Anarres Two Cooperative Community :: Communities Directory

Forming Formed: 2010

This page last updated:3/6/2013

Anarres Two Cooperative Community

Nevada,

United States

(proposed location, open to other suggestions)

I’m interesting in a forming a cooperative community based on a voluntary, egalitarian and democratic form of socialism (like a kibbutz) but which allows the members as much personal freedom as possible (people have choices, and they don’t have to agree on every little detail). The location has not been decided yet.

There are many possible ways to organize such a community, and it would probably evolve over time.

Initially, I imagine this would start out as shared ownership of a piece of land (we could legally set this up as a worker owned cooperative, or as a company with shareholders). Then we'd build a community building with basic amenities (or at least put in a communal source of water and electricity, showers/toilets). Housing could then either be constructed cooperatively or arranged individually (at first this might be like a campground). Then we'd try to develop cooperative businesses. I'd like to see it organized so that people could work the number of hours they choose (with some minimum), and then the profits would be shared according to hours worked. You could also work outside the community and share part of your income.

Ursula K. LeGuin wrote about a highly evolved form of such a community in her science fiction novel “The Dispossessed”. Anarres 2 would not be an attempt to exactly recreate the society depicted on the planet Anarres in her book, but it’s an interesting vision of a non-hierarchical, cooperative society that can act as an inspiration, and as a warning about things that can go wrong. Cooperative communities like the Zionist kibbutzes and the Anabaptist Hutterite communities have been successful, but they are fairly rigid in their structure and ideology, while Marxist-Leninist states are clearly coercive and oppressive. At the other extreme, counter-cultural communes tend to lack a clear focus or shared goal. I'd like to try to strike a balance.

Website: http://anarres2.wordpress.com

Contact:

Edwin Stamm
75-5 Terano Hanazono
Kiyosu, Aichi 452-0908 Japan

International Telephone Info

Community location is placed at the center of the zip/postal code, city/state, or city/country (not based on street addresses)

This page last updated:3/6/2013

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Statement of Housing Non-discrimination:

Our community does not discriminate in regards to housing based on race/color, national origin, religion, sex/gender, family status (i.e. having children, not having children, or being pregnant), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, ancestry, source of income, age, creed, personal appearance, political affiliation, HIV infection, military/veteran status, unfavorable military discharge, gender identity or expression, receiving public assistance, or being the victim of domestic abuse.

Comment: Members should share a democratic socialist or cooperativist political outlook.

Population Members(adults and children): 1 Non-member Residents: 1 (my wife is not keen on this idea) Open to new members: Yes	Government Decision Making: By majority rule (maybe a super majority (75%)?) Identified Leader: No Leadership Core Group: No	Labor and Money Financial Style: Partial income sharing Open to Members with Pre-existing Debt: Yes Labor Contribution: Expected Join Fee: Yes (members would buy shares when joining, which could be sold when leaving) Regular Fees: Yes (initially, to cover shared expenses like utilities and property taxes)
Land and Buildings Other (rural) Land Owned By: The community (through shares in a worker coop or company (proposed)) Number of Residences: 0 Cohousing: No	Food, etc. Percentage of Food Grown: none (We would like to grow a large %) Share Community Meals: 2-5 times/week (envisioned) Dietary Choice or Restrictions: Diet is up to each individual Dietary Practice: Omnivorous Alcohol Use: Used Often (a drink or two with dinner) Tobacco Use: Seldom used	Social Factors Common Spiritual Practices: No Answer (respect for others, helping those in need, doing good, avoiding evil, being at peace) Which Spiritual Traditions(s): Eclectic (integrates pieces from many religions) Educational Style(s): Public schooled (at least at first)

Become an Editor Current editor(s): GhostofSouchy

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Comment from GhostofSouchy on 12/3/2010 (Reader Rating: 0)

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The name "Annares Two" comes from a community in Ursula K. LeGuin's novel "The Dispossessed". The inhabitants used to live on an earth-like planet that was plagued with wars and poverty. The two main power blocs on the planet were a capitalist society and a communist society, which were in constant conflict. A political activist led an anarcho-syndicalist movement on the planet, which aimed at overthrowing both systems and replacing them with an egalitarian, stateless society based on voluntary cooperation. However, in order to avoid a long, bloody conflict, the anarchists agree to relocate to a nearby planet, which is inhabitable but desert-like.

The name "Souchyville" comes from the name of the writer Augustin Souchy, who studied intentional communities.

The hope of this community would be to provide a "utopian socialist" (see Wikipedia) alternative to the world's current societies. Letting this community evolve gradually may be better than trying to launch it in its ideal form

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