Great read! "...their lack of agreed values, their poor communication..." and their lack of participation all fueled the demise of the community market in this story. I have visited, lived in, participated in, and taught about intentional communities of many different sorts. Those three aspects are ones that I focus on in the explanation of areas to be mindful of and specific in dealing with. While having the cohesion in the desire to "centralize" with other farmers for selling their wares, that is not enough to carry a group of humans past a short-term satisfaction. Having the foresight to develop a framework that includes agreed upon centralized values and goals along with steps for decision making and conflict resolution gives the founders the ability to maintain the ideals and energies of the pure concepts that brought the group together. Creating a way for direct and productive communications to happen between group members is essential for sustainable participation! It also helps with the reality that it's likely members will change over time, and gives future community the chance to resolve issues as they arise in a manner that holds true to the framework of the group.
@artemislives you have my attention now... I look forward to reading more of your posts!
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