Doel in Belgium: two links to the street art and history of this alternative village that has refused to go away. Currently the port-expansion is being redrawn in favor of the village, just next to it instead of demolishing the entire polder around it. So with the houses, now permanently closed with iron platework, and some new residents Doel is getting towards a new vision.
Local resistance meets up at Engelsesteenweg 8, de Doolen (former School) every Sunday 14:00-20:00.
www.doel2020.org (site in Dutch)
Also there is a restaurant in the Windmill and a Café-restaurant Doel 5 -www.doel5.be
Famed UK road protestors who travelled with handcarts to site protests and ancient hill forts around the UK. They also included some good musicians. Worth checking out the links to a German video and some of their music from around the world via a Bell Tent!
Their name apparently comes from the Matabele word for ‘gully’ – in their case the gully at Twyford Down protest site.
Organisation behind many of Australia’s largest eco-festivals. Linking up alternative lifestylers, creators and eco-activists.
Their official description: “The Down to Earth Co-op Society has been organising ConFest (Conference/ Festival). We are a completely volunteer organisation. The first ConFest was held at Cotter River, ACT in 1976 with the aim of `transforming society'. ConFest was started as an 'alternative living' festival in the 1970's by Jim Cairns (then Deputy Prime Minister) and his assistant Junie Morosi and others.”
The first rural ‘commune' (perhaps). It thrived, grew too unwieldy and withered. Links to many tales, pics and video. On the site, it says:
“In 1962, Gene Bernofsky, Jo Ann Bernofsky and Clark Richert were students at the University of Kansas in Lawrence. Gene and Clark developed a concept they called “Drop Art” (coining the term well before the era-branding slogan, “Turn on, tune in, drop out”). "Dropping" artworks from the rooftop of a loft space in Lawrence, they were making art a spontaneous part of everyday life in the face of a society they saw as increasingly materialistic and war-mongering.
In 1965, they bought a small piece of land near Trinidad, Colorado andcalled their settlement Drop City. They were soon joined by other artists, writers and inventors, and they started building a community that celebrated creative work.”
Drop City's dazzling structures were based on Buckminster Fuller’s geodesic domes and the crystalline designs of Steve Baer, a pioneer in geometric structure and solar energy.
Artist, Duke Choi, has been involved with land-art projects including at the Blue Sun Art Space in Mongolia. Here are a couple of links to his work in sound and images.
New Zealand co-housing community, whose aims are:
Design and construct a cohesive neighbourhood whose layout, buildings and services demonstrate the highest practical standards of sustainable human settlement
Develop and foster a living environment which uses clear communication, decision-making and conflict resolution guidelines that promote tolerance, safety, respect and co-operation
Assist in education and public awareness of sustainability by demonstrating and promoting innovative community design and environmentally responsible construction.
This is the link to their main site and to a video about Earthsong.
Permaculture/eco-living projects in the Highlands and islands of Scotland.
Their on-line site says: “Earth Ways was set up by Ludwig Appeltans to help people re-connect with land and nature. Permaculture, forest gardening, community, nature connection and healthy food are the tools.”
Eco-Village Book:
Website for Professor Karen Litfin’s book of her journey to many of the world’s ecovillages – intentional communities at the cutting-edge of sustainable living. Good hub links to the eco-village sites.
Ecocentro is a hub for permaculture and eco-villages and more. Co-ordinated from Portugal.
An artistic, eco project 63 km outside Lima in Peru that features some ‘amazing spaces’. It is a major tourist attraction as well as being a ‘community’.
They state that:
“We live under the principle of non-violence, simple living and high thinking, and visitors can learn and experience as is possible to live happily and in harmony with nature, with others and with yourself. We look basically open-minded people with a desire to practice tolerance, compassion and patience.”
The video describes it as a ‘Krishna Village’.