Greetings. Some folks from a soon-to-be cohousing development are going to be sharing and learning with Jeff and I in one of this year's introductory level Open Space Technology trainings.
They are at that point where they are building community and getting up to their membership goal -- once all the lots and land parcels in their development are sold they will break ground and the building of the structures will begin. Of course, they are learning how to deal with each others' little idiosyncrasies, financial 'hot buttons', personality clashes and contrasting visions as well as their similar interest in building a thoughtful community in a perfect location. They are at that universal juncture where organizationally, it might be useful for the 'founders' and 'facilitators' imagery to shift to all of them being 'cofounders' and 'cofacilitators' -- always a nutritious and challenging setting. May I pass along to them some of your stories from using Open Space in cohousing communities at different stages in the development process as well as the use of Open Space as an ongoing meeting process for the community? Thank you (and the folks who requested this thank you, as well) Lisa Lisa Heft Berkeley California USA And: for those of you who are unfamiliar with this term: What is Cohousing? (from http://www.cohousing.org/resources/whatis.html) Cohousing is the name of a type of collaborative housing that attempts to overcome the alienation of modern subdivisions in which no-one knows their neighbors, and there is no sense of community. It is characterized by private dwellings with their own kitchen, living-dining room etc, but also extensive common facilities. The common building may include a large dining room, kitchen, lounges, meeting rooms, recreation facilities, library, workshops, childcare. Usually, cohousing communities are designed and managed by the residents, and are intentional neighborhoods: the people are consciously committed to living as a community; the physical design itself encourages that and facilitates social contact. The typical cohousing community has 20 to 30 single family homes along a pedestrian street or clustered around a courtyard. Residents of cohousing communities often have several optional group meals in the common building each week. This type of housing began in Denmark in the late 1960s, and spread to North America in the late 1980s. There are now more than a hundred cohousing communities completed or in development across the United States. * * ========================================================== osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu Visit: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html =========================================================== osl...@egroups.com To subscribe, 1. Visit: http://www.egroups.com/group/oslist 2. Sign up -- provide an email address, and choose a login ID and password 3. Click on "Subscribe" and follow the instructions To unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of osl...@egroups.com: 1. Visit: http://www.egroups.com/group/oslist 2. Sign in and Proceed
