Cohousing","Molly Jones, Jones Design Studio","Design, design process","Cohousing Association of the United States presents What is Cohousing? 2021. This session describes the physical design of cohousing and how it is achieved. Molly Jones is founder of Jones Design Studio, and one of the architects for Heartwood Commons in Tulsa.\n"],["Cohousing Basics","Life is Better Together","Bryan Bowen","cohousing, Design, Zoning regulations","In this session you will hear from Bryan Bowen. He\u2019s an architect with lots of experience designing cohousing communities around the world. Bryan and his family walk the talk since he lives in Wild Sage cohousing. On top of all that, Bryan is formerly a member of the city of Boulder Planning Board so he has insight about how cohousing communities can best go about navigating through local zoning regulations. He\u2019ll give you a little bit about the many types of intentional communities including cohousing. Bryan will talk about what makes cohousing different than \u2018other\u2019 HOA\u2019s. He\u2019ll describe some general characteristics and define some vocabulary specific to cohousing.\n"],["Cohousing Basics","Life is Better Together","Alan O\u2019Hashi","building community, Design, culture","Alan will present about the cohousing \u2018secret sauce\u2019 which is the main ingredient for creating a strong and vibrant community, and particularly during these crazy times of the COVID-19 pandemic and related racial justice issues, cohousing is more important now than ever before. How can cohousers pour the secret sauce over the wider community? He\u2019ll present a case study about the forming Colorado Springs Healthy Co-Living Affordable Housing Community, which is a multi-organizational collaboration.\n"],["Cohousing Basics","Life is Better Together","Karin Hoskin, Alan O\u2019Hashi","cohousing, Vocabulary, building community","Karin will give a presentation about the basics of cohousing, general characteristics, and common vocabulary. Alan will introduce you to the cohousing \u2018secret sauce\u2019 which is the main condiment that adds cohesion and vibrancy to your forming and existing communities.\n"],["Cohousing Basics","Life is Better Together","Michelle Rodriguez, Barb Kohlhaas, Christina Rader","cohousing, living in cohousing","All at different life stages, all from different backgrounds and all in different circumstances \u2026 all choosing cohousing. These CVC members will share their stories and why cohousing is for them.\n"],["Cohousing Basics","What is Cohousing","Ann Zabaldo","cohousing, Vocabulary","Ann Zabaldo described key vocabulary for understanding and discussing cohousing. Interspersed with humor and many examples, this primer on the jargon will get you ready to talk about cohousing. \nHelpful links offered in the chat during this presentation:\nBook Creating Cohousing \nHarmony Village \nEastern Village\nCohousing Glossary \nFoundation for Intentional Community \n"],["Cohousing Basics","What is Cohousing","Vicky Wason, Linda Reed, Marina Price","Connecting, Community Systems, cohousing, community work","Wasatch Commons Neighbors Vicky Wason, Linda Reed, and Marina Price share about ways communities organize themselves to engage socially. From common meals to work days, they laid out the ways cohousers intentionally create space for connection.\n"],["Cohousing Basics","What is Cohousing","Mary Kraus","Design, design process, cohousing, Design Patterns","Mary Kraus shares her expertise on the physical design of cohousing. While every community is unique and there are many approaches to building the physical space for community, there are a number of patterns common throughout the movement.\nPresentation Slides\n"],["Cohousing Basics","What is Cohousing","Joe Cole","intentional, relationships, conflict, governance","Joe Cole described the primary reason we all join community to begin with: to be in relationship with each other. What does it mean to be in relationship? How do those relationships make us stronger and help us grow? Why do they matter? What is difficult about them? What about conflict?\nHelpful links offered in the chat during this presentation:\nBook: Sitting in the Fire\nSociocracy\nConsensus\nKolb\u2019s Learning Cycles\nTuckman\u2019s list\nRankism\nJoe\u2019s Webchat\n"],["Cohousing Basics","What is Cohousing","Karen Gimnig","cohousing, Resources","The Cohousing Association offers many great resources, most of them through their website. Communications Director, Karen Gimnig, describes the resources and gives a tour of the website for easier navigation.\n"],["Cohousing Basics","WebChat #19","Michael LaFond","cohousing, living in cohousing, coliving","Cohousing resident and architect, Michael LaFond, shares his experiences of cohousing in Germany. Different approaches to the same basic concepts of cohousing – self organized, community led, and sustainable, along with shared meals and common facilities.\n"],["Cohousing Basics","WebChat #14","Alan O\u2019Hashi","retrofit, site selection, cohousing, Buildings","For groups that want an easier start to a new cohousing community, making use of existing homes may do the trick. Alan guides us through the possibilities in this WebChat\n"],["Cohousing Basics","Cohousing 101","Crystal Byrd Farmer, Bryan Bowen, Mathilde Berthe, Trish Becker\r\n","","Join cohousing experts and dreamers alike as we explore the building blocks of community. This 2-hour virtual event seeks to educate and empower. Topics include:\nThe foundational principles of cohousing\nLingo and basics\nAn opportunity to connect with professionals in the field\nThe chance to ask your burning questions about collective living\n"],["Sustainability","Sharing and Caring","Connor Stedman","Design, permaculture, ecology, Environment","By understanding and regenerating the patterns and processes of ecosystems, communities can be designed for resilience in the face of climate disruption.\n"],["Sustainability","Sharing and Caring","Connor Steadman, James Childress","sustainability, cohousing","Panel discussion on sustainability and cohousing with Connor Steadman and James Childress\n"],["Sustainability","Cohousing Affordability","Laura Fitch","","This session will explore how a cohousing community can be uniquely positioned to push the edge of sustainability.\n"],["Sustainability","Bridges to Cohousing: Housing That's Green","Liz Walker, Erik Bonnett, Jesse Sherrie, Mike Wird, Sky Blue","","Human climate impact is a major concern affecting the way we live and need to live in the future as the earth continues to be harmed by human economic, lifestyle, and political choices.\nCohousing shows we can live a life using less and sharing more through community. Learn from sustainability experts on how cohousing can lower the ecological footprint of housing from materials and design during development to energy use and other practices once inhabited.\nLiz Walker and Sky Blue are long-time community veterans offering a perspective of living embedded within EcoVillage communities where sustainability drives all aspects of lifestyle and design. Both have spent decades advocating for community development in the US and abroad, and will be sharing based on powerful lived-experience of what works. \nMike Wird and Erik Bonnett are eco-designers with dynamic backgrounds empowering them to share about what kinds of design will be the most sustainable, particularly related to community design. They will be speaking about permaculture, green building materials, designing for energy efficiency and more.\n"],["Managing Property and Work","The Nuts and Bolts of Community","Bryan Bowen, Scott Drennan","workshop, Maintenance, Buildings","We will talk about how to get your community\u2019s work space or woodshop up and running, what to include, and how to manage it over time.\n"],["Managing Property and Work","The Nuts and Bolts of Community","Laura Fitch","community work, member participation, work participation","How do you get all your community work done? Each cohousing group needs to decide what tasks to include in community work, what system to use to connect each member with their tasks, how to organize meals work in particular, and whether and how to enforce work agreements. In this session, we will explore the \u201caffinity work system\u201d used at Pioneer Valley Cohousing which has just celebrated its 25th year and is still going strong thanks to a robust work system.\n"],["Managing Property and Work","The Nuts and Bolts of Community","Marilyn Chin, Lyndall Ellingson","emergency preparedness, cohousing","Living in community is not only the sharing of resources or common meals or participating in governance, it is also knowing what to do when an emergency occurs. This session will describe how one community developed its emergency preparedness and its 9-1-1 protocol through practice. This topic is targeted towards forming and established communities to thoughtfully anticipate and practice emergency scenarios from medical to catastrophic in order to minimize trauma.\n"],["Managing Property and Work","The Nuts and Bolts of Community","Mike Mariano","Common House, Resources","Inspired by the cohousing model of collaboration, mutual support, and trust, your community can bring generosity and abundance to sharing the use of the Common House and other spaces. Using examples from cohousing communities in the Pacific Northwest, Mike will share approaches to revenue generation, maintenance, and ongoing stewardship. A social equity lens will help identify resource contributions that are valued, meaningful, and more widely available to all those participating in community.\n"],["Managing Property and Work","Life is Better Together","Fran Larkin, Julie Lohre, Jeff Lawhead","member participation, community work","Members from three different cohousing communities will present their community\u2019s policies. Then open it for discussion with prompts such as \u2018is it important?\u2019 \u2018why is it important?\u2019 and \u2018how do we get more?!\u2019\n"],["Managing Property and Work","WebChat #36","Mary Kraus","community work, Community Systems, living in cohousing","Getting the work done in community requires a system. There is a great deal of variety in terms of the systems adopted by different communities. In this WebChat, Mary lays out the options and the choices communities need to make to design the system that works for them.\n"],["Managing Property and Work","WebChat #10","Laura Fitch","design process, design review, Buildings, living in cohousing","How do communities decide whether members can make changes to their homes the impact the rest of the community? Laura shares the Design Review process developed by her community over 20 years of experience living together.\n"],["Managing Property and Work","WebChat #9","Laird Schaub","work participation, member participation, policies, living in cohousing","Questions to guide your participation agreement.\nStrategies for making it work.\n"],["Managing Property and Work","Cohousing Over Time","Erik Bonnett","Buildings, retrofit, Maintenance, Community Systems","Does your heater keep breaking, are the windows drafty, or is the siding worn out? Maintenance projects can seem like a chore, but they are also opportunities to save money over time and to dramatically reduce your carbon footprint. \n"],["Managing Property and Work","Cohousing Over Time","Linda Tate","work participation, policy, Consensus, changes","This session will take attendees through the process of developing a new policy that addresses a contentious issue in the community: participation. Attendees will learn how Wild Sage members worked in a small team to deal with their competing views and to create true consensus, rather than simply compromise.\n"],["Managing Property and Work","Cohousing Over Time","Sharon Villines","","In my 25 years of studying and living in cohousing, I have drastically changed my view of workshare. Initially I was wedded to the idea of measuring and reporting time. I tracked my work on spreadsheets. I designed a database, defined jobs, estimated hours, etc. In the end I was the least interested in filling out my forms. But workshare was finally going very well at Takoma Village. What was working?\n"],["Meals and Social","The Nuts and Bolts of Community","Sheila Hoffman, Spencer Beard","frequency of common meals, meals","Learn one simple and effective approach to your community\u2019s meal program with no money changing hands. What makes it work and how can you adapt it to your planned or existing community? Hear from two founders, vegans, who visited many communities to synthesize their successful 3x week, 100% participation meal program.\nLink to resources: Meal Program\n"],["Meals and Social","The Nuts and Bolts of Community","Lydia Thrasher, Vlad Barash\r\n\r\n","social teams, socializing, events","How do you manage the social life of your community, especially if your community doesn\u2019t share a living space yet? Bay State Commons will share their approach to socializing \u2013 how we inspire our members (and prospective members!) to have fun together and get to know each other better. We\u2019ll discuss BSC\u2019s system for planning and hosting social events, including: scheduling, assigning teams, budgeting, how the system\u2019s evolved as our community has grown, examples of past event ideas, and most importantly, the challenges and achievements of staying connected in the age of quarantine.\n"],["Getting it Built","Stepping Into Cohousing","Molly Jones and Bryan Bowen","forming communities, Professionals, Hiring professionals, Design, building community","This session will describe the various structures within which communities, architects and contractors can work together, explore the pros and cons of each and assist you in choosing the one that is best for your community. \n"],["Getting it Built","Stepping into Cohousing","Katie McCamant","development, forming communities, building community, construction","How do we actually get our project built? How have other groups done this? Should we self-develop? Do we need a developer? What do developers do? How do we find one? What other professionals do we need? Katie McCamant, who has worked as an architect, project manager, development consultant, and developer with cohousing groups for the last 30 years will present how cohousing groups have gotten their projects built, outlining the pluses and minuses of different development scenarios, using real case studies of past and current projects to help participants evaluate the best way for their community to move forward. \n"],["Getting it Built","WebChat #38","Katie McCamant","development, Developing, forming communities, cohousing","Cohousing development is a long and complex process which can be divided into stages. Each stage has different tasks and challenges and requires different resources and skills to navigate successfully. In this WebChat, Katie will describe the stages and what is needed to successfully complete each one.\n"],["Getting it Built","WebChat #8","Katie McCamant","building community, Buildings, forming communities, Hiring professionals","Hiring Professionals to Get Your Community Built\nWho do you need, in what order?\nCriteria: Who are you looking for?\nKeys to a successful relationship\nHiring from within your group\n"],["Design","Stepping Into Cohousing","Grace Kim","Design, design process, Diversity, Affordability, racism, forming communities","Many cohousing groups start off with a strong desire to include diversity and affordability\u2026but very few actually achieve these ideals by the time they move in. This session will address definitions of affordability and diversity; discuss intentions around inclusion; the pervasiveness of systemic racism and how it affects life in community; and the training and discussions required to prepare residents for success.\n"],["Design","Stepping into Cohousing","Mary Kraus, Katie McCamant, Grace Kim, Molly Jones","design process, architect, Design","So you want to get your cohousing community designed and built. How do you secure an architectural team to help you bring your visions into form, on time, within budget, and fostering positive relationships in the process? Learn from a panel of four seasoned cohousing professionals. Ample time for questions.\n"],["Design","Stepping into Cohousing","Mathilde Berthe, Erik Bonnett","Design, building community, forming communities, Environment, sustainability","Homes which are adapted to their unique climate save energy and are more resilient. Not only is climate-adapted design a foundation of addressing climate change, it also supports a more meaningful connection with your environment and your community. This session will explore how. \n"],["Design","The Heart of Community","Mary Kraus","Design, design process, Connecting","A well-run participatory design process is one of the first opportunities for cohousing groups to build their social community before they move in. In this session, I describe a methodology for participatory design that is both highly effective and deeply enjoyable, helping you build strong bonds with your future neighbors.\n"],["Design","Sharing and Caring","Connor Stedman ","permaculture, cohousing","Let\u2019s take what you learned in the Permaculture Theory session and see how it applies in the outside real world! In this session Connor talks about how he applied his knowledge of permaculture in working with Rocky Corner Cohousing.\n"],["Design","WebChat #32","Laura Fitch","architecture, design process, Design, decisions, Group Process","Making decisions about architectural design is complicated and potential stressful. Up front \u201cprogramming\u201d is critical. We\u2019ll discuss ideas for successful design decision making.\n"],["Design","WebChat #24","Chuck Durrett","Design, design process, living in cohousing, building community","If it doesn’t work socially, Why bother? Cohousing Architect Chuck Durrett shares about the design process that creates spaces that work socially and support strong cohousing communities.\n"],["Design","WebChat #15","Grace Kim","Common House, Design, cohousing, living in cohousing","Acoustics for your common house will be essential to supporting good conversation. Learn the basics and avoid common mistakes.\n"],["Design","Cohousing Affordability","Kristen Uitto & Stephen Eckert","","This presentation will focus on ways to work effectively with design professionals to avoid added cost. It will also identify ways to affordably design units from a space planning aspect to the selection of materials. We will also touch on partnerships that can help build in affordability. Finally it will ask the question, what elements of the process are anti-affordable?\n"],["Coronavirus","Connecting in Cohousing","Mukunda Das","conflict, Facilitation","A conversation about co-existing with our differences as society opens up after covid and vaccines are available. Everyone is invited to participate and share their experience, learning, and thinking about what it takes to co-exist peacefully and lovingly while holding different perspectives on health, safety and community. \n"],["Coronavirus","Webchat #56","Karen Gimnig","community check up, Coronavirus, cohousing, living in cohousing","A community check-in. How are we doing? What do we need?\n"],["Coronavirus","Webchat #53","Karin Hoskin, Karen Gimnig","Coronavirus, community, transition","After Covid-19, the world and our communities will be changed. Looking ahead to the end of the pandemic, How will we, as communities, transition to our new normal? What will the new normal look like? What good things have we discovered through this crisis that we will keep going forward?\n"],["Coronavirus","Webchat #52 ","Karin Hoskin, Karen Gimnig","Coronavirus, cohousing, living in cohousing, Connecting","A little over a month since our last community check-in, we connect and see what everyone is doing now, what\u2019s working, where there is struggle, and ways we can help one another.\n"],["Coronavirus","WebChat #49","Gretchen Brauer-Rieke, RN, MSN","policies, Coronavirus, PDX Commons","Gretchen Brauer-Rieke, RN, MSN and a member of the health team at PDX Commons will be with us to share the tools PDXC is using to prepare for potential Covid-19 illness within the community. Given the statistical likelihood that over the months to come their community will experience Covid-19 illness, the health team has developed detailed plans for containing the illness with compassion and care while giving as much support as possible to ill neighbors. Ranging from simple tasks like buying a thermometer to complex protocols for traversing shared spaces as you leave the community for medical care, this case study will help any community prepare for the current pandemic as well as more common occurrences of illness in community. Note that we\u2019ve reserved 90 minutes for this rich topic. \nVideo links:\nPDXC Next Steps Video\nAdvance Planning Video\n"],["Coronavirus","WebChat #48 ","Karin Hoskin, Karen Gimnig","Coronavirus, Finance, Community support","One of the impacts of COVID-19 for communities and community members is financial strain. Here, we talk about how communities can support one another, specifically as it relates to finances. And because we know that laughter helps us stay healthy, we\u2019ll be interspersing this serious topic with our favorite COVID-19 humor. Please bring your ideas and your jokes. We\u2019ll have opportunities to share both.\n"],["Coronavirus","WebChat #47 ","Karin Hoskin, Karen Gimnig","Coronavirus, Community support, living in cohousing, community","Communities share their strategies for living together in the time of coronavirus and their stories of coming together as communities in these time.\n"],["Coronavirus","WebChat #46","Joren Bass ","Coronavirus, development, construction, Finance","Joren Bass \u2013 Senior Development Manager for Urban Development Partners (UDP) discussed adjustments UDP is seeing in the development, lending and construction landscape during this pandemic. He discussed steps forming communities can take to keep on track with the development process while managing equity reserves. We also looked at how communities can optimize their position coming out of the current slowdown. Cameo appearances from Katie McCamant and Jim Leach.\n"],["Coronavirus","WebChat #45","Karin Hoskin, Karen Gimnig","Coronavirus, forming communities, Marketing, new members","Forming communities have particular needs in the cohousing world and never moreso than during a pandemic. We\u2019ll consider how to attract and engage with new members, the ways stress shows up differently for groups that do not live together yet, and the concerns that you bring about your experiences.\nSummary\n"],["Coronavirus","WebChat #44","Karin Hoskin, Karen Gimnig, Raines Cohen, Alan O\u2019Hashi","Coronavirus, Open House, Tours","An Open House is a great way for a community to share the good news about cohousing, which is why we do one on a national scale each spring. This year we\u2019re thinking some communities may be looking for some alternative approaches to sharing with others. In this WebChat, National Cohousing Open House Day Coordinator Raines Cohen and CohoUS Board President Alan O\u2019Hashi share some ideas, including an example of a tour video. Bring your ideas too, the more the merrier as we get creative in the face of challenges.\nSummary\n"],["Coronavirus","WebChat #43","Karin Hoskin, Karen Gimnig","Coronavirus, isolation, emotional health, living in cohousing","Coronovirus is impacting more than our physical health. This WebChat explores the impact of isolation on our emotions, considering also the toll of worry for our health and for our economy in this time of uncertainty. While we keep our bodies safe, how do we also protect our emotional health? We gathered on zoom in our usual way for a time of sharing and discussion. What is your community doing? What is working? What isn\u2019t? What are the ways in which living in community makes us resilient? What are the unique concerns and resources that come with living together?\n"],["Coronavirus","WebChat #42","Karin Hoskin, Karen Gimnig","public health concerns, Coronavirus, Connecting, Community support, individual differences","As communities listen and respond to current events, it seems like a good moment to come together online and talk about how cohousing interfaces with public health concerns. What practices do communities use to stay healthy? How do we take action as a community in the face of individual differences when the stakes are high? How do we balance the competing needs for safety, connection and mutual support?\nWe gathered on zoom in our usual way for a time of sharing and discussion. What is your community doing? What is working? What isn\u2019t? What are the ways in which living in community makes us resilient? What are the unique concerns and resources that come with living together?\nNotes\n"],["Tours & Events","Life is Better Together","Dick Kohlhaas, Joan Huntley","Tours, Common House","Founding members Dick and Joan will give a virtual tour of Casa Verde describing life there while pointing out some features of the community. You\u2019ll even get a peak inside one of the units!\n"],["Tours & Events","WebChat #55","Neil Planchon & Raines Cohen","events, open space","Neil and Raines describe the concept of open space events and we introduce the online coho version: 2020 Cohousing Open\n"],["Tours & Events","Webchat #22","Raines Cohen","events, Past events, Open House","National Cohousing Open House \n"],["Tours & Events","International Cohousing Summit","Federico Bisschop","","Virtual tour of Botanico in Belgium\nCohousing BotaniCo is part of the Hertogensite in the heart of Leuven. The former school was renovated into 28 sustainable apartments. In addition to a private apartment, the residents enjoy spacious communal functions. They share a large kitchen for parties, dining space, laundry room, guest bedrooms, children’s play area and hobby rooms. There is also a spacious city garden, parking spaces and a bicycle shed. The houses are equipped with quality materials and the latest sustainable techniques: underfloor heating and sanitary hot water via geothermal drilling.\n"],["Tours & Events","International Cohousing Summit","Frances Wright","","Virtual Tour of Marmalade Lane in the UK with Frances Wright\nhttp:\/\/www.marmaladelane.co.uk\/\n"],["Tours & Events","International Cohousing Summit","Bruce Moore","","Virtual Tour of Housing 21 in the UK\nhttps:\/\/www.housing21.org.uk\/our-properties\/cohousing\/\n"],["Tours & Events","International Cohousing Summit","Marcus Zilker","","Virtual Tour of Gleis 21 and Audewide\n"],["Tours & Events","International Cohousing Summit","Federico Bisschop","","Indruk in Antwerp Virtual Tour\n"],["Tours & Events","International Cohousing Summit","Alicia Delashmutt and Myfan Jordan","","Cohousing has attracted a homogenous demographic population. In this session we will hear from Alicia Delashmutt from Our Home in Portland, OR who is developing a cohousing community where people with intellectual and developmental disabilities will be an integral part of the community. We will also hear from Myfan Jordan who is developing cohousing in Australia for LGBTQIA+ youth using the pivot model.\n"],["Tours & Events","International Cohousing Summit","Video","","Virtual tour of Durham Central Park Cohousing (USA)\ndurhamcoho.com\/virtual-tour\n"],["Tours & Events","International Cohousing Summit","Bryan Bowen","","Virtual Tour of Memel Cohousing in South Africa\n https:\/\/memel.global\n"],["Tours & Events","International Cohousing Summit","Kathy McGrenera","","Virtual Tour of Little Mountain Cohousing in Vancouver BC Canada \n\n\n"],["Tours & Events","International Cohousing Summit","Mike Mariano","","Capitol Hill Urban Cohousing in Seattle, WA\nhttps:\/\/capitolhillurbanwww.cohousing.org\n"],["Tours & Events","Loving Cohousing","Alan O'Hashi & Raines Cohen","","National Cohousing Open House Days are coming up April 22-23, just two months from now. How can you show your love for your community effectively, online or in person? Come learn from a coordinator of the event and a video production expert. It can be fun and easy to show off the best of your community, and you can even get a wide range of community members involved to spread the load.\n"],["Meetings","WebChat #51","Karen Gimnig, Megan Shea","meetings, remote meetings, Technology, Connecting, communication","Karen Gimnig and Megan Shea lead us through a selection of technology tools and best practices to make remote meetings effective and engaging. During the interactive demonstration, attendees share their experiences and perspectives. The focus of part two is deepening connection.\n"],["Meetings"," WebChat #50 ","Megan Shea, Karen Gimnig","meetings, remote meetings, Resources, tips and tools","Tips and tricks for effective online meetings. Tools include zoom, polls, and jamboards, along with best practices.\n"],["Meetings","WebChat #16","Karen Gimnig","Facilitation, Group Process, living in cohousing, cohousing","Making clear agreements with the group gives a facilitator credibility and creates safety.\n"],["Meetings","WebChat #11","Ted Rau","living in cohousing, Group Process, meetings, sociocracy, minutes","How can one set up meeting agendas and meeting minutes so we can make things easy and transparent? How can we share information within a cohousing group?\n"],["Meetings","WebChat #6","Alan O\u2019Hashi","living in cohousing, Consensus, Facilitation, culture shift","Shifting from Transaction to Transformation\n1. Set Boundaries, Norms and Expectations\n2. Empowered Heart Keeper\n3. Space Management\n4. Negative Polling\n"],["Meetings","WebChat #1","Jerry Koch-Gonzalez","meetings, Facilitation, Group Process, living in cohousing, agenda","Facilitators lead meetings for cohousing communities. Jerry guides us through facilitation from setting an agenda to implementing clear process for the meeting. \n"],["Kids & Teens","Stepping into Cohousing","Trish Becker","Children, parenting, new members","This session will feature a moderated panel of parents currently living in, or seeking, a cohousing community. Together, we will explore the strategies and roadblocks to attracting and retaining families with children. We hope to create an enlightening and authentic space for both forming communities and parents exploring the possibility of raising children in community.\n"],["Kids & Teens","The Heart of Community","Gina Simm","Children, Connecting","What supports the connection that we value for our cohousing children? What discourages it? After an exploration of these questions, I will share some systems I\u2019ve developed for optimizing the connections between kid to kid, kid to families and kid to neighbors. \nPresentation Slides\n"],["Kids & Teens","The Heart of Community","Jasper Brockett, Adam Robinson, Claudia Thiem","Growing up, Children","Attendees will hear three prospectives of growing up in community. Jasper is a 17 year old who has lived in cohousing since he was 1; he believes community can meet you where you need it when growing up. Adam is a parent of two teen daughters and plays the non-nonsense \u2018uncle\u2019 to many of the community kids. Claudia is raising two younger kids (ages 5 & 8) who were lucky to have an in community Oma (German \u2018grandma\u2019).\n"],["Kids & Teens","Cohousing Over Time","Kellie Teter","kids, multigenerational, conflict, common meals","What can Co-housers do to avoid the kids and adults being at odds, with an “us vs. them” sentiment? Learn how we have become more skilled at incorporating our children and young people into decision making, into community building, and generally managing our adult anxieties about the life and well-being of what we call “our children”, in order to improve the lives of all our members.\n"],["Consensus","Connecting in Cohousing","Karen Gimnig","decisions, Consensus, sociocracy, governance","There is a good bit of complexity in collaborative decision-making. This session will review many elements to consider when deciding who will make decisions and how those decisions will be made using a tool Karen calls \u201cDecision Bingo\u201d. Before you watch this session you might want to print this bingo card and bring your dry beans or paperclips for markers. This is going to be fun!\n"],["Consensus","Stepping into Cohousing","Karen Gimnig","process, communication, Connecting, building community, relationships, Consensus, Conflict Resolution","Community and connection are reliably the most significant goals of any cohousing community, yet support for community relationships generally makes up less than 1% of the development budget. In this session we\u2019ll talk about how and when to use that budget to most effectively build the communication, conflict and consensus skills your community needs.\n"],["Consensus","The Nuts and Bolts of Community","Jenevieve Russell","policies, community documents, community check up","Remember your guiding documents? Do they need to be updated or reviewed? Are they dusty or are they living, breathing documents? Have some ideas of what could use some changes, not sure where to start? Let\u2019s get together to workshop some practical ways and ideas together! \n"],["Consensus","The Heart of Community","Laird Schaub","Consensus, Policy-Consensus\/Decision Making","Consensus is the most popular choice in community decision-making, but that doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s easy. In this session I\u2019ll walk through where the hard spots are and what you can do about it. \n"],["Consensus","WebChat #29","Laird Schaub","Group Process, living in cohousing, communication, Consensus, Policy-Consensus\/Decision Making","How to determine what needs to be discussed at plenary, and then to delegate well to avoid frustration and burn out.\n"],["Consensus","WebChat #4","Yana Ludwig","Consensus, decisions, Policy-Consensus\/Decision Making, culture, culture shift, Conflict Resolution","Doing consensus well requires proficiency in two related areas: the structures of consensus decision making and the culture of consensus. Many structures will work if the the culture is solid. The reverse, however, is not the case. Even with very strong structures, you are likely to have problems if the competitive culture we have been taught prevails over the collaborative culture of consensus.\n"],["Consensus","WebChat #3","Laird Schaub","living in cohousing, communication, working with emotions, conflict, Group Process","Working with emotions isn’t optional. The only decision is whether we will have a plan for how to deal with them when they show up. Most often when support is needed we are working with fear or anger. In this WebChat Laird explains how to bridge into the experience of the person in distress by matching their energy and hearing their perspective.\nBlog post\n"],["Conflict","Connecting in Cohousing","Shilpa Jain","conlict, Connecting, relationships","As West African elder, Malidoma Som\u00e9 says, \u201cConflict is the spirit of the relationship asking itself to deepen.\u201d Join YES! Executive Director Shilpa Jain for a heart-opening and thought-provoking conversation on building bridges and working with conflicts. She\u2019ll offer a look at what stands in our way as well as share a few practices to bring more awareness and better equip ourselves to transform breakdowns into breakthroughs \u2014 to bring forth connection, wholeness, and healing, for ourselves, each other and our world.\n"],["Conflict","Connecting in Cohousing","Martie Weatherly","conflict, Consensus, Vision and Values","Welcome Conflict! How do we do that?\n\u2022 Listen with honor and respect\n\u2022 Don\u2019t shy away from people who are \u2018different\u2019.\n\u2022 Discover common values.\n\u2022 Be curious about finding common ground.\n\u2022 Interactive with Q&A along the way\n"],["Conflict","Connecting in Cohousing","Joe Cole","conflict, Grief, relationships, communication","A conversation about reconnecting and restoring relationships after a difficult conflict or fracture in the community. Conflict occurs in every community, and some of those conflicts have lasting impacts across the community. Everyone is welcome to come and share their experience, learning and thinking about how to navigate the grief, loss, and disappointment that can remain after the primary conflict is resolved.\n"],["Conflict","Connecting in Cohousing","Alan O\u2019Hashi","Conflict Resolution, conflict","We will learn how to hold moving targets accountable for their roles in a conflict. The target becomes a bystander, the instigator becomes the victim, the ally becomes a bully. Run of the mill disagreements in a community is not like the criminal justice system where there is a bad guy who must pay for their actions.\n"],["Conflict","Connecting in Cohousing","Gina Simm","conflict, Conflict Resolution","A Menu of Offerings to Keep Ourselves Connected: I will present a comprehensive view of how connection in community can be sustained through a formalized system of social\/emotional offerings. Attendees will gain a sense of how the community is being cared for from both the point of view of individuals in distress and of the community at large. This presentation is for anyone interested in how we attend to the emotional pulse of the community.\n"],["Conflict","Life is Better Together","Joan Huntley, Angela Sullivan, Chris Rodriguez","Policy-Consensus\/Decision Making, conflict, culture, Consensus, Conflict Resolution","These Casa Verde Commons members will talk about things that can lead to conflict within a community and how the consensus process helps resolve them. Sometimes conflict resolution evolves into new CVC\u2019s policies. Joan and Angela will provide insight into policy development and approval.\n"],["Conflict","The Heart of Community","William Aal","conflict, Conflict Resolution, power dynamics","Explore the nature of conflict, how power dynamics and trauma impact conflict. Discover how to use healthy conflict to improve relationships in community.\n"],["Conflict","The Heart of Community","Elizabeth Magill","Connecting, Conflict Resolution","Resolving most conflict requires a reconnection of the conflicted parties. But how do we get them to talk to each other? What should we say? What are we listening for? What if they refuse? We\u2019ll discuss the how to help your neighbors engage with conflict.\n"],["Conflict","Sharing and Caring","Gina Simm","Community support, Community Systems","Case study of the systems that Pioneer Valley Cohousing Community has put in place through their Care and Counsel Circle\n"],["Conflict","WebChat #39","Karen Gimnig","personal growth, cohousing, living in cohousing","Cohousing is sometimes called the longest personal growth workshop ever. At the same time, we\u2019re sometimes afraid to mention this to potential cohousers we don\u2019t want to scare off. In this WebChat, Karen celebrates the tremendous power of cohousing to make us better humans. She also explains why growth is such a reliable part of cohousing, shares strategies for getting the most growth out of our cohousing experience and gives some tips on what to do when it is someone else\u2019s growth we\u2019d like to make happen.\n"],["Conflict","WebChat #37","Diana Leafe Christian","living in cohousing, group dynamics, Group Process, individual differences, Disruptive Behaviors","After serving as a consultant for cohousing communities and other kinds of intentional communities and living in community herself for many years, Diana has seen four kinds of disturbing, disruptive behaviors that become painful and disheartening for the group. She will share what seems to work well in better understanding and dealing effectively with each of these kinds of challenging behaviors in community. (This is an encore of Diana\u2019s previous WebChat that was interrupted by technical difficulties.)\n"],["Conflict","WebChat #31","Joe Cole","personal growth, conflict, living in cohousing, anti-racism, systemic racism, culture shift","Community invites us to personal transformation in many ways, including through conflict. Joe shares strategies for working with conflict in community. He also explains how our work in community can help address systemic racism, particularly if we are intentional about naming it and paying attention to how racism shows up for us as individuals and in community.\n"],["Conflict","WebChat #30","Karen Gimnig","conflict, personal growth, relationships, living in cohousing","Conflict is part of community life. When we embrace conflict as an opportunity for growth and learn the skills to engage productively, conflict can result in more connection and stronger relationships.\n"],["Conflict","WebChat #18","Liz Magill","behavior, conflict, Conflict Resolution, Policy-Conflict Resolution","Conflict: Interpersonal or Systemic\nLiz talks us through how a community support committee can determine whether a conflict presented to them is an interpersonal conflict involving only a couple of people or a systemic problem needing a full community solution.\n"],["Conflict","Cohousing Over Time","Georgia Handforth","conflict, Conflict Resolution, individual differences, communication, 2020 Simple Series, Vision and Values","This is a structured discussion designed to explore the experiences and concerns of longtime cohousers, those seeking community, and everyone in between around how to navigate conflicts and values differences in community. We will draw on lived experiences to practice communication and coaching skills that can be brought back to home communities.\n"],["Marketing","Stepping Into Cohousing","Shelly Parks","explorer members, Marketing, forming communities, new members","Shelly will share her top tips including what to say on a first call, how to talk about your forming or developing community in a compelling way, what kind of effective follow up is needed after an event, how to have a \u201cclosing\u201d conversation, and more.\n"],["Marketing","WebChat #33","Alan O\u2019Hashi","forming communities, Marketing, culture, building community, new members","I\u2019ve been fielding a lot of questions about how to get started with forming a community. Some folks have been at it for a while but haven\u2019t been able to gain any traction. What are some reasons why this happens? In this webchat I\u2019ll provide a way to write your community story to narrow down your \u201cmarket\u201d to improve the chances to attract the people who may be interested in joining your community.\n"],["Marketing","WebChat #28","Raines Cohen, Betsy Morris","Marketing, buying, real estate, living in cohousing","Whether you are looking to join a cohousing community or inviting others to do the same, the process is different than a typical real estate deal. Betsy and Raines walk us through some of the differences and walk us through the process.\n"],["Marketing","WebChat #27","Shelly Parks","Marketing, events, new members","Tips for making the most of your marketing events, engaging prospective members, and moving them to the next step of membership.\n"],["Marketing","WebChat #12","Shelly Parks","Marketing, explorer members, orientation","Onboarding Explorers\n"],["Marketing","International Cohousing Summit","Owen Jarvis and Shelly Parks","","One of the major challenges for forming groups is resources for how to get started and recruiting new members. The UK has developed \u201cstarter kits\u201d for forming groups and Owen Jarvis will share how those initiatives were funded and created. \nShelly Parks is a marketing professional in the US who has helped many communities, including her own, recruit members in the pre-development stage. She will share her top 3 tips for successfully recruiting and maintaining members prior to move-in.\n"],["Communication","Connecting in Cohousing","Sarah Arthurs","communication, Connecting, relationships, Peter Block","The attendees will participate in structured sharing in groups of three and in the large group as a way to deepen relationships. We will explore different kinds of questions and structures, based on the work of Peter Block, Community: the Structure of Belonging,\nthat enable people to experience closeness with each other. \n"],["Communication","The Nuts and Bolts of Community","Sean Davey","Web design, Resources, Community organization","Mosaic is a custom web application that is specifically designed to meet the online organizational needs of cohousing communities. The basics of Mosaic will be presented, followed by a roundtable discussion about how web apps could improve and meet community needs that aren\u2019t currently being met.\nGet more information about on the website Mosaic Websites for communities \n"],["Communication","The Heart of Community","Mary Gaylord","communication, community, listening","If ever there was a time to lean into our shared humanity, this is it. There is an African proverb that says \u201cif you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.\u201d Together, we can forge and strengthen connection and community in spite of our differences. We can listen better, communicate better, and understand better, even when we disagree. More than anything, this requires intention and the willingness to practice. Mary Gaylord is the Managing Partner of Living Room Conversations, an organization that has developed over 100 conversation guides on a variety of topics that can sometimes be challenging to talk about with friends, strangers, and even loved ones of differing backgrounds and political persuasions. Join us as Mary shares insights, inspiration, and practical ideas for initiating and nurturing healthy communication and connection with each other \u2014 even when it\u2019s not easy! \n"],["Communication","The Heart of Community","Karen Gimnig","communication, listening, Connecting","Studies tells us that less than 20% of what is said actually gets heard by the listener. We\u2019ll learn a simple (though not always easy) strategy for hearing each other more effectively and deepening our sense of connection.\n"],["Communication","The Nuts and Bolts of Community","Rob Peck","Group Process, group dynamics, communication, conflict","High functioning communities are always a blend of head smarts and heart smarts. They know how to synergize IQ and EQ to tap into their collective intelligence, and harness their combined WeQ (group wisdom) by playing to people\u2019s strengths, and pooling their resources.\nIn this enlivening keynote, motivational humorist Rob Peck points out that to really do \u201cthe coho math\u201d core principles have to become common practices. Key steps include shifting from the Golden Rule to The Platinum Rule, persistently applying Stephen Covey\u2019s 5th Habit (of Highly Effective People) and rigorously remembering a 9 word aphorism- Validate, Before You Advocate What You Want To Initiate (and for extra credit, a \u201ccomplementary 6 letter acronym\u201d; WHOOPS When Humans Overcome Obstacles, Providence Smiles!)\nFind more about Rob’s work at Zestworks\n"],["Communication","WebChat #7","Ronnie Rosenbaum","living in cohousing, communication, orientation, NVC, listening","Improving Communication for individuals and communities.\n1. Individual Communication Skills\n– goal is connection\n– focus on hearing and understanding\n– be aware of feelings and needs\n– apply Non-Violent Communication\n– practice\n2. Community Practices for Communication\n– have clear expectations\n– orientation for new members\n– designated facilitator with some skills\n– clear email guidelines\n– comment box\n– communicate institutional memory\n– transparency\n– training\n– social capital meetings\n"],["Communication","WebChat #2","Karen Gimnig","living in cohousing, Connecting, conflict, listening, meetings, Group Process","We join cohousing communities because we are looking for connection, but it can take a long time for us to move past “company manners” and begin to feel connected to our neighbors. In this WebChat Karen explains how using mirroring, a part of Imago Dialogue, can help us get connected faster. This, in turn makes our group more stable, our meeting more effective and our conflicts more productive. \nMirroring Exercise\nBlog Post\n"],["Sociocracy","Connecting in Cohousing","Wendy Pearle","sociocracy, governance, forming communities","Creating a cohousing community? What about a dynamic and effective system of decision making which is also a form of self governance that allows everyone\u2019s voice to be heard and creates solutions that are within everyone\u2019s preference or at least range of tolerance. Sociocracy in action from a forming community.\n"],["Sociocracy","Stepping into Cohousing","Ted Rau, Sociocracy for All","community work, member participation, sociocracy","In many forming groups, it\u2019s the founder(s) or a small core group that makes many decisions and does most of the work \u2013 often burning out people. But it doesn\u2019t have to be that way! Roles and clearly empowered circles are a way to provide clarity and to spread authority so all voices can be heard.\n"],["Sociocracy","The Heart of Community","Ted Rau","sociocracy, governance","The beginning is the most important part of the work.\u201d The decision-making system you use in your forming group will set your culture for years or decades to come. Set it up with clarity, intentionality and flexibility in the beginning, and you will thank yourselves later! Dynamic Governance (aka sociocracy) is ready to grow as you grow. \n"],["Sociocracy","Sharing and Caring ","Ted Rau","sociocracy, Dynamic governance, governance","Many communities, including cohousing communities worldwide, are using Dynamic Governance (DG, or \u2018sociocracy\u2019) to self-manage, enjoying its clarity and ease.\n"],["Sociocracy","Sharing and Caring","Dick Margulis, Ted Rau","sociocracy, Food, common meals","Breaking bread together is an ancient way to promote community. What are the ethical considerations when shared community values give way to diverse personal values? Participants model a sociocratic process to demonstrate a way to discuss these potentially contentious issues.\n"],["Sociocracy","WebChat #25","Ted Rau","sociocracy, Group Process, living in cohousing","Learn how to facilitate rounds, when to use them, and how to make the most of them.\n"],["Sociocracy","WebChat #5","Ted Rau","living in cohousing, Group Process, meetings, sociocracy","Ted describes three strategies to keep meetings short:\n– small group mandate\n– creating clarity around process\n– consent decision making\n"],["Sociocracy","Cohousing Over Time","Ted Rau","Dynamic governance, sociocracy","Are you using sociocracy (Dynamic Governance) in your community? Interested in adding on a few helpful tweaks? In this session, we will add backlog logistics, agenda templates, continuing education ideas, tweaked selection processes, operational roles, review processes and large group feedback – you might use some but probably not all of them yet! This course is better for people with experience – but also less experienced folks will be able to use these tweaks, even beyond sociocratic groups.\n"],["Sociocracy","Cohousing Over Time","Jerry Koch-Gonzalez","Dynamic governance, governance, Consensus","How can an established community transition from consensus decision-making to dynamic governance\/sociocracy? What are the potential benefits? What are the potential challenges?\n"],["Sociocracy","Loving Cohousing","Pati Beaudoin","","A brief introduction to Sociocracy followed by a description of how Sociocracy has contributed to loving community at Kawartha Commons Cohousing. This talk uses various components of Sociocracy, including rounds, check-ins, check-outs, and objections, as examples illustrating both the process of creating a loving community and loving to live in community.\n"],["Community Culture","Connecting in Cohousing","CJ O'Reilly","egalitarian, culture, social justice, Consensus, sociocracy","How can a community help develop and maintain a culture of equitable and empowered membership? How can we make decisions effectively as a group? No matter your governance system, from Sociocracy, to majority vote or consensus, or whatever hybrid, there are many tools and which can be applied to help empower and balance voices, participation and decision making.\nThis presentation is an introduction to some basic principles of effective egalitarian governance and ways to inject or build that culture in community settings. The presentation will include a balance of group participation and presentation.\n"],["Community Culture","The Heart of Community","Sky Blue","Cooperation, culture","The culture of individualism we\u2019ve been steeped in does not prepare us for living in community. We want a culture of cooperation and caring, but our hopes and dreams run counter to our training. This session will look at how c1ooperative groups can address the culture they want to leave behind and foster the culture they want.\n"],["Community Culture","The Heart of Community","Alan O\u2019Hashi","introvert, Connecting","When you decide you want to live with a bunch of people, collaborate with them on making decisions about your community, socialize with each other, why is it important to get to know your neighbors on more than a superficial level? The data are these \u2013 65percent of the time, a cohouser is an introvert. In this interesting and insightful workshop, you\u2019ll get a taste about the importance of knowing about the continuum between these two personality type\n"],["Community Culture","The Heart of Community","Rebecca Hogue","Community Retreats, online, building community","In this session, we will share how we keep our community connected through online retreats. We needed to find a way to stay connected virtually while working through challenges posed during design development. Our retreats are a mix of business and community building helping us stay connected to one another.\nSession 3\n"],["Community Culture","The Heart of Community","Sarah Arthurs","Connecting, Mindfulness","Cohousers are often folk with spiritual practises . This workshop will be a combination of sharing as well as an introduction to spiritual practice which can support and deepen your cohousing experience . \n"],["Community Culture","WebChat #35","Sky Blue, Avi Kruley","Intentional community, cohousing, culture shift, cultural awareness, culture","Humanity is in crisis. The feedback loop between larger society, the communities we live in, and our personal experiences reinforce systems of privilege and oppression that create harm\u2013harm for people and the planet. As microcosms of (and alternatives to) mainstream society, intentional communities can help us understand ways to shift out of this harm. But what makes something an intentional community, and how is it relevant? To what extent does an intentional community counteract or reinforce systems of harm, and how can we do better? This presentation will provide a deeper understanding of and criteria for these multifaceted experiments known as intentional communities, as well as their relationship to society, current impact, and potential to support the transformation of our world.\n"],["Community Culture","WebChat #26","Alan O\u2019Hashi","introvert, living in cohousing, iindividuals, individual differences, Group Process","Introverts Unite: Cohousing is your hedge against isolation\nThere aren’t a lot of data out there about this, but a scholarly article by gerontologist Ann Glass, phD from the University of North Carolina – Wilmington indicates that in one sample, 65% of senior cohousers are introverts. Why is this topic of interest to me? I’m an introvert – Myers Briggs INFP to be exact. Introverts have a particular role in community, and there are great strategies for working effectively with introverts in community process.\n"],["Community Culture","WebChat #13","Yana Ludwig","Cooperation, culture, collaboration, living in cohousing, cohousing, culture shift","Yana shares her experience with cooperative culture and the need for balance as we shift away from the competitive culture we learned growing up to a collaborative culture that includes discernment. Yana shares valuable strategies for any collaborative community.\nCooperative Culture Handbook\n"],["Community Culture","Cohousing Over Time","Sky Blue","","Becoming a stable, established community is something to celebrate. It can also bring a whole slate of problems that may not pose an existential danger, but can drain the life out of a community. This doesn\u2019t have to just be the way it is. If we come together and embrace the challenge a whole new world of community is possible.\n"],["Community Culture","Loving Cohousing","Trish Becker","","An inspiring opening keynote by the new CohoUS Executive Director.\n"],["Community Culture","Loving Cohousing","Jerry Koch-Gonzalez","","This session shows a brief provocative video and then do role-plays to explore how to get past emotional traffic jams. The focus is on skill development and to understand the dance between empathy and self-expression. 1. listening to understand 2. expressing ourselves to be understood This session is based on the theory and practice of Nonviolent Communication (NVC).\n"],["Community Culture","Loving Cohousing","Peg Boettcher, Joyce Harvey-Morgan, Shelly Parks","","Nurturing member relationships in a developing community takes extra effort during these times. Peg Boettcher, Joyce Harvey-Morgan and Shelly Parks of Skagit Commons, a community under construction in Anacortes, Washington, will share what they’ve learned about fostering fun and making deeper connections with one another as they prepare to live together. Tips will include how to humanize general meetings, develop fun and engaging “happy hour” topics, and create strategies for meaningful internal communication.\n"],["Community Culture","Loving Cohousing","Crystal Byrd Farmer","","Have you ever been annoyed at someone who is disorganized or forget things easily? The person who wants rules followed to the letter or makes a face when they smell strong scents? Neurodivergent people (those with autism, ADHD, and other so-called disorders) live among us, and they are probably just as annoyed at you! In this workshop you’ll learn about the characteristics of neurodivergence, important accommodations people may need, and how we all can coexist peacefully in community.\n"],["Community Culture","Loving Cohousing","Sarah Arthurs & Kathleen Ryan","","A high participation session generating ways to apply the prInciples of The Sound Relationship House from The Gottmann Institute to Cohousing Neighbourhoods.\n"],["Community Culture","Loving Cohousing","Jennie Lindberg\r\n","","Sunnyside Village Cohousing, a forming community in Western Washington, has planned and conducted retreats both in person and over Zoom. We will share with you how we set goals, organized the day with pacing and breaks, balancing business with fun, and resources. We will share with you the differences we found between Zoom and in person.\n"],["Community Culture","Loving Cohousing","Joann Lutz","","Recent neuroscience research has shown that our autonomic nervous-system state is very influential in determining how well we can listen, think, respond, and act. If it is balanced, we can function optimally, offering the warmest and most rational and altruistic responses. If it is hyperaroused, in a flight-or-fight mode, or underaroused, in a freeze\/shut-down mode, our ability to connect and participate in community can be compromised. Sometimes the dysregulation is subtle, and neither our neighbors, or even ourselves, are aware of it. In this workshop, I will teach autonomic nervous-system basics, and offer some experiential exercises which can help to balance it.\n"],["Community Culture","Loving Cohousing","Lotus Thomas","","This session with roots in Deep Ecology, Social Permaculture, Nature Therapy and Transformational Leadership will weave a web of understanding the interconnection between loving self, others, society, and nature. It will honor ancient origins and highlight some of the pioneering species of the Great Turning toward Love like Joanna Macy, Bill Plotkin, Starhawk, Otto Sharmer and more. There will be four elements of this session including an overview of these modalities, anecdotes of how they seed love, related actions people can take, and feedback about how they have or could be integrated into cohousing.\n"],["Community Culture","Loving Cohousing","Charles Durrett","","Author\/Architect\/movement co-founder Charles Durrett will be sharing insights from his new book Community-Enhanced Design: Cohousing and Other High-Functioning Neighborhoods related to how Cohousing alleviates isolation, especially in light of the pandemic. The talk will discuss previous patterns of social connection and how cohousing communities are adapting to covid, such as greater numbers of people working and studying from home.\n"],["Membership","WebChat #20","Sarah Ross, Mary King","new members, orientation, living in cohousing","5 Critical Elements of a Comprehensive and Engaging New Member Orientation\n"],["Membership","Cohousing Over Time","Silver Sage panel","new members, member participation, orientation, living in cohousing","In this presentation a panel of three to five Silver Sage residents will present, discuss and answer questions about our 13 year experiences in bringing in new members as active participants in the community, including our experience with over 25% of the community turning over in the past 3 years. The presentation will include details on our current successful program for both aiding departing members and their new buyers with an emphasis on growing a deeper and better community.\n"],["Affordability","The Nuts and Bolts of Community","Joren Bass, Eric Granum (UDP)","Affordability, affordable housing","During the development process all communities must translate project costs into final home sales prices. This is one of the most important financial and collective decisions communities must make. A well-designed community will likely have a diverse mix of unit sizes and types. Each home will likely have unique attributes such as location within the community, differing access to light and views, or constructed attributes such as extra bathrooms or balconies. So how do you create a pricing framework that follow the basic cohousing principles of equity and shared affordability and also reflect the common market conditions for appraisal and financing. This session will discuss pitfalls and successful approaches for developing communities can use to set home prices. \n"],["Affordability","Affordable Conference on Affordable Cohousing","David Dworkin","Affordability, cohousing, affordable housing","David Dworkin, President and CEO of the National Housing Conference, offered the keynote for the Cohousing Association’s Affordable Conference on Affordable Cohousing. He explained the crisis of affordable housing in the US today, and the steps that are needed to change it.\n"],["Affordability","Affordable Conference on Affordable Cohousing","Rebecca Lane, Kathleen Hosfeld","Affordability, affordable housing, cohousing, Land Trusts","Community land trusts (CLT\u2019s) are seeing a resurgence in the United States as a solution for skyrocketing homeownership costs. Originated in the south in the early 60s, this model has new relevance for the housing affordability crisis that has affected virtually every state in the nation.\nIn our hour together we will share the basics of what a CLT is, and how an equity limited model can support both multi generational affordable home ownership and community. Lots of time for Q&A at the end! \nHUD link\nGrounded Solutions\nProud Ground\n"],["Affordability","Affordable Conference on Affordable Cohousing","Crystal Byrd Farmer","Affordability, cohousing, Discrimination","Location is a huge factor in recruiting people to a cohousing community. Unfortunately, the United States has a long history of discriminating against home buyers based on race. We\u2019ll discuss this history and how your site search may unintentionally leave out people of color.\n"],["Affordability","Affordable Conference on Afordable Cohousing","Grace Kim","Affordability, cohousing, legal structure","Capitol Hill Urban Cohousing (CHUC) is a unique community in many ways. With nine families living on 4500sf of land, we are the smallest and yet most dense (90 units to the acre) cohousing community in North America. In addition, we have a unique ownership model that prioritized affordability in perpetuity \u2013 the legal structure is an LLC that owns an apartment building, where all the renters are members of the company who owns the building. In practice it is something between a co-op, a no-equity condo, and a rent-controlled apartment building. Learn about our unique model to see what lessons learned may be gleaned for your future community. \n"],["Affordability","Affordable Conference on Affordable Cohousing","Chuck MacLane, Diane Margolis, Heidi Berrggren, Jane Nichols","Affordability, cohousing","CRN research findings and related information will be outlined as a basis for discussion. The subsequent sharing of ideas can lead to new ways of thinking about the intersection of affordability and cohousing. \nLA EcoVillage\nCohousing Research Network\nCohousing Film\n"],["Affordability","Affordable Conference on Affordable Cohousing","Carol Brooks Quintero","affordable housing, Affordability, living in cohousing","First hand experience of living in affordable co-housing unit\nA talk from two people who moved into the affordable units at a new community in Virginia. Topics include true costs of moving, adjusting, etc. Plus, ideas on how to attract people of all racial and economic groups to co-housing in general.\nEmerson Commons\n"],["Affordability","Affordable Conference on Affordable Cohousing","Betsy Morris, Raines Cohen","Affordability, living in cohousing, cohousing","Live conversation with resident leaders in Cohousing. Join us LIVE from Cambridge, MA and Berkeley, CA \u2013 facilitating in-person gatherings with area cohousers participating in the conference. Hear from individual cohousers from different established communities discussing their personal and collective experiences. Get to know how innovations in food systems, shared spaces, room rentals, car-sharing, and even hiring each other has helped reduce gaps between housing prices and personal capacities. \nEast Bay Permanent Real Estate Coop\n"],["Affordability","Affordable Conference on Affordable Cohousing","Alan O\u2019Hashi","Affordability, affordable housing, cohousing, living in cohousing, types of cohousing","Traditional cohousing can\u2019t be built fast enough nor inexpensive enough to meet growing demand, particularly for the aging population. There are 10,000 Baby Boomers turning 65 every day through at least the next decade.\nIf you can\u2019t afford to buy a home or your rent is too high how can cohousing meet your needs?\nRemember, housing is housing and what differentiates cohousing from other configurations is the \u201csecret sauce.\u201d I\u2019ll introduce you to three alternatives to \u201cstick-built\u201d cohousing. communities. \nSociocracy For All \nROC USA\nN Street Cohousing\nTiny House Cohousing\n"],["Affordability","Affordable Conference on Affordable Cohousing","Mac Thomson","design process, construction, Affordability, cohousing, customization","Many people new to construction don\u2019t realize how significantly customization drives up costs. This session is for cohousers in the planning stages of design and construction. You will learn how to limit choices for homebuyers so your homes will be more affordable, but still gorgeous, energy efficient, and incorporating plenty of personal design elements to make it feel like your own.\nHeartwood Cohousing \n"],["Affordability","Affordable Conference on Affordable Cohousing","Ty Albright","Affordability, agenda, Low cost housing, pocket communities","Ty will share his experience with the challenges preventing low cost housing, and share details about a 8 home pocket community neighborhood he is developing which may provide a model for how others can also develop low cost housing. \nTrailer Park\nTent City\nTyler\u2019s Station\nRoss Chapin Pocket Neighborhoods\nPocket Neighborhoods\n"],["Affordability","Affordable Conference on Affordable Cohousing","Beverly Suek","Affordability, affordable housing, cohousing, living in cohousing, retirement, solo women","Women\u2019s Housing Initiative Manitoba\nIf you are a woman over fifty and living alone, but would prefer to have company, you might consider creating your own, affordable cohousing. Get ideas on how to make your dream a reality. We are a women\u2019s housing co-op of six women who are active, who like being part of a community and having fun together. We recognize the need to be affordable for women over 55, many of whom have no pensions or savings.\nWe have been operating as cohousing for 5 years and love it!\nCheck us out on Facebook or our website: WHIM Housing Co-Op\nCo-buy resources\n"],["Affordability","Affordable Conference on Affordable Cohousing","Jim Leach, Mary Kraus","affordable housing, Affordability, cohousing, Low cost housing","This presentation will begin with a summary of the unique cohousing elements that affect its cost and affordability. We will then look at specific approaches to affordability, including zoning and density bonuses and Boulder\u2019s inclusionary housing program, as well as strategies such as accessory units and rental suites. We will show examples from specific communities, reflecting on both successes and lessons learned in the quest to provide affordable homes in cohousing. \n"],["Affordability","Affordable Conference on Affordable Cohousing","Adesina Cameron","Affordability, mortgage, cohousing","You\u2019ve done the work to raise your initial capital and break ground. While the buildings are going up you should be preparing to make sure that every member will successfully secure a mortgage when it\u2019s time to move in. Mortgages can be a challenge for Cohousing because banks don\u2019t really understand the concepts and their confusion often makes them say no. Learn about how you need to set up your documents and how you can help your community members get preapproved and stay preapproved throughout construction. This course is also for existing communities to learn how to facilitate successful resales. We will also address how to cultivate the next generation of cohousers so that they can qualify when you have openings. \nResources\nAdesina\u2019s Website\n"],["Affordability","WebChat #41","Katie McCamant","Affordability, cohousing, affordable housing","As the person who has worked more cohousing project budgets (and seen them thru to completion) than perhaps anyone else in the US, Katie will review what makes it so hard to keep projects affordable. Almost every community starts out wanting to keep costs low and to be able to offer more affordable options. Katie will help us understand why they aren\u2019t more successful in that aim. Katie is also very familiar with the affordable housing world of subsidies and the opportunities and limitations of that world. Katie\u2019s goal, in all of her work, is to help cohousing groups increase their likelihood of success by building on the knowledge gained from the cohousing development over the last 30 years, while adapting to the needs of future communities. \n"],["Affordability","WebChat #40","Betsy Morris","Affordability, affordable housing, cohousing","What are the basic building blocks of affordability in cohousing? What strategies have different communities employed to reduce costs and bring in outside funding as they develop? What kinds of partnerships make it possible to economically diversify and extend the range of the movement? How can we overcome the market realities and stereotypes, slay the myths of shortcuts and engage proven paths to true affordability?\nAs we prepare for the Affordable Conference on Affordable Cohousing on February 22, join Cohousing Coach Betsy Morris, in a re-release and group discussion of her Cohousing Journal \/ Communities Magazine article outlining the many innovative approaches that pioneering communities adopted in the first decade of the movement. Which ones are relevant today? Can these unique models be replicated in new projects?\nBetsy is a Cohousing California regional organizer and Global EcoVillage Network (GEN) Ambassador, living in community in Berkeley, California. She is part of the Cohousing Research Network and serves on the area\u2019s Gray Panthers board, working to learn from Tiny Home Villages and landless peoples as we share cohousing principles.\n"],["Affordability","Cohousing Affordability","Crystal Byrd Farmer","Affordability, Diversity","Are you seeking to create a community focused around the needs of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color? From community land trusts to the BIPOC IC Council, marginalized groups are innovating ways to acquire land and housing.\n"],["Affordability","Cohousing Affordability","Christine Hernandez","affordable housing","Let\u2019s start from this orientation: HOUSING IS A HUMAN RIGHT!\nIt goes without saying that the last two years have been full of difficulty and challenges. The damage of a Trump presidency, a global pandemic, civil unrest related to systemic oppression and racism and catastrophic climate events. Since the onset of COVID-19, many of us, who are not stuck in the struggle to meet our most basic need for shelter, are taking inventory and giving deep consideration to our individual lives and how we move through the world. As you continue on this journey and process, I would like to challenge you to give equal consideration to your current orientation, and how your life and wellness is interconnected to that of others.\nCan cohousing be a tool for justice?\n"],["Affordability","Cohousing Affordability","Betsy Morris","","How have cohousing communities baked affordability into their projects? Looking back over the last two decades, what have we learned? What new opportunities, partnerships, funding sources and changes in how we think about cohousing can keep pushing the edges?\n"],["Affordability","Cohousing Affordability","Raines Cohen","","As we live, grow, and age in cohousing, some of us face increasing costs and fixed incomes. How can we prevent displacement and keep our neighborhoods thriving? We’ll look at institutional options (Reverse Mortgages) and mutual support systems (Squirrel Fund) and how they can serve your community.\n"],["Affordability","Cohousing Affordability","Ty Albright","","Using an all-equity strategy, Ty took under a city block in Sulphur Oklahoma, worked with local talent and supplies and developed 8 lots plus a common area. He’s built the 1st of 8 homes and is now working on house #2. He did this with no debt. Ty will share actual numbers, experience gained, and mistakes made and offer suggestions for those wanting to attempt something similar.\n"],["Affordability","Cohousing Affordability","Robert Bruegel","Rental Units","One possible approach to improving the affordability of cohousing is to include auxiliary rental units as part of the homes. Nyland – located just east of Boulder, Co – has nearly 30 yrs experience with this. The session will share a Nyland founder’s experience, its impact on affordability, and suggestions for newly forming communities, based on this experience.\n"],["Affordability","Cohousing Affordability","Jim Leach, Katie McCamant, Bryan Bowen","","This experienced panel will present models of and lessons learned from low and moderate income housing in cohousing communities and will include a discussion of potential new models of economically integrated communities.\n"],["Affordability","Cohousing Affordability","Jim Leach, Katie McCamant, Bryan Bowen","","This will be an interactive session with experience professionals and audience members working together to consider options and possibilities for increasing affordability in cohousing. \n"],["Affordability","Cohousing Affordability","Charles Durrett","","For this session, cohousing Architect Charles Durrett, will dive into several of his past projects including those in Vancouver, Eugene, Anchorage and some of the 18 others outlined in detail in his new book, Community-Enhanced Design: Cohousing and Other High Functioning Neighborhoods. Creating a viable and affordable cohousing neighborhood encompasses many factors such as education and awareness, development and process, finance and legal to affordable materials, constructability and sustainable energy. Charles will be pulling the key information from these case studies to summarize the ways in which designing a neighborhood can be a clear and predictable process. \n"],["Affordability","Cohousing Affordability","Ann Zabaldo, Dene Peterson, Yoomie Ahn","","There are two kinds of affordability in cohousing: the kind that is \u201cbaked-in by design\u201d \u2014 grants, subsidies, tax credits, municipal bonds and, the \u201cextra ordinary\u201d financial programs created by cohousing communities that provide financial assistance beyond the \u201csharing and caring\u201d model of cohousing. Dene Peterson, ElderSpirit and Ann Zabaldo, Takoma Village, will present case studies on how their communities used and continue to use both kinds of affordability to substantially reduce costs to their members. Yoomie Ahn, Gratitude EcoVillage, a forming group, will moderate the session.\n"],["Affordability","Bridges to Cohousing: Housing That's Fair","Katie McCamant, Eve Stewart, Jim Leach","","Part 1: Learn the basics of cohousing affordability including types of subsidies and how they work related to costs. Discover best practices in cohousing affordability such as inclusionary units, voluntary community contributions, and informal solutions. Hear about the development and impacts of affordable cohousing developments such as Petaluma Avenue Homes developed by SAHA (Satellite Affordable Housing Associates) and Cohousing Solutions. \nPart 2: Ask questions and offer input on expanding cohousing affordability. \n"],["Professionals","International Cohousing Summit","Lew Bowers, Owen Jarvis, Elena Pereyra , Kathy McGrenera, Peter Bakker ","","Updates from the USA, CAN, GBR, AUS and NLD.\n"],["Professionals","International Cohousing Summit","Katie McCamant and Joren Bass ","","Cohousing Pioneer Katie McCamant (Cohousing Solutions) will discuss the most common US cohousing development models. Joren Bass (UD+P) will share specific examples from around the US.\n"],["Professionals","International Cohousing Summit","Angelica Rojas-Gracia and Yunhwa Chung","","In the past decade following the first International Cohousing Summit, several countries have passed legislative and planning policies to encourage the development of cohousing schemes. We will hear from In the past decade following the first International Cohousing Summit, several countries have passed legislative and planning policies to encourage the development of cohousing schemes. We will hear from Angelica Rojas-Gracia (IncluDesign, Australia) along with Nanju Do and Yunhwa Chung (Seoul Metropolitan Government) on their initiatives.\n"],["Professionals","International Cohousing Summit","Leslie Shieh, Sarah Arthurs, and Kristopher Stevens ","","Leslie Shieh from TOMO will discuss the \u201cCohousing-lite\u201d model her company has employed for Our Village, an urban community in Vancouver BC. And the challenges that she experienced employing other models. \nSarah Arthurs from Cohousing Connections will share how her company has adapted cohousing to the rental market, particularly for the senior housing market.\nKristopher Stevens of Cohousing Options will talk about their collaborations with Indigenous Housing Resources.\n"],["Professionals","International Cohousing Summit","Sam Brown, Tim Riley, and Camilla Nielsen-Englyst","","Sam Brown is an architect and coordinates the Live Projects Programme at the University of Sheffield School of Architecture. Together with young professionals participating in the programme, he will talk about their unique collaboration with OpHouse to provide pre-design services for forming groups and developing project briefs, which can otherwise present a barrier for new groups starting out. Originating as a \u2018live\u2019 element of an academic programme, the Live Projects Programme has evolved into Live Works, an off-campus project office offering ongoing services to groups as they acquire land and move into the development phase. In focusing on participatory process and continuing community engagement, the model offers a means to support the community-led housing sector in a context of uncertain and short-term government support.\nTim Riley from Property Collectives in Australia will discuss their collaborative model utilizing impact investment to create citizen-led cohousing communities. Since 2010 Property Collectives has established itself as the leading deliberative development group in Australia. They focus on development advisory for build-to-hold clients; impact investment; and an at-cost, citizen-led, building group model which is developing 80 homes across 10 projects in Melbourne.\n"],["Professionals","International Cohousing Summit","Karen Gimnig","","Skilled facilitation can smooth the development process for both professionals and community members while laying the foundations for strong community relationships going forward. Karen Gimnig, a process consultant in the US, will share her experience of partnering with design and development professionals. She\u2019ll share a few ideas for professionals as they support communities in making the thousands of decisions involved in development.\n"],["Professionals","International Cohousing Summit","Helen Jarvis, Chiara Casotti, Nanju Do, and Eugenie Stockman","","Community led housing initiatives have gained popularity around the globe. We will hear from individuals from Australia, South Korea, Italy, and the UK. Helen Jarvis will start us off with her personal experiences in CoHUT in Newcastle, UK and Chiara Casotti will share about Montesole Cohousing in at Montaldo Torinese (Italy). We will hear Nanju Do\u2019s personal experience with cohousing in Seoul, South Korea and about Eugenie Stockman\u2019s scheme at Kyloring Housing Co-operative (Australia). \n"],["Diversity","Connecting in Cohousing","Jen Ham","Disability, Accessibility, interdependence, relationships","This talk explores how cohousing communities activate a sense of interdependence which cultivates a way of living where disabled and non-disabled individuals alike co-create a system of accessibility which organically and reciprocally meets the needs of community members.\n"],["Diversity","Connecting in Cohousing","Crystal Byrd Farmer, Sky Blue, Elliot Cisneros, moderated by Mathilde Berthe of Studio Co+Hab","Diversity, racism, social justice","At this point, many people want to be taking concrete steps to dismantle systemic racism and white supremacy in cohousing, but many, especially white allies, struggle to know where and how to start. This session convenes a panel and invites participants to suggest specific steps that cohousing groups can take.\n"],["Diversity","Stepping into Cohousing","Crystal Byrd Farmer","Diversity, neighborhood, social justice, forming communities","Looking for land? Take a look at history first! Red-lining and other forms of housing segregation continue to impact where people of different races and ethnicities live. If you want to create a diverse community, you might have to change your idea of what makes a \u201cgood neighborhood.\u201d This workshop will give you tools to look at your potential properties with an understanding of history and eye for social justice.\n"],["Diversity","Community For All","Avi Kruley","community, building community, belonging","Avi Kruley, Co-Director of Community Well-being at Mount Madonna Center, will explore the role of belonging in community. What is responsibility of the community? What is responsibility of individual? And what are some actions that can be taken by both to cultivate a greater sense of belonging for all?\n"],["Diversity","Community For All","Crystal Byrd Farmer, Helena Cragg, Rosemary Linares and Alicia Wilson-Ahlstrom","Diversity, community","Helena Cragg, Joi Faison, Rosemary Linares and Alicia Wilson-Ahlstrom will share their experiences of cohousing as women of color. Moderator, Crystal Bryd Farmer, will guide the conversation and take your questions. Bring your curiosity, you might just hear something that surprises you.\n"],["Diversity","Community For All","Yana Ludwig","culture, community, classism, Affordability","We will take a brief look at how class and classism affect our attempts to create functional communities. Class differences and tensions are present in almost every community project, and when unaddressed, this creates a number of barriers for getting the culture we want, and to one of the most common community goals: affordability. Yana will offer some tips and exercises for getting into a productive conversation about class.\n"],["Diversity","Community For All","Joe Cole","Diversity, racism, cohousing","How a shift in values from diversity to racial equity guided a community name change process, while revealing that we still have a long way to go to overcome racism in ourselves and in our mostly white community. We\u2019ll talk strategies for expanding racial awareness, addressing racism and white privilege, and building resilience for the path ahead.\n"],["Diversity","Community For All","Fresh \u201cLev\u201d White","culture, Diversity","Invoking and acknowledging the importance of the beauty and diversity in nature we\u2019ll reflect on \u2018us\u2019 as a product of its brilliance. Looking at ways our culture is richer because of the diversity of people who contribute to it, we\u2019ll learn to welcome our similarities, and honor are differences as opportunities for growth.\n"],["Diversity","Community For All","Crystal Byrd Farmer","Diversity, community","How do you build a diverse cohousing community? What do people from marginalized groups (different races, disability status, sexuality, and more) experience in community, and how do we change our words, actions, and policies so they feel more welcome? This workshop is based on the book The Token: Common Sense Ideas for Increasing Diversity in Your Organization coming out in October 2020.\n"],["Diversity","Community For All","Grace Kim, Emma Sutton, Kathy Sayers","cohousing, Affordability, Diversity","For some, buying a home in cohousing is a real-estate transaction. They weigh the \u201cvalue\u201d of the home relative to price, square footage, neighborhood comps, and resale value. Three urban communities (one completed, one starting construction, and one forming) share their experiences of who shows up you prioritize community and diversity, over selling homes. Our session will pose a series of questions around embracing income diversity in cohousing to panelists from each of the three communities. There will also be time set aside at the end of the panel for audience questions.\nChat Notes\n"],["Diversity","Community For All","Daisy K. Birch","culture, cohousing, Diversity, racism","Anyone can aspire to, and become an ally; through consistent self-inquiry, research, egoless listening, and selfless service. Yet, allyship cannot be self-proclaimed. We\u2019ll cover what allyship is, and isn\u2019t; the do\u2019s and don\u2019ts, the A-Z\u2019s, and why it\u2019s an imperative part of any individual\u2019s, community\u2019s, and country\u2019s enlightenment and healing.\nCultural Awareness Menu\n"],["Diversity","Community For All","Nancy Kelly","cohousing, living in cohousing, Diversity","Why identify LGBTQI as an Intentional community?\nFor individuals who desire a greater understanding of why LGBTQI elders may desire a co-housing community dedicated to providing an authentic experience of safety and freedom to express oneself in relationship and identity. Currently, 31 states do not provide protection in employment and housing for LGBTQI people. Even people who support LGBTQI rights often unknowingly marginalize people who are not heterosexual through policies, marketing and language. A look at inherent societal heterosexual bias will cover why LGBTQI elders feel social isolation to a greater extent than their heterosexual peers, why they fear getting older and how an intentional co-housing community for 55 + LGBTQI people and allies is making a difference in their lives.\n"],["Diversity","Community For All","Tovah Melaver, Catherine Shiel","Diversity, conflict","This workshop focuses on anti-racism work white folks can do in cohousing community and is open to everyone. We will share some of the struggles we\u2019ve had in our own community and how we\u2019ve addressed them. There will be time to share other communities\u2019 experiences and time to brainstorm strategies together.\n"],["Diversity","Community For All","Moderator: Grace Kim\r\nPanel: Deseree Kameka Galloway, Alicia DeLashmutt, Deb Finck, Marta Carlucci","Diversity, cohousing, living in cohousing","Most cohousing communities value inclusion and diversity yet are uncertain of how to accomplish this within their community. And often don\u2019t understand how welcoming people with diverse abilities, incomes, and backgrounds can positively impact their community. Join us in a candid conversation where we will discuss the benefits, challenges and misconceptions of what it means to live in an intentionally diverse and inclusive community. This will be a panel discussion with founders of cohousing communities that will be inclusive to households of all abilities. These founders have family members with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.\n"],["Diversity","Community For All","Ty Albright","Diversity, cohousing, living in cohousing","Ty Albright, a Cohousing USA Board Member and Texan \u2013 will share guidance on how to integrate into and best get along with \u201cnon-liberal big city\u201d people. This would include most of Texas \u2013 and much of the mid-west \u201cfly over\u201d country. Do you want a bubba Trump Supporter as a neighbor? Maybe an opportunity has you moving to Trump Land and you don\u2019t speak the language.\nThat\u2019s right you\u2019re not from Texas \u2013 Lyle Lovett \n"],["Diversity","Community For All","Annie Russell, Ellie Wilkins","senior cohousing, multigenerational","The presenters will share their different experiences, one living in a multigenerational community, the other having lived both in a multigenerational and a senior community. Session about living within not just a variety of ages, but also life stages. They\u2019ll share their experience of what needs can be filled and what challenges can arise.\n"],["Diversity"," WebChat #54","Daisy Birch ","culture shift, racism, cultural awareness, anti-racism, Event","As an introduction to our upcoming Community for All online conference (on August 23), Daisy will be guiding us in how white allies can engage productively and profoundly in anti-racism work, in ways that can be life-changing. The program for the evening will include a short video followed by small group discussions and an informative (sometimes entertaining)\nCultural Awareness Menu\n"],["Diversity","WebChat #21","Joe Cole","racism, Racial Equality, Diversity, building community, living in cohousing","Addressing Racism and Working for Racial Equality\n"],["Diversity","WebChat #17","Crystal Farmer","site selection, systemic racism, Racial Equality, Diversity, living in cohousing","Location is a huge factor in recruiting people to a cohousing community. Unfortunately, the United States has a long history of discriminating against home buyers based on race. We’ll discuss this history and how your site search may unintentionally leave out people of color.\n"],["Diversity","Cohousing Over Time","Erin Roundy, Crystal Byrd Farmer","neurodiverse, Diversity, inclusive, living in cohousing","Living in community means recognizing and accommodating diversity. Neurodiversity covers autistic people and people with ADHD, personality disorders, and others. These people appear typical on the outside but struggle with everyday life in ways that may make living in community difficult. However, they can also be creative, out of the box thinkers and dedicated volunteers. In this workshop, we’ll cover how communities can benefit from and support neurodivergent people.\n"],["Diversity","Cohousing Over Time","Grace H Kim, FAIA","anti-racism, inclusive, systemic racism, living in cohousing","For more than a decade, cohousers have been interested in having conversations about race \u2013 maybe even more so now. But cohousers, like many progressive liberals, are often triggered by the naming of White Supremacy, White privilege, Racist behaviors. Confusion about intent and impact often arise.\nWhile many of us have started on a journey towards being anti-racist, what does it mean to make cohousing anti-racist? This session will be a primer \u2013 a baby step towards making cohousing anti-racist.\n"],["Diversity","Cohousing Affordability","Matt Stannard","classism, income diversity","Material inequality is a primordial source of oppression. Classism is a set of behaviors, attitudes, and cultural characteristics that normalize material inequality. Classism undermines efforts to build successful intentional communities, cohousing communities, and cooperative organizations. This program will do the following: 1. Frame socioeconomic insecurity as a source of social differentiation and personal trauma. 2. Utilize anecdotes from intentional community experiences to illustrate unintentional and intentional classism; provide important metrics, statistics, and empirical data on socioeconomic insecurity and class. 3. Discuss why some attempted solutions to classism fail and what effective responses to classism do. \n"],["Diversity","Bridges to Cohousing: Housing that Cares","Crystal Byrd Farmer, Pedro Silva, Charles Durrett","","AUGUST 9 BRIDGES TO COHOUSING: HOUSING THAT CARES\nVirtual Roundtable Exploring Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Cohousing featuring Crystal Byrd Farmer, Pedro Silva, and Charles Durrett\nCohousing supports a culture of caring and sharing. Join diversity, equity and inclusion advocates to learn about trends in supporting greater social inclusion in cohousing.\n"],["Finances","The Nuts and Bolts of Community","Mac Thomson","budget process, budget, Finance","After decades of doing this, Heartwood Cohousing has a pretty successful annual budgeting process in place and a secret weapon for arriving at a balanced budget that they\u2019ll share with you.\n"],["Finances","The Nuts and Bolts of Community","Lyons Witten","Finance, budget process","Hear from expert Lyons Witten on how to keep your community\u2019s buildings and finances in good shape for generations. He will explain the importance of setting up replacement reserves (RR) from the date of move in, what is typically in an RR spreadsheet, where RR money is invested, and how the spreadsheet is updated annually. Your community will benefit greatly from a healthy RR account!\n"],["Finances","The Nuts and Bolts of Community","Neil Planchon, Bonnie Fergusson, Liz Walker, David Jaggar","community, culture, Community support, Resources","Members of three different communities will share their stories of ways their communities have pooled resources to help community members in need. Each will tell of the structure they used, the success of the program and what they have learned along the way. Join us to learn about \u201cSpare a Dime\u201d, \u201cNeighbors Helping Neighbors\u201d and \u201cRainy Day Fund\u201d.\n"],["Finances","WebChat #34","Mac Thomson","Finance, budget, budget process, living in cohousing","After decades of doing this, Heartwood Cohousing has a pretty successful annual budgeting process in place and a secret weapon for arriving at a balanced budget that we\u2019ll share with you.\n"],["Finances","Cohousing Over Time","Mac Thomson","budget, Finance, reserve funds","Every community needs to plan for large future expenditures and have reserve funds in place. But how do you know how much to save and what to save for? In this session, Mac will share insights gleaned from 25 years of being the person primarily responsible for the financial oversight of Heartwood Cohousing. If you want your established community to build a solid financial foundation, this may be a good session for you.\n"],["Finances","Loving Cohousing","Raines Cohen","","Rocky Corner Cohousing, in Connecticut, has been going through what could be every community’s nightmare, just as they were approaching move-in: construction challenges, financial overruns, bank foreclosure, government rule changes and funding delays, all on top of COVID and materials shortages affecting us all. Last week they were profiled on the Sunday New York Times Real Estate section in an article that omitted lots of details and, combined with the over-a-thousand comments practicing Monday-morning quarterbacking, created many wrong impressions. Join us as two members of the group share the reality and how it felt to deal with the challenges, with lessons for other communities in preparation and media management. And let’s explore together what this level of attention and energy means for the cohousing movement.\n"]]