Rene Duveen

In summer 2009 our community bought an empty sanatorium, which was idle for many years, with a large park garden and several buildings. Presently we are reconstructing the main building transforming the many guest rooms into living spaces for singles, couples, families and groups. We have a number of community rooms and also special rooms for our children and youths.
We are open for people of different spiritual, religious or cultural background. We aim a conscious, inspired way of living, by integrating spirituality into everyday life. We take ourselves time for celebrations, rituals, songs, dances and meditation. We find guidance by our heart, mind, and intuition and by invisible forces. As group we often go into silence (meditations, attunements), to connect with the universe, to interconnect with ourselves and as an important tool for decision making.
In living together we want to honor the diversity of each individual. This encourages free acting and personal development and enriches the community life. As a community we take care and support each other. We already consist of 3 and aim for 4 generations as basis for a sustainable living.
We aim to heat our buildings with solar energy only. We will reduce the energy demand to 20% and the CO2-output to 10% of the original values by installing a novel solar heating system. Low temperature solar heat is stored in huge refurbished oil tanks, filled with water, and transferred to higher temperatures by a very efficient heat pump. For the thermal isolation of the building we use ecological materials, such as cellulose fibers made from recycled paper. For the reconstruction we use biological materials such as wood, clay, straw, cork, lime and sand. Some heating walls are made of clay or clay bricks. Rainwater from the roof is collected and used in the garden, for toilet flushing and for the washing machines. Organic wastes are collected and composted.
All members are responsible for their own income. Most are working part time outside of the community, however we plan to generate more jobs within our community
We are lucky to have several organic farms nearby and several alternative schools, such as a Steiner school and a new school applying non-directive education.
Integration is an important issue for us and we have already good understanding and cooperation with people, authorities and organizations in our area.
Most members speak schweizerdeutsch (swiss german), but other languages are also spoken: dutch, english, french, german, italian, spanish and even esperanto
No. of Residents: About 75
No. of Members: About 30 adults with approx 25 children
Visitors Received: Volunteers and Work Exchange