Our village is growing! We have 10% of our 30 homes completed, and we are currently seeking new members to make their home on 120 acres in the beautiful Finger Lakes area of New York.
We are a group of people from all walks of life meeting and working to establish a sustainable neighborhood on 120 acres in Danby, New York, near Ithaca.
Our first three member families have now moved into their homes. When completed we will have 30 homes sitting on approximately 5 acres of our 120 acres of farm, field, and forest.
This nonprofit will be run by consensus decision making and encourage creativity and joyful neighborhood life.
At White Hawk Ecovillage, members are free to design their homes in single-family type housing on small lots in a circular formation around the central common area and Common House.
While we have some existing designs that are quite economical, the home plans are up to the member as long as they meet the guidelines for size and sustainable building practices. We feel this will add to the charm of the village. We are able to accommodate duplexes and are zoned for a bed and breakfast for those interested. We are working to implement a cooperative legal structure, which means that all member-residents will jointly and share the common land that is dedicated to organic farming and natural spaces.
We are people of all ages and look forward to a diversity of skills, ideas, and talents, with the goal of passing down a thriving village to our children and their children.
Our intent is to be on-grid but move toward off-grid independence. Initially, all lots are provided with natural gas, electricity, and phone, which offers people the opportunity to take advantage of grid-tied incentives for solar and wind power. We continue to research options for energy efficiency and independence.
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| setting |
legal structure: cooperative (Developing offering plan)
surroundings: farmland (Close to town and on public transit, but rural feeling.)
land ownership: owned by an insider - individual (Land currently owned by one member, will be transferred to cooperative.)
building ownership: self-owned (Each home is owner occupied, but common house will be part of cooperative.)
neighbors: neighbors are friendly (Town has been very supportive of our project.)
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| population |
total number of people: 17
ideal or planned maximum number of people: 100
children (0-10): 8
adults (20-60): 9
females: 11 (Includes 7 children.)
males: 6 (Includes 1 child.)
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| housing |
number of buildings: 3
number of housing units: 3
number of bedrooms: 7
house sharing: We are zoned for both single family and duplex homes.
roommates: Varies at the discretion of the family.
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| sharing |
income sharing: none - all money is private
communal meals: occasional communal meals (Regular communal meals are planned for later, right now we have potlucks with meetings.)
communal food: We share and exchange a lot of garden produce but individual homes also buy their own food.
tools and machinery: a few tools and machines are shared
motor vehicles: one vehicle is shared
bicycles: bicycles are private property
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| ethnicity |
ethnic diversity: open to all yet unintentionally not diverse
asian / pacific-islander: minority
white / caucasian: majority
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| spirituality |
spiritual diversity: proportional to general population
agnostic: some people practice this faith
atheist: some people practice this faith
buddhist: some people practice this faith
humanist: some people practice this faith
jewish: some people practice this faith
paganism / earth religions: some people practice this faith
unitarian universalist: some people practice this faith
eclectic (integrates pieces from many religions): some people practice this faith
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| government |
common political theme: no official theme
selecting leaders or centrals: no leaders by principle
decision making: done by consensus
rules: a few maxims which decisions and agreements must respect (Decisions generally based on tolerance, diversity, and a sense of live-and-let-live.)
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| activism |
party politics: The community does not take a stand but does not require or prohibit any particular member views.
protests and demonstrations: The community does not take a stand but does not require or prohibit any particular member views.
non-violent direct action: The community does not take a stand but does not require or prohibit any particular member views.
cyber-activism: The community does not take a stand but does not require or prohibit any particular member views.
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| sustainability |
self-grown food: 5% (We hope this grows as more households get their gardens and trees established.)
organic food (grown+purchased): 25%
self-produced energy: 20%
energy from renewable sources: 20%
building material which is salvaged: Encouraged but not yet implemented.
waste which ends up being recycled: 50%
sewage which is treated ecologically: Septic system for community keeps some products local. Composting toilets encouraged.
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| income and money |
personal expenses: no money is allocated for personal expenses (Community will reimburse for expenses incurred in community projects.)
savings: We will have a capital reserve fund, but if it is not depleted then this will reduce household contributions.
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| agriculture / garden |
livestock: Chickens now, with goats, small cows, alpacas, and llamas being considered.
crops or produce: Community garden spaces, backyard gardens, and permaculture.
fruit trees: Some existing (mostly apples), others being planted this fall and spring.
permaculture methods: Highly encouraged, with some trained permaculturist residents and friends.
veganic (vegan-organic methods): Encouraged but not actively pursued at community level.
fukuoka (natural farming methods): Experimental \\\\\\\"One Straw Revolution\\\\\\\" patch.
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| diet preferences |
common diet: no defined common diet
vegan (plant based diet): 4
omnivore: 13 (Many of these are choosing local products, both plant and animal, when available.)
whole foods: no restrictions
coffee and caffeine: no restrictions
sugar: no restrictions
salt: no restrictions
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| love and sexuality |
polyamory / open relationships: discreet
bisexuality: respected and welcome
homesexuality (male): respected and welcome
lesbianism: respected and welcome
heterosexuality: respected and welcome
monogamy: respected and welcome
celibacy: respected and welcome
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| parenting / children |
attachment parenting: open / personal choice
co-parenting: open / a personal choice
home education: open - a personal choice
breastfeeding: breastfeeding encouraged
home birth: open - a personal choice
cloth diapering: open - a personal choice
corporal punishment: parents personal choice
childhood vaccines: a personal choice - equally open to all
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| seeking people |
seeking people: yes 80 (27 homes still to be built as of September 2009.)
people with children: welcome
people with disabilities: welcome
elderly people: welcome
single parents: welcome
need capital to join: yes (No rental units available yet, but we hope to have some in the near future. Otherwise, people must lease lots and finance and build their own homes.)
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| drugs / stimulants |
marijuana: prohibited (We ask members to behave legally, but cannot police this.)
psychedelics: prohibited (We ask members to behave legally, but cannot police this.)
tobacco / nicotin: in private room or designated areas only (Only when legal and not in common areas.)
liquor: no restrictions (Only when legal.)
wine: no restrictions (Only when legal, and some people homebrew.)
beer and cider: no restrictions (Only when legal, and some people homebrew.)
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| dress / tidiness |
nudity: Not prohibited but we ask residents to respect each others boundaries.
tidiness: We expect common areas to be reasonably tidy, but private residences are at the residents\\\' discretion.
cleanliness: We expect common areas to be reasonably clean, but private residences are at the residents\\\' discretion.
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| visitors |
visitors without intention to join: welcome (We offer tours, call or email to set one up.)
paying visitors: We might at some point have a B&B or camping opportunities, but not at present.
working visitors: welcome (There\\\'s always plenty of work to do!)
wwoofers: welcome (We would welcome help expanding our organic farming.)
prearrangements: contact a few days in advance (A week is preferred.)
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| languages |
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english, french, german, irish. |
last updated 2009/09/08
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