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| Forest Moon Ecovillage | ||||||||||||||||||
 The
mission of the Culture Artist
Organization is to help each other learn to live in harmony with
nature while reducing our environmental 'footprint.' The
ultimate way to maximize sustainability is to create communities
built on sound ecological principles. There are such communities
in existence now, but as an artist and a musician, I have an
intense interest in seeing such a community built around the
arts. I began the Culture Artist Organization in November of
2006 with this goal in mind. Since that time, I have found that
there are artists, musicians, and art patrons all over the world
who share my vision! Combining sustainability and artistic
expression just seems to be a perfect blending of all the best
things in life.With that idea in mind, a few of us 'green thinkers' have begun to work towards designing and creating just such a community. This community will not only be a sustainable village; it will also function as an educational facility, a place for artists to showcase their talents, and as an example to the world of what is possible. Our eventual goal is either 'zero footprint' or 'negative footprint' where the environment is concerned. A 'zero footprint' community would take from the Earth no more resources than it puts back. A 'negative footprint' community would actually add more to the Earth than it takes away; for example, if we have to cut down a tree, we plant two in its place.  We've
begun designing such a community...on paper at least...and hope
to eventually make it a reality. We're looking for people who
would also be interested in such a community. Do you have a keen
interest in sustainable living? Do you feel more at home with
nature than with the 'concrete jungle' of the city? Are you an
artist or a musician, or do you at least have an interest in the
arts? Do you practice a nature-centered spirituality? Then you're the sort of person we're looking for!Any interested parties would have a say in how such a community would develop...what its principles would be, how its people would live, what its vision is. Please be aware that if you are interested in being a charter member of Forest Moon Ecovillage, we won't be selling land, but leasing it for 99 years. This is done for many reasons, but the two most important are that by retaining the land under our nonprofit, you pay no property taxes, and by leasing rather than selling the land, we are able to keep the ideals of Forest Moon by regulating what sort of structures can be built on the property. Currently land will be leasing for $1000 per 1/4 acre parcel. This price may go up as infrastructure is built, so charter members get a substantial discount on the lease. Future infrastructure includes a council house, playground, community garden, walking paths, festival grounds, and artists market. Location Areas currently under consideration for the location of Forest Moon Ecovillage are in Tennessee. The final location will depend on how many people express an interest. The larger parcel is near Mountain City Tennessee, and the smaller two parcels are in western Tennessee near Henderson. The final size of the ecovillage would be limited to no more than 30 families, so space is likely to go fairly quickly.  General
PrinciplesOnce land is purchased, the Forest Moon Ecovillage community will be incorporated as a nonprofit educational institution and will be run democratically by a Board of Directors. Any decisions that would affect the whole community would have to be approved by a majority of the members of the community. Each family would be responsible for building their own home, with the help of other community members and volunteers. Since the community is based on both sustainability and the arts, a set of guidelines would have to be put in place as to what would be allowed and what wouldn't where building is concerned. The community as a whole would have the right to have final approval on any building to be constructed. There will also be several buildings held in common for community use (see the Details section below). A certain amount of land would be set aside for agricultural purposes. If enough land could be purchased, it is also possible that each family parcel would have enough land to have individual gardens. A barter system could be put into place to exchange labor in the community garden for food credits at the community co-op. If at all possible I would like to see a community parking lot or garage where all members who own vehicles could park them. Such an area would be designed to be convenient to as many of the family parcels as possible. By restricting vehicular traffic in the community proper, members could be assured of having a safe place for their children and pets to play. There would eventually be a biodiesel production facility near the parking area for members who choose to purchase diesel vehicles. Any vehicles purchased for use by the community itself would have to be capable of being converted to sustainable fuel sources. Membership Members from all walks of life will be welcome, regardless of race, gender, spiritual path, political inclination, sexual orientation or creed. Tolerance will be the rule. Anyone who has a desire to live in a sustainable way and to be tolerant of other members will be welcome. Any occasional disputes that may arise will be settled by all members of the community by democratic process. Eventually Forest Moon Ecovillage will construct a Community Building/Town Hall. This facility will offer occasional classes on parenting, relationships, addiction and any other topics for which community members express an interest. The community center for Forest Moon Ecovillage will be the first building to be constructed. This will act as a conference center as well as an educational facility, and would be perfect for such classes. Classes would be available to community members for free and to those outside the community for a reasonable rate. Any other community members who would like to offer classes and instruction could offer them to the community and to the public as well. Our vision for the community is one that incorporates art into sustainability to create aesthetically pleasing environments that are also environmentally friendly. With that in mind, we actively seek out artists and craftspeople to join us. For examples of how beautiful such buildings can be, visit the Cob Gallery.  SpiritualityIdeally we would like to see a community that welcomed all religious beliefs and spiritual paths. A community chapel and/or other sacred spaces will be created for use by all who desire to use them. The only "law" regarding spiritual practice will be tolerance. Members will be free to exercise their personal beliefs without fear of reprisal or interference, as long as they are willing to grant other members the same privilege. We welcome people of all faiths as well as people of no faith at all. Members may teach other interested members about their own paths as long as they are willing to respect the rights of others to their own paths as well. We believe that diversity is a strength as long as we focus on what we have in common rather than on what we don't. Future plans for the Ecovillage include an outdoor gazebo/sacred space to be used as a chapel.  EconomyUnlike some intentional communities, the Forest Moon Ecovillage will allow members to work outside of the community in the "real world," but ideally we would also like to see at least one business developed that could be run by community members. If such a business became successful, it would offer members the option of working within the community. If members decided to pursue this option, a business compatible with the talents and interests of the community could be selected and marketed. Two major ideas that have been presented and discussed are a coffee house and an annual festival. The coffee house would be open to the general public and would feature local talent on the weekends. It would act as a sort of liaison with the surrounding community. Many of our current potential members are already musicians, and we already have a pool of talent to draw on for any future coffee house entertainment. The coffee house would also function as a gallery and gift shop to showcase arts and crafts produced by members of the community.  The art and music festival has also been given a great deal of
consideration. The initial plan is to build an outdoor stage or
amphitheatre on community property prior to building any other
facilities. If such a facility could be built, at least two
festivals could be held each year; one in the summer and one in
the fall. These festivals could serve a dual purpose. They could
promote arts, crafts, music and drama created by members while
offering the general public an "open house" opportunity to see
sustainable alternatives in practice. Such events could generate
revenue by selling concessions and renting booths to local
artisans while generating goodwill with the people of the
surrounding area. A preliminary study on the feasibility and
potential revenues from such a festival indicates that such an
annual event could raise most of a small community's (30 to 40
people) annual operating budget.The Community Center will be next to be built on the community property. The center will contain a large meeting room and a resource library. Lectures and workshops on sustainable living would be held on at least a monthly basis to educate the public on the benefits of green living, spirituality and holistic health. Details The community property will have several buildings held in common for the benefit and use of the entire community. This list isn't all-inclusive, and as things progress and more members join in the development process, it will probably evolve. Consider this just a place to start. So far, the Design Committee suggests the following buildings/facilities:
 All
of these facilities need not be built at once. They could be
ranked in order of priority and built accordingly. The Community
Center will be built first, since it is the central hub of the
community. Since the community will be primarily an educational
facility for sustainable living techniques, at least two
seminars per year on sustainable building will be held. As a
project for each of the seminars, one of the above facilities
could be built using natural building techniques like cob
building, straw bale, earth bags, etc. This process would
continue until all the needed facilities have been built. Funds
for materials to build each facility could be raised through a
combination of seminar fees and other fundraising projects
and/or grants. As a nonprofit whose two primary focuses are art
and education, the
Forest Moon Ecovillage will be eligible for
many grants for both the arts and education.Schedule Most intentional communities fail within the first year due to poor planning. Because of this, we are in no particular hurry to make this community a reality. We're doing our best to make sure that all plans are made deliberately after careful consideration. As things develop, we will post notes here and in the newsletter, informing interested parties of our progress. Design Committee If you are interested in serving on the Design Committee email me and I'll put you on the mailing list for our online rap sessions. We don't have a regular schedule as yet, so we just send out emails when there's an issue to be resolved. The only obligation to serve on the Design Committee at the present time are an interest in joining the community once construction begins, and a willingness to share your input. You don't have to be a Board member to serve on the Design Committee.
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