As the call for global climate action strengthens following the COP22 in Marrakech, GEN’s work in climate change adaptation and mitigation through ecovillage development programs is guided by a design based on both prevention and response. One of the pillars of this framework is EmerGENcies, GEN’s emerging humanitarian program. The purpose is to respond to and try to prevent further deleterious effects of climate change (among other forms of crises), in vulnerable communities around the … Read more
Oceania & Asia
Ecovillage Movement in China An update on the Sunshine Ecovillage Network
The partnership and friendship between GEN and the Sunshine Ecovillage Network (SEN), in China has been growing in the past year, since the first Ecovillage Forum organised by SEN took place in October 2015, drawing around 500 interested participants. Ecovillage Design Education courses have previously been run in China, led by Pracha Hatanuwatr and Jane Rasbash, and many young Chinese have participated in ecovillage training elsewhere. Chinese representatives have been reaching out to GENOA – … Read more
Asia/Oceania (GENOA): Earthen Architecture and Green Building Techniques
A solution provided by Auroville, India Construction is responsible for the huge consumption of energy, electricity, water and materials. On the other hand the building sector has a great potential to deliver significant cuts in emissions at little or no cost. Buildings account for 18% of global emissions, or the equivalent of 9 billion tonnes of CO2 annually. According to the United Nations Environment Program, the emissions could double by 2050 during this time of rapid growth. With so … Read more
Kenya: Ecovillage Construction Plans OTEPIC Peace Ecovillage: Construction Using Natural Materials
The OTEPIC Peace Ecovillage is using interlocking eco-bricks to create a honeycomb formation for a new conference hall, community house, and birthing center. … Read more
Welcome to Auroville Ecovillage India: Vision and Plans for 2016
By Nikethana Venkatesan and Kavitha Urvasie Selvaraj Photographer: Vinay Elumalai Following the GEN+20 Conference in Findhorn Ecovillage, Scotland in July 2015, the GEN Auroville Desk was established (August 2015) in the Pitchandikulam Forest, Auroville Ecovillage, India. The GEN Desk in Auroville has been gathering energy and momentum. As the team formed early in 2016, there were a flurry of meetings, discussing and outlining our imagined potentials. We had a beautiful series of sharing … Read more
10th Earth Summit "10th Earth Summit: Creating the Earth for a New Era," Japan (July 16-18, 2016)
“Creating the Earth (Kuni-Tsukuri) for a New Era” Dawn of the Era Hundreds of years ago, the universal wisdom came down to a monkey which is said to be our human ancestor, and then he began to use tools for the first time. As a result, the monkey evolved into a human (HITO). This is how our current advanced civilization exists. As a result of evolution, a materially rich society has been brought into the modern era. However, it has created conflicts among humans, brought confusion to … Read more
March 2015 Celebrating 20 Years of the Global Ecovillage Network
We stand at a critical moment in Earth's history, a time when humanity must choose its future. To move forward we must recognise that, in the midst of a magnificent diversity of cultures and life forms, we are one human family and one Earth community with a common destiny. Established in Findhorn in 1995, the Global Ecovillage Network (GEN) today connects more than 10,000 villages, urban neighbourhoods and intentional communities in more than 100 countries worldwide. Spanning all continents, … Read more
GEN Desk at Auroville An Update
GEN (Global Ecovillage Network) and Gaia Education in Auroville Since the beginning, the Global Ecovillage Network has had an informal presence in Auroville with many Aurovilians connected to the network and establishing informal partnerships and EDE (Ecovillage Design Education) courses. Following the GEN +20 Conference in Findhorn in early July 2015, the GEN desk was officially started in August 2015 as ‘Pitchandikulam … Read more
Regenerative strategies for climate
Rice has been cultivated in the East Indian state of Odisha since ancient times, its fertile land and running rivers supporting paddy cultivation as the mainstay of its people. Odisha is similar to the Latin word for rice (Oryza) and some believe the name of the State derives from the crop known as Oryza Sativa, also known as Asian rice. Koraput is a district of Odisha known for its abundance of paddy fields as well as many varieties of millets, yam, and tuber crops, which are gradually … Read more
Editorial Newsletter January 2016 Dear friends of ecovillages, dear ambassadors, members, allies throughout the world,
Two major crises of our time - climate change and the refugee crisis – are intertwining to reach historical dimensions. People the world over - and all beings of nature – are existentially threatened, with nowhere to turn to. Climate change, in the guise of a long-term drought from 2006-2011 was one of the factors that lead to the war in Syria. In the past three years, the number of people boarding rickety fishing boats – leaving Myanmar and Bangladesh for countries further south in … Read more
