Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Seeking to connect ...

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

> On May 30, 2023, at 3:01 PM, Diana Leafe Christian <diana [at] ic.org> wrote:
> 
> Thanks very much, Fred. I did email the address on the Coho/US directory 
> listing for them, but didn't look them up in the FIC's online Communities 
> Directory yet. I appreciate having the additional contact information, and . 
> . ta DA! I just got an email directly from a Genesee Gardens resident. I'm 
> really happy about, and we're going to talk soon. Asking for help on the 
> wonderful Coho-US list worked fast!

I have often found that the community contacts on the community's website or 
the contacts in the official directories are unresponsive. Just no response. 
And that the fastest way to find a contact in a community is to post to 
Cohousing-L and someone who knows someone will be more helpful in making a 
connection. 

That brings me to another need in cohousing that is also related to finding 
things like “urban retrofit” communities. Many people have a very hard time 
translating information in order apply it in their own situation. Helping 
people implement sociocracy in their office or organization requires being able 
to refer them to a person who works in an almost identical field. Non-profits 
or NGOs only trust others like them. One of the early handbooks on implementing 
sociocracy is for a veterinarian’s office. Gerard Endenburg’s daughter happened 
to be working in a vet's office.

The inability to translate is only half the problem — people only trust 
experience in an identical situation. And every person trying to do something 
unconventional must convince others that it is not new — they need proof that 
it works. I use “proof” loosely defined. Hearing someone say, “Yes, we did that 
and it works very well. Just be careful about ___” is very reassuring

So locating a cohousing community that has installed the same heating system or 
includes a larger community garden or dog run, is very valuable. 

A central clearinghouse of information about cohousing would be worth its 
weight in gold. A database of information collected as it flies by on 
Cohousing-L or at a conference. I did this many years ago in another field. I 
designed a fabulous database but in the end, I’m a better designer than a data 
collector or keeper. 

Someone who likes keeping track of bits of information could help change the 
world. I’m not kidding. A woman in a rural area of Vermont received a MacArthur 
grant for coordinating information and contacts related to finding and 
restricting the use of land mines. The need for housing is critical so 
information about a self-housing movement could be life-saving too.

Sharon
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Sharon Villines
Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
http://www.takomavillage.org