On Ecovillages and the Universe Story
In a piece in the last Musings on “Does Thomas Berry Provide a Foundational Set of Principles for Ecozoic Societies?” I reported on and agreed with a way of viewing paradigms for a sustainable future based on ecocommunalism and a new sustainability paradigm. The latter saw the future as still being urban, technological and global, the former emphasized relatively autonomous local communities. I still believe that the ecozoic will need to be worked out in an “urbanized, globalized, technology- and energy-dependent world.”
But what about the former, ecocommunalism? We can’t wait for global structures to change, we need to act now where we can at the local level. This means localization, the sharing economy, community-based agriculture, and much more. Ecovillages are laboratories for the future pioneering a new human-Earth relationship and less consumptive, sustainable, organic lifestyles. Ecovillages also pioneer in other ways, including re-skilling and communal decision-making and support. Individuals and small groups are transformed in ecovillages and are inspired and enabled to build an ecozoic future.
The Local Futures website gives many resources, including free downloads of
Films to watch
- One Way to Rebalance the World (video of Helena Norberg-Hodge’s presentation at the Local Futures’ Economics of Happiness Workshop in Totness, UK in September 2016), Educating Independence, October 21, 2016
- Economics of Happiness: How Much Human Scale Is Essential for Solving Our Social and Ecological Problems?Interview at Lingnan University in South Korea, October 7, 2015
And films to purchase:
- The Economics of Happiness (DVD)
- Ancient Futures: Learning from Ladakh (DVD)
- Paradise with Side Effects (DVD)
- Local Futures: Beyond the Global Economy (DVD)
In regard to the universe story (Thomas Berry’s “New Story”), we have focused primarily on Berry’s historical and cultural criticisms and his principles for the transition to ecozoic societies. Yet we have included a great deal in our research, publications, and events on the New Story. We understand that it is as central to Berry’s thought as anything and a case can be made that it is the central idea of Berry. We heartily agree that it is important to the transition to the ecozoic.
The Journey of the Universe website is a great way to learn the New Story. The film Journey of the Universe is available for purchase there. And then there is the journey of the universe taking place all around us. Summer skies and flowers are telling the story.