Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Group size Re: Co-farming in the Cities

[Fred H Olson (fholson]

gilo holtzman <gilo [at] synthesisstudio.org>
is the author of the message below.  It was posted by
Fred, the Cohousing-L list manager <fholson [at] cohousing.org>
After restoring the subject line from "digest" and improving the quoting,

Digest subscribers (over half of subscribers) dont forget that there are
basically two extra things that you should do to reply.
1) Delete most quoted material (but maybe leave a little for context)
2) restore the subject line.

I would very much like to come up with an "app" to do this - maybe
web based - ideas on how welcome off list.  Fred
--------------------  FORWARDED MESSAGE FOLLOWS --------------------

On 11 May 2012, at 9:55 AM, Sharon Villines wrote:

> In Australia there is a plan to build a ~500 persons ecovillage that would be
> clusters of homes in cohousing communities forming the larger ecovillage.
>
> Apparently 500 is the magic number for creating a truly sustainable eco
> environment.

She later responded to the question ... some references on optimum
group size studies?

>You would have to contact some ecovillage people. It isn't based on the optimum
>size for a cooperative group but on the facilities/capabilities/abilities
>necessary to build a sustainable ecosystem. Their plan is to build much smaller
>cohousing communities within that.

I'm not sure where the optimal 500 comes from, but I agree with Sharon
that the optimum size needed to build a sustainable ecosystem/ community is
based on the ability to manage the community and create a place where
everyone is at least known to everyone else and close enough to engage.

Being involved a bit [design team] in this project  Narrara Ecovillage
[known as SCEV] , with Lyndall Parris whom some of you have met. At
the Narrara site which is still under negotiation with the government
towards the hopefully successful bid, the inspiration and model is Ithaca
EV, The objective for the optimal size of community is based on the
Danish experience as been identified by Katie and Chuck in their latest
book, of 50 adults and with approx 120 lots current approval for the land
and future growth we would be looking at between 350-500 people eventually
living in the village in about 3-5 cohousing clusters. [hopefully]/

Cheers

Gilo

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