Guest Author - Jan Zeiger

Our family is different. We eat a mostly organic, whole foods diet. We use cloth diapers, nontoxic cleansers, and try to minimize our impact on the environment. While I’m comfortable with being different from the typical modern family, I must admit it is exhausting. Always being the “oddballs” in our family as well as in our neighborhood sometimes leaves me feeling frustrated. While we’ve been lucky enough to find like-minded families in our area, it sure would be wonderful to actually live in a neighborhood filled with others who are interested in eco-friendly living. While preparing for our upcoming move, I read about intentional communities like the EcoVillage at Ithaca and was very impressed. I hope one day my family will have the opportunity to live in such a community or maybe even help start one.

Intentional
communities have been around for thousands of years, and the idea is still very much alive today. In fact, more and more people are becoming interested in reviving a sense of connectedness that seems to be lacking in modern neighborhoods. Residents of intentional communities have common goals and principles. According to the Global Ecovillage Network, one type of intentional community, an ecovillage, is a “group of people who strive to live sustainably.”

As I explored the website for the EcoVillage at Ithaca, I was envious! Here was a community of like-minded families living in “green” homes on almost 200 acres. An organic vegetable farm can be found on the land with future plans to develop village scale wind-power, a charter school, and more. Photos on the website show families working happily together for the common goal of natural, eco-friendly living. Meals are shared in the “common house” three days a week and chores are done in a cooperative fashion with everyone pulling their own weight.

The EcoVillage at Ithaca was designed to be a working model and has been associated with Cornell University’s Center for Religion, Ethics, and Social Policy since its inception in 1991. The community plays a large role in educating young people on sustainable living through its connections to local universities as well as elementary schools. Several master’s theses have been written about the community and more are in the works.

People who are interested in living at the EcoVillage of Ithaca should thoroughly familiarize themselves by reading the website and are then encouraged to plan an overnight visit. There are two bed-n-breakfasts on site as well as other accommodations are available such as the common house guest room or a private room with a host family.

I find the idea of living together with other families who feel the way we do about life extremely appealing. I enjoyed reading about the activities these families do together such as craft nights, dance parties, and swimming together in the neighborhood pond. I can imagine that the children really benefit from such a strong sense of community, and I’m sure they learn a great deal about living in harmony with nature because they’re actually doing it rather than just reading about it.

If you’re considering this for your family, check out the links in this article as well as the related links below for more information. I highly recommend the photos at the EcoVillage at Ithaca’s website. I was truly inspired and hope to visit this community one day.