Auroville, a growing international township near Puducherry on the Coromandel Coast in India, is an inspiring model for sustainable practices and ecologically-responsible living. Founded in 1968, Auroville is based on the vision of The Mother from the Sri Aurobindo Ashram and is endorsed by UNESCO and Government of India as an ongoing experiment in human unity. Over the years, Auroville has won international acclaim for its efforts in social and environmental sustainability. The efforts and … Read more
Oceania & Asia
January 2016 The two major crises of our time
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 … Read more
Aurora Eye comes to Findhorn Young Filmaker Visting Communities
In early October Serena Aurora visited Findhorn Foundation community in Scotland and the GEN International office located there in order to make a short film promoting GEN and Findhorn. Serena is an adventurous, nature-loving filmmaker inspired by the ecovillage movement. She is dedicating her energy to traveling around our precious planet, giving a voice and platform to ecovillages and other intentional communities. She documents and explores the diverse communities that live principles of … Read more
Sweden/Syria: Integration Ecovillage A Solution for Migration and Eco-livelihoods
The Syrian refugee, Fayez Karimeh, arrived last year in Europe. With the help of the GEN network he reached Sweden, where he now plans to build an ecovillage for migrants and refugees (we reported about him here: http://gen.ecovillage.org/en/node/5825 . Due to visa issues he could not attend the GEN summit in person, but was connected with the emerGENcies strand via Skype. Allan Stewart, Treasurer of the new-found association SICE, reports. In the last months around Fayez, a team of … Read more
Earthquake in Nepal: What Ecovillagers Can Offer Humanity and the Earth
On 25 April 2015, Nepal experienced the first of its devastating earthquakes which left over 9000 dead and hundreds of thousands of homes and communities destroyed. Chris Gibbings, representative from GENOA from Australia was invited by the ecovillage network in Nepal to come and give a hand. Sunni Dawson reports. Chris arrived before the third (some know it as the second!) major earthquake to hit the country: "It was a scary experience for sure. Seeing the ongoing trauma of people in Nepal, … Read more
Ecovillages North America: The ABC of a Community’s Garden Orchestra
In the modern world, many people generate music by flicking a switch, pressing a button, turning a dial, or tapping a keypad or touchscreen. And many of us obtain food by swiping a card or lightening a wallet. Others, however, create music by picking up instruments or using their own voices. And some people grow at least a portion of their own food too, participating intimately with its creation in a garden or on a farm. Chris Roth, former gardener and now editor of Communities Magazine, names … Read more
Global Campus 2015 in Tamera: On the Way to Form a Global Community
During the GEN summit, GEN International and Global Campus became partners. In this report, Leila Dregger shares about the last Global Campus gathering from July 18th to August 15th, where 30 members and representatives of the base stations of the Global Campus met in Tamera, Portugal, studying and sharing peace knowledge, exploring new skills and experiencing community. While the global crisis threatening their home regions every day remained to be in our focus, they lived in the Solar … Read more
Belipola in the Rainy Season Sabina Arokiam from GENOA writes of her visit to the Analog Forestry and Community Development Centre in Belipola, Sri Lanka
I arrived at the tropical heaven of Belipola in the height of Sri Lanka's rainy season. It was a time of indulgence for the teeming forest vegetation and critters, and the nearby river gurgled with hearty laughter. Life filled up to the brim and overflowed at every turn and corner. It had been a big year of unravelings for me, and I was inching my way through the last days of 2014. The New Year was approaching and I was flying home on the 1st of January. My eyes were blurry from nursing a … Read more
There is a Life after GEN It is not better or worse – it is simply very, very different
Max Lindegger, permaculture activist and co-founder of Crystal Waters in Australia, has been involved in GEN for more than 20 years – indeed he was around when the idea was first mentioned by Hildur and Ross Jackson. Although Max has not been active in GEN or GENOA for a number of years, his own life is still very active in community. He shares with us what his life is looking like now. Work for GEN/GENOA has taken me around many parts of this globe and the many friends I have made over the … Read more
Sustainability in Bhutan Visiting the Country of the Gross National Happiness Index
Globalization is affecting the life of Bhutan. About eighty percent of food is imported from India even though the country has the capability of growing all its own food. The people are being adversely affected by TV and materialistic values. Mr. Lhundup Dukpa, program director of the School Education Division of Royal Education Council (REC), had been searching for an alternative education system and a more sustainable way of life in keeping with the intrinsic values of natural resources and … Read more
