Since 1993, Smala institute develops expertise in socio-environmental entrepreneurship and eco-community building, kind of living labs. It provides training and hosting for over 1’800 beneficiaries from 1993 to 2019, out of which ¼ are social entrepreneurs, 3/4 are artists, families, students, seniors unemployed. We started in the industrial district of Lausanne “le Flon”, contributing in revitalizing it as a new source of creativity. Thanks to the socio-economic success with this initiative, Smala received from public and private partners new opportunities to develop similar “living labs” in other locations. Since 1995, Smala has tackled the challenge of incubating 40 short and mid-term hives, eco-life learning centres, with 5-30 cohabitants and co-workers in each location
Smala’s team is composed of pioneers of change who contributed in the transition of socially innovative places and enterprises.By moving so many times our headquarters and healing various new places, our team has developed a replicable art of co-living and co-working, informal “learning while doing” methods. It became a fair set of rules that we updated at each new community project, becoming the Ecopol label after 20 years of experience.
2014-2019 we build ecovillages ! After incubating Bâtir Groupé cooperative from 2006 to 2013, we bought a land in Cheiry and in Grandvaux. Smala becomes a member of GEN-Europe (2013). The successes followed. We inaugurated Cheiry the 21st of August 2016, « Berber » in Grandvaux the 25th of Novembre 2017 and Cheiry 2 the 31st of August 2019. We favour social ecology on the basis of the Ecopol social contract, beyond the pre-requisites already well established in the Swiss culture, such as energy-efficiency, affordable rents in co-operative and infrastructure sharing.We organized more than 150 conferences on the art of living together between 2015-2019. Our Ecopol service is consulted by dozens of eco-project holders who wish to develop their vision of eco-housing.
Membership & Visitors
- Current members: 60
- Open to new members
- Open to visitors
Images & Video
La Smala,
Please review the Global Resource Bank Ecovillage Network
John Pozzi
Hi John Pozzi.
Can you please explain? We can’t find the Global Resource Bank Ecovillage Network.
Smala
John Pozzi is the owner of “Global Resource Bank”. This is just an ad. It looks as though it is just a concept at present.
Hi, I’m very interested in such communities, as yours. There is no such endevour in Poland yet, I think. Is it possible to come and see your village? I’M also an environmental activist interesting in your attitude to ecology and I would like to learn a lot!
Please let me know
Małgorzata Krusinska
–ENGLISH BELOW–
Mme, Mr,
Mon nom est Audrey LUKANDA NDAY et je suis étudiante en 2ème Master en Sciences et gestion de l’environnement, à l’Université Libre de Bruxelles (Belgique). Je rédige actuellement un mémoire sur le biomimétisme organisationnel. Le biomimétisme organisationnel peut être défini comme étant l’inspiration ou l’imitation des organisations observées dans la nature et l’adaptation de ces dernières aux activités et organisations humaines. Mon mémoire s’intéresse particulièrement aux initiatives d’économie circulaire, ainsi qu’aux écovillages, pouvant être considérés comme des formes de biomimétisme organisationnel. Plus précisément, je m’intéresse à la mise en réseau des acteurs du biomimétisme organisationnel, ainsi qu’aux partages des ressources (connaissances, aides financières, …) entre ces acteurs.
Mes hypothèses sont les suivantes :
-Le contexte actuel de la transition durable représente une opportunité de développement et d’implémentation du biomimétisme organisationnel, l’extrayant peu à peu de son cadre conceptuel et théorique de longue date.
-Contrairement au biomimétisme appliqué aux produits, aux matériaux/structures et aux processus, représentant des applications plus ponctuelles, le biomimétisme organisationnel intègre la complexité des systèmes humains. De fait, la mise en réseau des acteurs du biomimétisme organisationnel et le partage des ressources entre ces acteurs semblent être indispensables pour la durabilité de telles initiatives.
J’aurai dès lors aimé pouvoir m’entretenir avec une personne de votre organisation pour étayer mes hypothèses (partie empirique de mon mémoire), par le biais d’une plateforme virtuelle (e.g. TEAMS) ou, si nous en avons la possibilité, en présentiel. Cela prendrait la forme d’un entretien semi-directif.
Je dois rendre mon mémoire le 9 aout 2022, j’aurai donc aimé m’entretenir avec une personne de votre organisation dans le courant du mois de juillet. J’ai conscience du temps limité qui nous est accordé, mais je n’ai pas pu entreprendre les démarches plus tôt pour des raisons médicales.
Je vous prie d’agréer, Madame, Monsieur, l’expression de mes sentiments distingués.
LUKANDA NDAY Audrey
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Mrs, Mr,
My name is Audrey LUKANDA NDAY and I’m currently studying at the Université Libre de Bruxelles (Belgium) – 2nd master’s in environmental sciences and management. I’m currently writing my university mémoire on organizational biomimicry. Organizational biomimicry can be defined as the inspiration or the mimicking of natural organizations (that we can observe in nature) and their adaptation to human activities and organizations. My mémoire focuses on circular economy and ecovillages, which can be considered as a form of organizational biomimicry. More specifically, I’m interested in the networking of actors of organizational biomimicry, as well as in the resources’ sharing (knowledge, financial aids,…) between those actors.
My hypothesis are the following :
-The current context of Sustainability Transition represents an opportunity for the development and the implementation of organizational biomimicry, which allows organizational biomimicry to extract from its conceptual and theoretical framework.
-Contrary to biomimicry applied to products, materials/structures and processes, organizational biomimicry must integrate human’s organizations’ complexity. Therefore, the networking of actors of organizational biomimicry, as well as in the resources’ sharing (knowledge, financial aids,…) between those actors seem to be indispensable for the durability of such initiatives.
I would then like to discuss those points with someone from your organization, in the form of a semi-directed interview, through virtual platforms (e.g. TEAMS) or in real life if it possible.
I must submit my university mémoire on the 9th of August 2022. I would then like to interview someone from your organization during the month of July 2022. I’m aware of the short timing and I am sorry about that, but I was unable to do this enterprise sooner for medical reasons.
I’m awaiting to hear from you and would be honored to discuss the matter with someone form your organization
Best regards,
LUKANDA NDAY Audrey