Inside Community Podcast
By Inside Community
Join community builder Rebecca Mesritz for interviews with experts in a variety of topics related to living communally --- from governance and decision making to ownership models, from navigating coparenting to navigating finances, from how to find your people to how to actually live with them.
Learn more and support at ic.org/podcast
Inside Community PodcastJan 15, 2022
#026: Preventing and Mending the Fissures with Dr. Jessica Plancich Shinners
We're closing out our second season with an examination of how to navigate inevitable interpersonal conflict and move towards restored connection. Social architecture can be what makes or breaks a community, business, or organization. How we process our own pain and trauma and interact with the trauma of others offers rich opportunities for growth and learning. In this conversation with Dr. Jessica Plancich Shinners we cover emotional hygiene, strategies for reconnection, the importance of humility and validation, when to ask for help, and when to call it quits.
Dr. Jessica Plancich Shinners, MA, MFT, Ed.D. is a social architect, community builder, and leadership expert who teaches leaders and organizations how to operate at their highest potential and resiliency by truly serving people, planet, purpose, and profit.
With a Master’s in clinical psychology, a doctorate in Organizational Leadership (Ed.D. Pepperdine University), and 20-year psychotherapy practice, she applies a whole human approach to consulting that nurtures body, mind, and spirit so the wisdom of the heart can be awakened. After years of witnessing the limitations of Western psychology, Jessica sought training in Eastern approaches to healing and wellness. With certifications as a yoga and qi gong instructor and massage therapist, she utilizes a holistic and somatic approach to her work.
Her penchant for social entrepreneurialism has led Jessica to consult for nonprofits, grassroots movements, start-ups, major corporations, and their leaders, helping align them with their core values and serve the greater good. The co-founder of an eco-village in San Diego, CA (theemeraldvillage.com), she is steeped in collaborative thinking and decision making, incorporating what she has lived, learned, and tested herself. The reclamation of our communities at the local level, she believes, is the solution to the panoply of problems we find ourselves in – ecologically, economically, and socio-politically.
Jessica has had the honor of learning from countless teachers- whether clients, mentors, professors, or guides. She humbly recognizes that so many of the healing traditions she has studied were gifts given from native people with an unencumbered connection to creation. Jessica strives to deeply embody and pay homage to their wisdom by passing it on to her clients.
https://fiercegraceconsulting.com/
SUMMER FUN!
Books and Resources Mentioned:
If you want to learn more about interpersonal relating and conflict resolution in community or any aspect of community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners get 20% off in FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20 and 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Super Awesome Inside Community Jingle by FIC board member Dave Booda davebooda.com
ICP theme by Rebecca Mesritz
We are so grateful to for our show's sponsors:
Caddis Collaborative - caddispc.com
CohoUS - www.cohousing.org
Communities Magazine - gen-us.net/subscribe
#025: Embracing Diversity and Inclusion with Crystal Byrd Farmer
There’s a rich opportunity to push the needle forward when it comes to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, but navigating Race, Class, Privilege, Ability, and all the ways folks face different levels of adversity can be vulnerable and uncomfortable. Sometimes we need support to know what to ask for, how to be better allies, and to push us to grow in our capacity to accept others… and recognize our own blindness to our priviledge. In this conversation with Diversity Consultant, Crystal Byrd Farmer we cover code switching, how to have safe conversations, microagressions, call out culture, hidden diversities, tools and resources, and how to create communities and spaces that are welcoming to all people.
Crystal Byrd Farmer is an engineer turned educator, organizer, and speaker. She attended University of South Carolina and received dual degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Russian Studies. After working in engineering for six years, Crystal became a freelance technical writer and eventually found her way into the world of self-directed learning and intentional communities. Crystal has been active in the intentional communities movement for over six years and serves on the board of the Foundation for Intentional Community and Co-President of the BIPOC Intentional Community Council. She is the former website editor for Black & Poly and is active in her local polyamory community. In 2022 she served as the committee moderator for PolyamProud.
Crystal’s day job is as owner and facilitator of Gastonia Freedom School, an Agile Learning Center for children with disabilities. She lives in Gastonia, NC and has one daughter.
Books and Resources We Mentioned:
- The Token: Common Sense Ideas for Increasing Diversity in your Organization by Crystal Byrd Farmer
- Stamped From The Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi
- White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Dr. Robin DiAngelo
- Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor by Layla Saad
- My Grandmother's Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies by Resmaa Menakem
- Racial equity tools https://www.racialequitytools.org/
- The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz
If you want to learn more about Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in community or any aspect of community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners get 20% off in FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20 and 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Super Awesome Inside Community Jingle by FIC board member Dave Booda davebooda.com
ICP theme by Rebecca Mesritz
We are so grateful to for our show's sponsors:
Caddis Collaborative - caddispc.com
CohoUS - www.cohousing.org
Communities Magazine - gen-us.net/subscribe
#024: Community Supported Birth with Monique Gauthier
Bringing new life into the world requires levels of support practically unheard of in modern, western culture... unless you've cultivated community that is up for the task! Seasoned midwife and communitarian Monique Gauthier joins us today to help us envision birth from a deeply held and conscious space that brings about the creation of new culture on the planet. We’ll cover the fascinating intersection of natural birth practices with the communities movement, how women and families can be supported through pregnancy, birth, and postpartum times, rites of passage around birth, and even how various types of loss can be held with tenderness and love.
Monique Gauthier has been a midwife in the U.S and Canada for 30 years. She has lived in intentional communities for most of her adult life. She currently lives in Auroville, in Southern India. She was faculty for Living Routes, which ran college-level programs in ecovillages such as Findhorn, Auroville and Thích Nhất Hạnh’s Plum Village, in France. She has produced the documentaries "Follow The Dirt Road; An Introduction To Intentional Communities in The 1990’s" and "Birthing Peace", about her mindful water births. She calls herself a “cultural midwife” who is tending to the birth of a conscious culture. She leads workshops and coaches for empowered birth, conscious families, mindfulness, and other mind-body-spirit topics. You can find her upcoming courses and offerings at
BOOKS mentioned:
The First Forty Days by Heng Ou
https://motherbees.com/pages/the-first-forty-days
The Fourth Trimester by Kimberly Ann Johnson
https://kimberlyannjohnson.com/the-fourth-trimester/
If you want to learn more about birthing in community or any aspect of community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners get 20% off in FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20 and 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Super Awesome Inside Community Jingle by FIC board member Dave Booda davebooda.com
ICP theme by Rebecca Mesritz
We are so grateful to for our show's sponsors:
Caddis Collaborative - caddispc.com
CohoUS - www.cohousing.org
Communities Magazine - gen-us.net/subscribe
Bonus: Centering and Preparing for Birth with Monique Gauthier
My conversation with Monique Gauthier was too full of inspiring and helpful information, so I created this bonus episode to share some of the wisdom that couldn't fit in the full length episode. Here, Monique leads us through the centering meditation she does with her midwifery clients as they arrive in her office as well as shares some very practical tools for expecting families to cope with and prepare for labor.
Monique Gauthier has been a midwife in the U.S and Canada for 30 years. She has lived in intentional communities for most of her adult life. She currently lives in Auroville, in Southern India. She was faculty for Living Routes, which ran college-level programs in ecovillages such as Findhorn, Auroville and Thích Nhất Hạnh’s Plum Village, in France. She has produced the documentaries "Follow The Dirt Road; An Introduction To Intentional Communities in The 1990’s" and "Birthing Peace", about her mindful water births. She calls herself a “cultural midwife” who is tending to the birth of a conscious culture. She leads workshops and coaches for empowered birth, conscious families, mindfulness, and other mind-body-spirit topics. You can find her upcoming courses and offerings at
If you want to learn more about birthing in community or any aspect of community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners get 20% off in FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20 and 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Super Awesome Inside Community Jingle by FIC board member Dave Booda davebooda.com
ICP theme by Rebecca Mesritz
We are so grateful to for our show's sponsors:
Caddis Collaborative - caddispc.com
CohoUS - www.cohousing.org
Communities Magazine - gen-us.net/subscribe
#023: New Visions for the Communities Movement with Daniel Greenberg
As we close out 2023, it's time to take stock of the Communities Movement and consider where we might be headed in the future. In this episode we are joined by new FIC co-director Daniel Greenberg, who brings his deep experience from the ecovillage world, as well years living in and researching international communities like Findhorn and Auroville to his visions for what is possible for collaborative culture, communities, and the people who live and grow inside them.
In 1999, Daniel Greenberg founded the non-profit Living Routes, which partnered with UMass-Amherst to run study abroad programs based in ecovillages around the world. Over 1,500 students were transformed by these immersive experiences. Daniel left Living Routes in 2012 to start a new social venture called Earth Deeds, which offers online tools for individuals and groups to “onset” their unavoidable CO2 emissions and support meaningful sustainability projects. Daniel has been a leading advocate for sustainability within international education and the ecovillage movement. He chaired Sustainability Task Forces for NAFSA: Association of International Educators and the Forum for Education Abroad, is co-founder and past Board Member of Gaia Education, served as President of the Global Ecovillage Network from 2015-2019, and is currently co-director of the Foundation for Intentional Community.
Thank YOU for including the Inside Community Podcast in your end-of-year giving! IC.org/Podcast to donate!
If you want to learn more about international communities, the new visions for the communities movement or any aspect of community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners get 20% off in FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20 and 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Super Awesome Inside Community Jingle by FIC board member Dave Booda davebooda.com
ICP theme by Rebecca Mesritz
We are so grateful to for our show's sponsors:
Caddis Collaborative - caddispc.com
CohoUS - www.cohousing.org
Communities Magazine - gen-us.net/subscribe
#022: Cults! The Good, the Bad and the Ugly with Jesse Stone
Cults get a pretty bad reputation in the mainstream world, but are they really evil? Or just misunderstood? Jesse Stone, co-host of the Cults I'd Join podcast comes on the show to shed some light on the upside of cults while giving us some helpful advice on what to look out for if manipulation just isn't for you.
Down in the Ozarks, Jesse Stone lives and loves with her young son Solace, two dogs, and two cats. Jesse is an artist, writer, and maker, and has lived her life immersed in the wide variety of subcultures. Sharing these experiences through art and storytelling is her passion. Her latest venture is the new podcast "Cults I'd Join" with co-host Ameran Link, now rounding out its first year.
If you want to learn more about cults and how to creating one or any aspect of community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners get 20% off in FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20 and 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Super Awesome Inside Community Jingle by FIC board member Dave Booda davebooda.com
ICP theme by Rebecca Mesritz
We are so grateful to for our show's sponsors:
Caddis Collaborative - caddispc.com
CohoUS - www.cohousing.org
Communities Magazine - gen-us.net/subscribe
#021: Community Held Death and Dying with Angela Franklin
The subject of death is seen by many as morbid or taboo, but what if this dark topic could be life-giving, affirming, and empowering? Join me as I talk with Angela Franklin about the possibilities of end of life and death care, how communities and individuals can reimagine how they view their final days, how to plan for the end, and the importance of creating containers for grief.
Angela is a practicing Death Midwife and Home Funeral Guide. She currently provides workforce and community trainings on a variety of topics surrounding end of life support, grief literacy, advanced care planning, and suicide prevention/postvention. She is a founder of Journey Home, a community-driven organization based on practical death care, education, outreach, and community grieving support. Angela has lived in a variety of collective spaces and intentional communities. She is working toward death literacy and sovereignty to be brought back into our lives.
Journey Home journeyhome.care
Journey Home journeyhome.care
SOLADA Southern Oregon Living and Dying Alliance solada.org
LINKS Angela mentioned:
The Death Deck use code INSIDE20 for 20% off Death Decks
National Home Funeral Alliance
The Wild Edge of Sorrow - Book by Francis Weller
Birth Breath and Death Institute- work of Amy Wright Glenn
If you want to learn more about death and dying in community or any aspect of community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners get 20% off in FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20 and 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Super Awesome Inside Community Jingle by FIC board member Dave Booda davebooda.com
ICP theme by Rebecca Mesritz
We are so grateful to for our show's sponsors:
Caddis Collaborative - caddispc.com
CohoUS - www.cohousing.org
Communities Magazine - gen-us.net/subscribe
#020: Central Leader Communities with "Evil Dictator" Paul Wheaton
There are as many ways to structure a community as there are communities, but perhaps one of the most controversial models are those with central leadership. I mean... is that even REAL community?!? Today's guest and self-proclaimed "evil dictator," Paul Wheaton comes on to explain the benefits of top-down power structures and the great responsibility that comes with taking on the role.
Paul Wheaton is a powerful advocate of permaculture. He was dubbed the "Duke of Permaculture" by Geoff Lawton and Sepp Holzer, and the "Bad Boy of Permaculture" by Occupy Monsanto. Paul is the owner of permies.com, coderanch.com, richsoil.com, and Wheaton Labs. He has produced over 600 podcasts, 200 youtube videos, and a dozen feature-length films. He has presented at over 100 events around the US and has written dozens of articles and 2 books on topics ranging from luxuriant environmentalism to homesteading skills. The events he hosts at his property, Wheaton Labs, have resulted in the development of rocket stove and rocket mass heater technology, massive earthworks featuring extensive hugelkulture, solar food dehydrators, lots and lots of round wood timber frame structures like a truly passive earth-bermed solar green house and a mega-cheap and luxurious home design called the Wofati, as well as many, many other permaculture innovations.
If you want to learn more about different structural models of community or any aspect of community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners get 20% off in FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20 and 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Super Awesome Inside Community Jingle by FIC board member Dave Booda davebooda.com
ICP theme by Rebecca Mesritz
We are so grateful to for our show's sponsors:
Caddis Collaborative - caddispc.com
CohoUS - www.cohousing.org
Communities Magazine - gen-us.net/subscribe
Skillful Facilitation for Any Situation with Laird Schaub (Re-Release)
We're re-releasing this awesome interview with Laird Shaub in preparation for FOUR upcoming classes he's going to be teaching through the FIC!
- https://www.ic.org/designing-a-community-membership-process/ (starts mid Sep)
- https://www.ic.org/facilitation-in-community/ (starts mid Sep)
- https://www.ic.org/working-with-conflict-in-community/ (starts late Oct)
- https://www.ic.org/participation-and-work-in-community/ (starts late Oct)
There are also some re-run courses that are available, on demand:
- https://www.ic.org/consensus-for-communities/
- https://www.ic.org/power-and-leadership-in-community/
Moving groups through tough decisions can be tricky, if not impossible, without a skilled and well-trained facilitator to hold folks through the process. Laird Schaub joins us today to talk about the how’s and why’s of excellent facilitation. You'll learn from his 40+ years of lived community experience and training in facilitation, and leave with practices you can use in your community conversations.
Read Laird's incredible bio in our show notes at ic.org/podcast.
Podcast listeners, use this code INSIDE30 and get 30% off FIC courses. Use code INSIDE20 for 20% off on the FIC bookstore.
Laird leads a two-year facilitation training program where students meet eight times for intensive 3-day weekends. In addition to classroom time where he teaches the elements of skilled facilitation, half the time is spent preparing for, delivering, and debriefing live facilitation, where the students run the meetings and the trainers are a safety net. For more info email laird@ic.org
If you want to learn more about facilitation or any aspect of building community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, an extensive bookstore and lots of free educational materials. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
#019: Intimacy in Community with Dave Booda
In this episode we will chat with intimacy nerd Dave Booda, about why intimacy is so important, get new ideas on prompts that can lead towards deeper connection, and discover ways to create a safe container to meet people where they're at when building deeper bonds and creating more vulnerability.
Dave Booda is a writer, musician, and social entrepreneur. He is the co-founder of Intimacy Fest and hosts The Darkness Experiment. He's led over 400 workshops on connection, touch, and relationships and has consulted for and facilitated experiences for companies, communities, retreats, and gatherings of all kinds with the intention to inspire authenticity, connection, and group cohesion. He's published over 200 essays for boodaism.com and played over 1000 shows as a touring singer songwriter. He is a former naval officer and graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, currently serving on the board of directors for the Foundation for Intentional Community, while touring and living at different intentional communities in North America.
Link Dave mentioned:
If you want to learn more about intimacy in community or any aspect of community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners get 20% off in FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20 and 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Super Awesome Inside Community Jingle by FIC board member Dave Booda davebooda.com
ICP theme by Rebecca Mesritz
We are so grateful to for our show's sponsors:
Caddis Collaborative - caddispc.com
CohoUS - www.cohousing.org
Communities Magazine - gen-us.net/subscribe
#018: Aging Well Together with Margaret Critchlow
Margaret Critchlow, PhD, taught anthropology at York University in Toronto, Canada for 25 years before retiring to Vancouver Island. She loved learning from villagers in the south Pacific islands of Vanuatu and from residents of Canadian housing co-ops. She has written or co-authored more than 50 academic article and 7 books. She was a founding member of the first senior cohousing community in western Canada, Harbourside Cohousing, where she has lived with her husband since it opened in Jan 2016. Margaret enjoys sharing her enthusiasm for cohousing with people of all ages, independently and as a Community Building Facilitator with Cohousing Development Consulting. Her online courses, “Planning for aging in community” and “Is cohousing for you?” have supported people to better understand what they are getting into when they join a cohousing community.
Margaret will be teaching the FIC Course Exploring Community for Aging Well 5 weeks starting June 23rd
Use Code INSIDE30 for 30% off
LINKS that Margaret Mentioned:
Karin Wells' CBC radio documentary "It's Their Life" about how Denmark is changing ways to care for the elderly. https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/2304600412
CBC Radio documentaries by Karin Wells about Harbourside Cohousing 2016
https://www.cbc.ca/radio/sunday/the-sunday-edition-june-10-2018-1.4695635/a-b-c-experiment-in-cohousing-has-become-an-adventure-in-co-caring-1.4695653
Anne P. Glass "Aging better together, intentionally" https://www.researchgate.net/publication/352846544_Aging_Better_Together_Intentionally
Elder Spirit Community, Abingdon, VA https://elderspirit.org
Harbourside Cohousing, Sooke, BChttps://www.harbourside.ca
Quimper Village, Port Townsend, WAhttp://www.quimpervillage.com/
West Wind Harbour Cohousinghttps://www.westwindharbour.ca
If you want to learn more about aging in community or any aspect of community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners get 20% off in FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20 and 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Super Awesome Inside Community Jingle by FIC board member Dave Booda davebooda.com
ICP theme by Rebecca Mesritz
We are so grateful to for our show's sponsors:
Caddis Collaborative - caddispc.com
CohoUS - www.cohousing.org
Communities Magazine - gen-us.net/subscribe
#017: Raising Children in Community with Amy Saloner
For many looking for community a primary goal is to be a part of a multigenerational reality where they can raise their own children or be in that special relationship of co-parent or auntie/ uncle. Whether folks are looking for support or to be supportive in the care of the young, it is important to create a safe container, clear agreements, and attune to the highest needs of each individual child.
Amy Saloner, LCSW FNTP has worked with children and families for the last 30 years as a therapist, educator, speaker event producer and coach. Her work has spanned the developmental spectrum from birth through young adulthood and specializes in raising resilient teens and young adults. Twelve years ago she and her husband co-founded the intentional community The Emerald Village in north county San Diego with four other families. They have raised their three children (23, 16 and 13) there and have co-parented 9 other children during that time. Amy is currently in private practice as a parent and teen coach and nutritional therapist. She teaches courses and runs support groups on parenting adolescents and sees private clients online and in-person for nutritional, relational and emotional support.
You can find her at amysaloner.com
Instagram: @resilientfamily_resilientteen Facebook: @amysalonerprofessional
For those who a) follow her on Instagram, b) sign up for her newsletter and c) send her a message with the word COMMUNITY, she will send you her worksheets and video for Creating a meaningful Rites of Passage Ceremony for your child.
She currently co-runs a monthly support group for parents of 11th and 12th graders called The Fireside Chats with Carolyn and Amy. Learn more and register here.
FIC Course Exploring Raising Children in Community 5 weeks starting June 20th at 8am PT
Use Code INSIDE30 for 30% off
If you would like to access the Emerald Village's Raising Children at the Emerald Village doc, click here.
If you want to learn more about raising children in community or any aspect of community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners get 20% off in FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20 and 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Super Awesome Inside Community Jingle by FIC board member Dave Booda davebooda.com
ICP theme by Rebecca Mesritz
We are so grateful to for our show's sponsors:
Caddis Collaborative - caddispc.com
CohoUS - www.cohousing.org
Communities Magazine - gen-us.net/subscribe
Cofounders and Creating Collaborative Culture with Yana Ludwig(Re-Release)
Yana Ludwig is one of our most beloved guests on the Inside Community Podcast. In honor of her new book, Building Belonging, we are re-releasing episode 004 of Season 1: Finding Co-Founders and Creating Cooperative Culture with Yana Ludwig. The episode focuses on creating a cooperative culture when starting an intentional community, finding your people, and coming together with the like-minded visionaries that will be your co-founders. Her new book Building Belonging takes this conversation a step further. The book is both a practical guide for how to start a residential intentional community and is a collective framework for addressing the racial, social, ecological, and economic disparities affecting all aspects of the living experience for humans, land, and its co-inhabitants. Building Belonging is now available for pre-order at www.ic.org/building-belonging. Get your copy today!
Yana Ludwig is cooperative culture pioneer, group process trainer, and consultant and anti-opression activist who has lived in community for 25 years. She is the former Executive Director of both the Center for Sustainable and Cooperative Culture at Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage, and Commonomics USA, an economic justice organization, and currently serves as the Executive Director of Leadership Eastside in Washington. Yana is a dynamic, compassionate and thoughtful speaker and teacher, committed to creating a world that supports the well-being and vibrancy of all beings. Her writing includes Together Resilient: Building Community in the Age of Climate Disruption (published under the name Maikwe Ludwig) , The Cooperative Culture Handbook (co-authored with Karen Gimnig), and numerous articles in Communities magazine. She has spoken on Tedx and hosted the Solidarity house podcast which centers on policy, culture and law. She was also a candidate for US Senate in 2020, ultimately placing 2nd in a crowded Democratic primary field.
You can learn more about Yana and her work at www.yanaludwig.net.
- Podcast listeners get 20% of Yana's books and other FIC bookstore purchases with code INSIDE20
- Yana’s online course, Starting an Intentional Community, has been made into an on-demand course ideal for people just getting started with a community project or dreaming of starting one. Podcast listeners get 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30
If you want to learn more about finding YOUR people or any aspect of building community check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, an extensive bookstore and lots of free educational materials. You can learn more about FIC and access show notes at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating through our website while you are there.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
#016: Reclaiming Placemaking for Liberation with Ridhi D'Cruz
We're kicking off Season 2 with a pair of episodes about Placemaking, how we design and consider creating environments for healthy thriving humans. In this second episode, Ridhi D'Cruz approaches the topic from a liberatory and healing perspective.
ridhi d’cruz (they/them) is a gender queer Malayali who grew up in the city of Bangalore in southern India and moved to Wapato Valley (Portland) in 2010. they fondly identify as a learner, facilitator and artist. their life artistry roots at the intersections of place, healing, design and creativity. they have dedicated over a decade of their life to designing community processes that cultivate liberatory and healing senses of place. they strive to honor and benefit the sacred and stolen lands of the Chinook people and several other tribes both recognized and unrecognized that they are a guest upon.
ridhi has cultivated a place justice practice through more than a decade of service on Chinook lands. Currently, they co-facilitate an annual herbal immersion program for BIPOC called the Moon & Mirror Apprenticeship Program, are an nature educator with and for QT/BIPOC community through Wild Diversity and humbly support various place justice projects including the Native Gathering Garden at Cully Park and the Justice for Justice for Keaton Otis Memorial Art Project. you can find them online via their website ridhidcruz.net, on IG as @ridhidcruz and email them at ridhidcruz@gmail.com
Ridhi's FIC course, Reclaiming Permaculture and Placemaking for Liberation starts May 8, 2023
Use Code INSIDE30 for 30% off
If you want to learn more about placemaking or any aspect of community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners get 20% off in FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20 and 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Super Awesome Inside Community Jingle by FIC board member Dave Booda davebooda.com
ICP theme by Rebecca Mesritz
We are so grateful to for our show's sponsors:
Caddis Collaborative - caddispc.com
CohoUS - www.cohousing.org
Communities Magazine - gen-us.net/subscribe
#015: Designing Shared Spaces with Bryan Bowen
We're kicking off Season 2 with a pair of episodes about Placemaking, how we design and consider creating environments for healthy thriving humans. In this first episode I talk with Bryan Bowen about the ins and outs of designing sustainable spaces for healthy, connected, thriving humans from a design perspective.
Bryan Bowen is an architect, cohousing nerd, and sustainable community-based designer. Bryan grew up in a passive solar home in an artists’ community at the foothills of the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico. He graduated from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA with minors in art and anthropology, and has been a practicing architect for almost 25 years. He lived in Wild Sage Cohousing in Boulder, Colorado, with his wife and two boys for 18 years. Bryan loved life in cohousing and enjoys the simple benefits of community – friends right outside the front door, casual interactions, great food, and a rich life for his kiddos. His firm, Caddis, is a 20 year old multidisciplinary design collaborative that explores how we may live more lightly upon our earth in beautiful and healthy environments. Caddis has become a well-respected national cohousing expert, creating beautiful, innovative, highly functioning communities. Bryan has served on the City of Boulder’s Planning Board, the board of CohoUS, and now sits on the board of Better Boulder.
Some references from the show:
James Rojas - Urban planner
The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America -Book on zoning by Richard Rothstein
Superbia - Book on designing better neighborhoods by David Wann
If you want to learn more about placemaking or any aspect of community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners get 20% off in FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20 and 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Super Awesome Inside Community Jingle by FIC board member Dave Booda davebooda.com
ICP theme by Rebecca Mesritz
We are so grateful to for our show's sponsors:
Caddis Collaborative - caddispc.com
CohoUS - www.cohousing.org
Communities Magazine - gen-us.net/subscribe
Season 2 Trailer
Welcome back to Season 2 of the Inside Community Podcast! On this show we explore the beautiful and messy realities of living inside community and this season we are diving into more of the messy and the nitty gritty of what it takes to build cooperative culture.
This trailer features a song from dear friend Dave Booda, whose music you can find at davebooda.com
If you want to learn more about living inside community or learn more about this podcast, visit our website, hosted by the Foundation for Intentional Community, at ic.org/podcast. We have a survey up there and would love to hear from you about how this show can best support your journey. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating through our website while you are there.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and video of community life on Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
#014: State of the Communities Movement
We wrap up our first season with a thoughtful conversation with communities experts Yana Ludwig, Sky Blue, and Cassandra Ferrera on the state of the communities movement (and if it is even a "movement"!) We discuss the complexity of challenges facing both individual communities and the greater collective Community to meet both the everyday social, financial, and emotional needs of members as well as address larger systemic issues that are being dealt with in society on a broader scale. Yana, Sky, and Cassandra have been engaged in these discussions together for years as friends, FIC board members, and community advocates and today they share their insights in what could be considered "advanced community theory."
Yana Ludwig is a cooperative culture pioneer, intentional communities advocate, and anti-oppression activist. She serves on the FIC board, and is a trainer and consultant for communities, worker owned cooperatives and nonprofits. She is the author of Together Resilient: Building Community in the Age of Climate Disruption, The Cooperative Culture Handbook (with Karen Gimnig), and the soon-to-be-released Building Belonging: Your Guide to Starting a Land-based Intentional Community. Yana Ludwig Training and Consulting
Sky Blue (They/Them) has spent 22 years living, working, and organizing in intentional communities, cooperatives, and community organizations. They are currently working with a group of people to start a new community, and work as a community consultant as part of The Next Big Step. They take a whole systems approach to helping groups uncover and address underlying issues and dynamics, develop shared understanding, and find ways to move forward together. sky@ic.org.
Cassandra Ferrera's real estate career and community activism has focused on the edge of cultural innovation where cooperation meets land stewardship. She has provided agency, complex contract design, consulting and cooperative governance support to dozens of communities and land projects. A licensed real estate agent in California since 2003, Cassandra’s license is with the progressive Green Key Real Estate brokerage in the San Francisco Bay Area. She is currently co-founding The Center for Ethical Land Transition, a non-profit organization that supports solidarity and justice in land transitions. www.cassandraferrera.net
If you want to learn more about Community, check out the The Foundation for Intentional Community. You can learn more the show and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Podcast listeners use code INSIDE20 and get 20% off in the FIC bookstore and INSIDE30 for 30% off FIC courses. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Communities Magazine is a primary resource for information, stories, and ideas about intentional communities. Subscriptions are available and more than 400 back-issue articles are posted for free on the at www.gen-us.net/communities
Insta & FB @InsideCommunityPodcast
#013: Visiting Communities with Anthony "Campo" Campbell
Are you ready to see how other communities are doing it or perhaps are looking for a community to join? Well, visiting communities in person is the best way to learn what works and what doesn't work for you. Communing With the Campbells is the project documentary filmmaker Anthony "Campo" Campbell and his family have been sharing with the world through TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram, sharing their global communities tour and bringing a new spin to how the world sees the movement. Campo joins me in this episode to talk about how to best engage with communities you would like to visit so both you and your host gets the most benefit from your time together.
Join their journey on TikTok @Communing_with_Campbells on YouTube @ Communing With the Campbells and on Instagram @Communing_with_the_Campbells
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community. If you want to learn more about Sociocracy or any aspect of building community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, an extensive bookstore and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners use code INSIDE20 for 20% off the FIC Bookstore and INSIDE30 for 30%off on courses. You can learn more about the show and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Communities Magazine is a primary resource for information, stories, and ideas about intentional communities—including urban co-ops, cohousing groups, ecovillages, and rural communes. Each full-color quarterly issue focuses on a specific theme. Subscriptions are available and more than 400 back-issue articles are posted for free public reading on the website.https://www.gen-us.net/communities/
#012: Creating Inclusivity with Sociocracy
Sociocracy brings an incredible opportunity to cooperative groups to embody higher levels of inclusivity through their governance. As a sociocracy trainer and transgender man living in community, Ted Rau has a unique story and perspective on how to make organizations function better and be more supportive to all their members. In this episode we talk both about his trans journey inside community and the ways in which Sociocracy creates networks of support.
Ted Rau is a trainer, consultant, and co-founder of the non-profit movement support organization Sociocracy For All. He grew up in Germany and studied linguistics before earning his Ph.D. in linguistics there in 2010. He moved to the USA and fulfilled a long-held wish to live in an intentional community where he still lives with his five children and 70 neighbors in a cohousing community in Massachusetts. Ted's perspective is influenced by being transgender, by his interest in Nonviolent Communication and social justice, by being part of a global sociocracy organization at work, and a parent at home.
Learn more about Ted and his work at www.sociocracyforall.org/community/ and on Instagram @Sociocracy4All
Ted’s course “Sociocracy in Community” - in collaboration with Jerry Koch-Gonzalez - is offered through the Foundation for Intentional Community and is now available as a pre-recorded course available anytime. Ted Rau's Books, Who Decides Who Decides? and Many Voices One Song - co-written with Jerry Koch-Gonzalez are available in FIC bookstore. Podcast listeners, use the code INSIDE30 and get 30% off your purchase courses and code INSIDE20 to get 20% off books.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community. If you want to learn more about Sociocracy or any aspect of building community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, an extensive bookstore and lots of free educational materials. You can learn more about the show and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Communities Magazine is a primary resource for information, stories, and ideas about intentional communities—including urban co-ops, cohousing groups, ecovillages, and rural communes. Each full-color quarterly issue focuses on a specific theme. Subscriptions are available and more than 400 back-issue articles are posted for free public reading on the website.https://www.gen-us.net/communities/
#011: Exploring Cohousing with Trish Becker
For many folks interested in more interconnected ways of living, yet not financially or energetically prepared for something like an income sharing community, cohousing provides the benefits of greater sustainability and resource sharing, more social and emotional connection, and that beautiful neighborhood vibe all while allowing members a higher degree of autonomy. In many ways it can be seen as the best of both community living and the default worlds. Today we’re going to explore the ins and outs of cohousing with my guest Trish Becker.
Trish Becker is the Executive Director of the Cohousing Association of the United States, CohoUS for short, a national nonprofit that seeks to grow the collective housing movement. CohoUS supports forming and existing communities, as well as the professionals who build them through education, trainings, resources and connection. Trish is a founding member of Aria Cohousing and Chase Street Commons, a micro-village built upon the principles of cohousing. Trish also did Tedx talk on cohousing and is a passionate advocate for housing solutions that address our collective crises of loneliness, environmental degradation and housing inaccessibility.
For more information on the National Cohousing Conference in Madison, Wisconsin, August 26-28, visit National Cohousing Conference
More Links:
CohoUS (Cohousing Association of the US)
Trish's Tedx talk about cohousing
CohoUS’ new IG handle is @cohousingusa. Find trish @trishyloulou
If you want to learn more about cohousing or any aspect of community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, and lots of free educational materials. Podccast listeners get 20% off in FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20 and 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Communities Magazine is a primary resource for information, stories, and ideas about intentional communities—including urban co-ops, cohousing groups, ecovillages, and rural communes. Each full-color quarterly issue focuses on a specific theme. Subscriptions are available and more than 400 back-issue articles are posted for free public reading on the website. https://www.gen-us.net/communities/
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! You can find the show on TikTok @InsideCommunity If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
#010: Navigating Conflict and Restoring Connection with Alyson Ewald
Conflict in life is inevitable. Today's guest Alyson Ewald talks about how to have a good fight, how to transform harm into connection, and the importance of creating conflict systems that are personal and effective for your community.
Alyson Ewald works with individuals and groups to design systems and practices that support learning, connection, creative conflict engagement, and collaborative decision making. She also facilitates the social dimension of Gaia Education's online course in sustainable design.
Alyson has spent thirty years leading environmental and educational programs both within the US and abroad. She has received training and experience in English teaching, Permaculture, Alternatives to Violence, Nonviolent Communication, and Restorative Circles. She has also served as a Board member for Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage, Scotland County Farmers' Market, and the Foundation for Intentional Community (FIC). She is a Missouri certified teacher, a certified Permaculture designer, and an avid student of governance, conflict, and justice. In 2005 she co-founded Red Earth Farms, a homesteading community in northeast Missouri, U.S., where she continues to practice permaculture and social transformation. Learn more about Alyson and her work at www.AlysonEwald.com.
Alyson also mentioned the work of Dominic Barter and you can learn more about him and Restorative Circles at www.restorativecircles.org
If you want to learn more about facilitation or any aspect of building community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, an extensive bookstore and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners use code INSIDE30 for 30% off FIC courses and INSIDE20 for 20% off FIC Bookstore books. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Communities Magazine is a primary resource for information, stories, and ideas about intentional communities—including urban co-ops, cohousing groups, ecovillages, and rural communes. Each full-color quarterly issue focuses on a specific theme. Subscriptions are available and more than 400 back-issue articles are posted for free public reading on the website. https://www.gen-us.net/communities/
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
#009: Skillful Facilitation for Any Situation with Laird Schaub
Moving groups through tough decisions can be tricky, if not impossible, without a skilled and well-trained facilitator to hold folks through the process. Laird Schaub joins us today to talk about the how’s and why’s of excellent facilitation. You'll learn from his 40+ years of lived community experience and training in facilitation, and leave with practices you can use in your community conversations.
Read Laird's incredible bio in our show notes at ic.org/podcast.
Laird often leads 5-week-long courses through The Foundation for Intentional Community covering a number of topics, including: * Participation and Work in Community * Membership Processes * Aging Gracefully in Community * Working with Conflict * Facilitation, and more!
Podcast listeners, use this code INSIDE30 and get 30% off FIC courses. Use code INSIDE20 for 20% off on the FIC bookstore.
Laird leads a two-year facilitation training program where students meet eight times for intensive 3-day weekends. In addition to classroom time where he teaches the elements of skilled facilitation, half the time is spent preparing for, delivering, and debriefing live facilitation, where the students run the meetings and the trainers are a safety net. For more info email laird@ic.org
If you want to learn more about facilitation or any aspect of building community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, an extensive bookstore and lots of free educational materials. You can learn more about FIC and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating!
Communities Magazine is a primary resource for information, stories, and ideas about intentional communities—including urban co-ops, cohousing groups, ecovillages, and rural communes. Each full-color quarterly issue focuses on a specific theme. Subscriptions are available and more than 400 back-issue articles are posted for free public reading on the website.
https://www.gen-us.net/communities/
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Facebook and Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
#008: Income Sharing and Innovating Economy with Sky Blue
In this episode, I'm joined by Sky Blue to discuss income sharing and innovating economic models by living in community. We examine some of the ways communities and collaborative culture endeavors are reimagining the way they design and live into their economies using the Twin Oaks Community, of which Sky is a former member, as a jumping off point. Our discussion begins with income sharing as a model, but we also investigate the culture creation required to shift out of traditional and capitalist mindsets.
Sky Blue (they/them) has spent 22 years living, working, and organizing in intentional communities, cooperatives, and community organizations. Their parents met in Twin Oaks Community in the late 70’s, where Sky moved as an adult and raised a child. Sky has visited over 130 different communities, worked with the Federation of Egalitarian Communities and Global Ecovillage Network of North America, co-organized numerous communities conferences, has founded and managed several cooperative and community businesses, and has served as Executive Director and on the Board of Directors for the Foundation for Intentional Community.
Sky is currently working with a group of people to start a new community. They are also available as a community consultant. They take a whole systems approach to helping groups uncover and address underlying issues and dynamics, develop shared understanding, and find ways to move forward together. You can can contact them at sky@ic.org or visit their website www.nextbigstep.org/sky
If you want to learn more about the various economic models used in community or any aspect of building community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, an extensive bookstore and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners receive 30% off courses with code INSIDE30 and 20% off in the Bookstore with code INSIDE20. You can learn more about the show and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating through our website while you are there.
Communities Magazine is a primary resource for information, stories, and ideas about intentional communities—including urban co-ops, cohousing groups, ecovillages, and rural communes. Each full-color quarterly issue focuses on a specific theme. Subscriptions are available and more than 400 back-issue articles are posted for free public reading on the website. www.gen-us.net/communities/
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
#007: Governance & Decision Making with Diana Leafe Christian
When it comes to deciding who gets to make decisions and how decisions get made, the communities movement has done a lot to innovate more equitable and transparent strategies. In today's conversation with Diana Leafe Christian, we talk about the importance of solid governance models and decision making structures, how these structures and a lack thereof can impact everything from relationships to the ability to get things done, and specifically about Sociocracy, her preferred governance model.
Diana Leafe Christian is the author of Creating a Life Together: Practical Tools to Grow Ecovillages and Intentional Communities, and Finding Community: How to Join an Ecovillage or Intentional Community. An Ecovillage Design Education (EDE) trainer for Gaia Education and editor of Communities magazine for 14 years, Diana has contributed chapters to three Global Ecovillage Network (GEN) and Gaia Education books: Beyond You and Me, Gaian Economics, and Ecovillage: 1001 Ways to Heal the Planet. She is a Board Member of GEN-US. In 2017, she received the Foundation for Intentional Community’s Kozeny Communitarian Award, a lifetime achievement award for contributions to the US communities movement. She speaks at ecovillage and cohousing conferences, offers consultations, and leads workshops in person and online internationally. With the ability to make things simple and clear, and drawing on a deep and broad understanding of community dynamics, Diana encourages effective and harmonious ways for groups to become healthy and thriving, and resolve the typical interpersonal challenges that can arise in any community. She has an upcoming six-week online Sociocracy course starting on April 30th and will be offering an Introduction to Sociocracy for Co-housers course on August 25th, ahead of the National Cohousing Conference in Madison, Wisconsin where she will also be speaking on her recent Communities magazine series Working Effectively with Especially Challenging Behaviors. You can find out more about these courses, trainings, and services by reaching out to her directly at Diana@IC.org
Podcast listeners receive 30% off courses with code INSIDE30 and 20% off in the FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20.
If you want to learn more about how to find and purchase community property or any aspect of building community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, an extensive bookstore and lots of free educational materials. You can learn more about the show and access transcripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating through our website while you are there.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
#006: Finding Your Land with Jonah Mesritz
Sometimes the community dream only starts to "feel real" when the time finally comes for forming groups to purchase land. Putting down a large sum of money and taking that responsibility on with other people often brings up a load of fear and hesitation in addition to excitement. The process may feel daunting, but today's guest, Jonah Mesritz, has helped numerous communities buy land and has helpful insights to support you into stewardship of community property. You'll learn how we started our first community in San Diego and what was learned from that process. Jonah shares everything from discovering what aspects are most important to you in a property search, to financing and purchasing arrangements that are vital to understand. Tune in for his great advice and our fun conversation on finding your land... and then what.
Jonah Mesritz is a cofounder of the Emerald Village, a thriving ecovillage in San Diego, California and a cofounder of the newly forming Terra Lumen Community in Southern Oregon. He is a firefighter with the Orange County Fire Authority, a former Navy SEAL sniper and a licensed California REALTOR. Bringing to bear his experience investing in both businesses and real estate, owning and managing rental properties and “flipping” houses, Jonah has helped many new intentional communities to find and successfully finance community land without traditional bank loans. He is passionate about supporting the communities movement and his Activated Villages Facebook page is a forum for discussions about creative financing solutions and sharing unique properties that are perfect for intentional community.
If you want to learn more about how to find and purchase community property or any aspect of building community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, an extensive bookstore and lots of free educational materials. Podcast listeners can get 30% of courses with code INSIDE30 and 20% off books in the bookstore with code INSIDE20 You can learn more about this show and access transripts at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating through our website while you are there.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
#005: Demystifying Legal Frameworks with Clifford Paulin & Jonah Mesritz
Do legal structures and documents make your head spin? Fear not! In this episode we're diving into the financial and legal issues all communities face (but many dread looking at) with two expert guides. Solid agreements are essential for creating a sense of safety for community members. My guests Clifford Paulin and Jonah Mesritz are going to not only demystify the basics, but also drop some practical advice and philosophy that just might change the way you think about red tape.
Clifford Paulin provides a full suite of legal, facilitation, and mediation services to individuals, businesses, communities, non-profits, and government entities. His extensive background in serving these organizations as well as being part of them provides him with a unique understanding of their needs and desires. He also has extensive experience in mediation in both individual and group settings. He has facilitated strategic planning and other processes for groups in both the private and public sectors. Mr. Paulin is also a co-founder of The Oak Granary, a land-based environmental education non-profit in Potter Valley, California. www.cliffordpaulin.com/
Here's a 30% off Discount Code that you can use for the 5-week course Legal Basics for Forming Communities and any FIC courses: INSIDE30
Get 20% off in the FIC BOOKSTORE with code INSIDE20
Jonah Mesritz is a cofounder of the Emerald Village, a thriving ecovillage in San Diego, California and a cofounder of the newly forming Terra Lumen Community in Southern Oregon. He is a firefighter with the Orange County Fire Authority, a former Navy SEAL sniper and a licensed California REALTOR. Bringing to bear his experience investing in both businesses and real estate, owning and managing rental properties and “flipping” houses, Jonah has helped many new intentional communities to find and successfully finance community land without traditional bank loans. He is passionate about supporting the communities movement and his Activated Villages Facebook page is a forum for discussions about creative financing solutions and sharing unique properties that are perfect for intentional community.
If you want to learn more about Legal Issues in community or any aspect of building community, check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, an extensive bookstore and lots of free educational materials. You can learn more about FIC and access show notes at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating through our website while you are there.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Bonus: Facilitation and Politics with Yana Ludwig
There was so much richness in these two parts of my conversation with Yana Ludwig, I just had to share them with you. Enjoy!
Thinking of starting an intentional community? The first step is finding “your people” — the fellow founders you will join with to build community. This is no easy task! Timing, personality, finances, vision, and values are but a few of the considerations. How are you supposed to find and come together with the like-minded visionaries that will be your co-founders? Here to share her insights on this topic is Yana Ludwig.
Yana Ludwig is cooperative culture pioneer, group process trainer, and consultant and anti-opression activist who has lived in community for 25 years. She is the former Executive Director of both the Center for Sustainable and Cooperative Culture at Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage, and Commonomics USA, an economic justice organization, and currently serves as the Executive Director of Leadership Eastside in Washington. Yana is a dynamic, compassionate and thoughtful speaker and teacher, committed to creating a world that supports the well-being and vibrancy of all beings. Her writing includes Together Resilient: Building Community in the Age of Climate Disruption (published under the name Maikwe Ludwig) , The Cooperative Culture Handbook (co-authored with Karen Gimnig), and numerous articles in Communities magazine. She has spoken on Tedx and hosted the Solidarity house podcast which centers on policy, culture and law. She was also a candidate for US Senate in 2020, ultimately placing 2nd in a crowded Democratic primary field.
You can learn more about Yana's work at www.yanaludwig.net.
- Podcast listeners get 20% of Yana's books and other FIC bookstore purchases with code INSIDE20
- Yana’s online course, Starting an Intentional Community, has been made into an on-demand course ideal for people just getting started with a community project or dreaming of starting one. Podcast listeners get 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30
If you want to learn more about finding YOUR people or any aspect of building community check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, an extensive bookstore and lots of free educational materials. You can learn more about FIC and access show notes at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating through our website while you are there.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
#004: Finding Co-Founders and Creating Cooperative Culture with Yana Ludwig
Thinking of starting an intentional community? The first step is finding “your people” — the fellow founders you will join with to build community. This is no easy task! Timing, personality, finances, vision, and values are but a few of the considerations. How are you supposed to find and come together with the like-minded visionaries that will be your co-founders? Here to share her insights on this topic is Yana Ludwig.
Yana Ludwig is cooperative culture pioneer, group process trainer, and consultant and anti-opression activist who has lived in community for 25 years. She is the former Executive Director of both the Center for Sustainable and Cooperative Culture at Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage, and Commonomics USA, an economic justice organization, and currently serves as the Executive Director of Leadership Eastside in Washington. Yana is a dynamic, compassionate and thoughtful speaker and teacher, committed to creating a world that supports the well-being and vibrancy of all beings. Her writing includes Together Resilient: Building Community in the Age of Climate Disruption (published under the name Maikwe Ludwig) , The Cooperative Culture Handbook (co-authored with Karen Gimnig), and numerous articles in Communities magazine. She has spoken on Tedx and hosted the Solidarity house podcast which centers on policy, culture and law. She was also a candidate for US Senate in 2020, ultimately placing 2nd in a crowded Democratic primary field.
You can learn more about Yana and her work at www.yanaludwig.net.
- Podcast listeners get 20% of Yana's books and other FIC bookstore purchases with code INSIDE20
- Yana’s online course, Starting an Intentional Community, has been made into an on-demand course ideal for people just getting started with a community project or dreaming of starting one. Podcast listeners get 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30
If you want to learn more about finding YOUR people or any aspect of building community check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, an extensive bookstore and lots of free educational materials. You can learn more about FIC and access show notes at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating through our website while you are there.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Ep:3 Preparing for Community with Lee Warren
There are many communities out there looking for capable and eager new members to become a part of their project and help build their vision. Today we are going to focus on how you might best approach those communities, how to prepare yourself for community life, and how to find the community that best matches your personal vision. To talk with me about this today is Lee Warren.
Lee Warren is reclaiming wisdom through conscious relating to self, land, and others. She has 25 years of experience with innovative solutions to mutually empowered relationships, land-based food systems, residential community, non-violent communication, and sustainability education. She is the principal and founder of Reclaiming Wisdom and co-founder of SOIL, School of Integrated Living. Lee is a writer, teacher, and activist, with a passion for embodiment practices, rural wisdom, sustainable economics, conscious dying, and community of all kinds. You can learn more about Lee and her work at https://reclaimingwisdom.com/
This episode was recorded in 2022, so her live workshops have passed, but “Becoming a Communitarian” is now available as a pre-recorded, at your own pace course. The FIC has a full and incredible curriculum of courses you can access any time. Podcast listeners, use this code: INSIDE30 and get 30% off any course. You can also get 20% off in the FIC Bookstore with code INSIDE20
If you want to learn more about preparing for community life or any aspect of building community check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community (FIC). FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, an extensive bookstore and lots of free educational materials. You can learn more about FIC and access show notes at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating through our website while you are there.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and videos of community life on Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
#002: Vision and Values with Dave Henson
This episode explores the topic of Mission, Vision, and Values in community. These guiding principles and founding documents help communities determine who they are and what they do. In many ways, this is the “intention” part of intentional community. Joining me on a deep dive into this topic is Dave Henson.
Dave Henson is a co-founder and current member of the 27-year old Sowing Circle intentional community, as well as a co-founder and the Executive Director of the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center, OAEC.org. Sowing Circle and OAEC share living and working at an 80-acre organic farm and social movement training and retreat center in Sonoma County, Northern California. An ecologist, educator and facilitator for 40 years, Dave has served as a strategy and organizational design consultant to hundreds of environmental and social justice organizations, movement networks, foundations, and land-based projects in the US and around the world. Within the intentional communities’ movement, over the past 25 years Dave has led more than 50 weekend or week-long “Starting and Sustaining Intentional Communities” workshops at OAEC for more than 1000 participants, and has consulted with over 100 projects around the U.S. seeking to develop shared living farms, centers and Communities.
If you want to learn more about creating Mission, Vision, and Values, or any aspect of building community check out the Inside Community Podcast sponsor, The Foundation for Intentional Community. FIC is an incredible resource center with weekly events, online courses, classified advertisements, an extensive bookstore and lots of free educational materials. You can learn more about FIC, access show notes, at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating through our website while you are there. Podcast listeners receive 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30 and 20% off in the bookstore with code INSIDE20.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and video of community life on Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
#001: What is Community? Fantasy vs. Reality
Hello friends and welcome to the Inside Community Podcast where I bring you along for an inside look at what it takes to create and sustain community. In this first episode we are going to take a look at what we actually mean when we say "community." This episode is going to cover a lot of the basics, but we will also get into some of the projections, fantasies and realities of what community is. So whether you are new to this topic or someone who's been wondering if community is right for you… hopefully you’ll all find some useful nuggets here!
If you want to learn more about living inside community or learn more about this podcast, visit our website, hosted by the Foundation for Intentional Community, at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating through our website while you are there. Podcast listeners receive 30% off FIC courses with code INSIDE30 and 20% off in the bookstore with code INSIDE20.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and video of community life on Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Why Me? Why Now? an Introduction
In this introduction episode, I tell you the story of my journey creating and living in community, and why this podcast felt so important for me to create now.
If you want to learn more about living inside community or learn more about this podcast, visit our website, hosted by the Foundation for Intentional Community, at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating through our website while you are there.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and video of community life on Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.
Inside Community Podcast Trailer
If you want to learn more about living inside community or learn more about this podcast, visit our website, hosted by the Foundation for Intentional Community, at ic.org/podcast. Your financial support of Inside Community helps us to continue to create meaningful and exciting content and I hope you’ll consider donating through our website while you are there.
Follow the show and see inspiring images and video of community life on Instagram @InsideCommunityPodcast - I’d love to hear from you there! If this content has been meaningful or useful to you, please subscribe, rate and review, and share with your friends and folks you know who are curious about living Inside Community.