Would you live in an anarchist neo-primitivist vegan village?
So, I've written about my Utopic community in the past, but since then I've been busy incarnating the lifestyle I imagine I would have in such a place. However, I think it's good to be persistent in these ideas and hopefully generate discussion. So here goes:
I'm talking about a place where all economic activity is plant-based, there is no intended animal killing, exploitation or depriving of their freedom. It wouldn't be a demand for anyone to be vegan, but within the confines of the village all animals would be honored and respected.
Buildings would be made of trees, mud, and other materials that can be sourced locally, in addition to recycled stuff. Tools would be old and modern as long as the powered things get their energy from renewable, small-scale installments.
There would be no centralized political power so every major decision would have to be discussed by the whole population until consensus was reached.
It would be a goal to have the latest information and communication techs available to everyone as informed decision-making would be central, however there would be a focus on doing things as primitive as possible for all other areas of life, with the goal of being highly sustainable and in harmony with the local environment.
Recycling technology would also be encouraged and hopefully top-notch. This way plastic and other modern materials would be available without the need to harm the ecosystem.
There would be no sewer system and all human waste would be processed through biodigestors to produce biogas for each house, with the biproducts used as fertilize for growing a big harvest.
Whenever everyone living in the village was in suitable housing conditions, the whole town would gather to build a new welcome shelter for newcomers that would like to integrate themselves into the community.
Building and taking care of making the best houses possible with ancestral methods would be a very important cultural matter where the whole town would gather to make short work of new construction/repair projects.
Mining and mineral extraction would be possible in small scale operations, always prioritizing balance with the ecosystem, but most metals would be recycled.
These are the main points that conform the Utopic village I dream of. Would you live there? Please elaborate on why yes or why not. If you resonate with this or know someone else who does, please send them over to join the dream :)
The ideas laid out here gave me a lot to think about. In many ways my partner and I are already living these principles. And in some ways I would love to live in such a community, at least in theory.
Though, I enjoy my privacy and alone time so much that I am not sure that I could! While traveling we lived, short term, in many different kinds of communities, but, almost every time we found it draining to be constantly around other people and deal with the dramas and conflicts that arose. I think my ideal way of living is having my own space where I can do as I please and also neighbors and a town square where cooperation, respect for animals, and recycling are valued. This is the path we are on now to hopefully realize that dream.
Are you working on starting such a village in your area of the forest?
Yeah, I've experienced the drama as well but I think this is due to people not being motivated by the same core ideals. I've never seen a community that valued animal freedom for example and made their sustenance exclusively from plants. If I knew of one close by I'd go immediately to work with them.
One of the differences I propose is that there isn't a voluntary system, everyone is supposed to have their own house and enjoy comfort as well as privacy. No one should have the miserable conditions often offered to voluntaries.
And yeah, all I've been doing since day one was with the purpose of building such a village but it's too much burden for me alone, so I'm just chilling until someone shows up 😸
I think you are onto something, that the people need to be passionate about a core system of beliefs. The communities that I have heard of that work out are one united by religion or a shared spirituality.
I wish you lots of luck in your village!! and abundance too. May the people find you soon.
Thank you!
I believe one major factor why people in general tend to have such a hard time with aligning their ideas (even though our basic needs and most typical wants are the same), is because of a lack of necessity. Basically put, our survival doesn't depend on it (YET). In other words, I'm sure that can change pretty quickly, even though the external pressure would make it seem a bit less attractive.
Yeah, most people only act based on survival needs and comfort. But there's gotta be some idealists out there too!
Sure, like I consider myself to be one of them. So how come I am not living in the woods, working on creating a food forest, like you? It all comes down to different prioritizing, since my survival does not depend on it (at the moment).
Yeah, I get that, I'm actually taking a few steps away from the forest today till who knows how long, one can become a slave of freedom
For certain, there needs to be a good balance between the private and the common. I remember volunteering in an eco village once, where the volunteer accommodations were completely separate from those living in the village. Even though there was another volunteer with me there, we both felt that solution a bit depressing. On the other hand, I couldn't take being constantly around other people either.
As for decision making, I would specify that the consensus needs to be reached by all those who are affected.
I totally would! But then again, if there was an anarchist neo-primitivist omnivore village as an alternative, I would probably choose that option instead.
When you say, there is no intended animal killing, exploitation or depriving of their freedom, would that include keeping a few sheep for grazing, wool, and mutton? I mean entirely respectfully and according to their natural needs? I'm sure they would feel much better in captivity, as that's how they evolved with us, getting their regular haircut, and when the time comes, experiencing a relatively quick and painless death.
Of course I would not impose my views on others, and if cooperation requires, I could totally live in a vegan community. But these are just my own views.
That's a very interesting question and argument. I thought about it a while and I think that since being vegan is not a requisite, you could do whatever you wanted outside the village limits, which means hunters and animal raisers could live in the outskirts of the village, benefiting from both worlds if that was their wish.
However, within the limits of town it would be forbidden to kill animals and doing so would result in some sort of trial, where the motivations of the killer for living in the town would be tested and checked if they even cared about the ideals that are supposed to be shared.
Ideally the village would have edible plants growing everywhere, my dream is that you could go stroll by the town plaza and eat all sorts of delicious veggies, growing naturally thanks to focus on soil and seeds. If there were animals in this range it would always be a source of conflict as they tend to be very invasive and greedy regarding garden areas.
Then there's the matter of quick death which can light up a long debate. I think the moments before death are crucial to Soul evolution and should not be tampered with if possible. But, of course that's just my personal view and would have to be a thing of consensus with the townsfolk.
I think I would like living in your village! Just from the flexible way how you respond to my thoughts.
Of course even if I was allowed to, I probably would not want to kill an animal in front of vegans. Just like how I don't mind forgoing eating meat when traveling with vegetarians, for example.
As for the edible plants, though, they would be a clear invitation for all kinds of wild animals to come and enjoy the free-for-all. As a meat eater, I am naturally happy to see that, since these visitors could become part of the meal themselves. But in a vegan village you would have to find other ways to discourage them from eating your food. And as many Permaculturists have pointed out: "Good fences make good neighbors, so properly planned good fences are essential for an effective design."
But I am totally with you about food plants growing everywhere!
Glad to know you feel that way!
Actually, in my experience only cattle does harm worth considering when you have a good diversity in the garden. Other animals are very modest in their consumption it only gets bad when there's monoculture.
Hahaha, yeah, and probably elephants! Though you could also say, those animals are simply working the ecosystem with much bigger tools. By the way, I'd probably include pigs too. The way they root through the ground they can actually change the terrain by a great deal. It all can be called "damage", though in the end it results in a higher biodiversity, and a bunch of other benefits. But I guess when they trample the bush of of your favorite berries in the process, you are less likely to be happy. So it's all about giving them the right place to do their work.
Yeah, never interacted with wild elephants hahah, that'd be a challenge
I was involved with intentional communities when I was younger and came away with a couple of thoughts. First, the social/governance piece is really hard. Second, the economics of needs/labor contributions/etc are even harder. How would you ensure that members are free and treated fairly?