Do you have ecological practices? Reducing your environmental footprint and sharing your values ​​are your priority. What if the ecovillage is for you?

They are called ecovillages, schools, ecovillages. Sometimes, they have spelt ecovillages, eco-places, and eco-hamlets. Whatever the term used and the spelling, we designate the same thing: a rural or urban agglomeration that aims at self-sufficiency. In this place, we place the human being at the centre and that we want in harmony with its environment. The basic principle is not to take what cannot be returned from the earth. Beyond theory, is living in an ecovillage feasible? Is this a utopia?

What is an ecovillage?

An ecovillage is characterised by life that considers the environmental, socio-economic, and cultural dimensions.

Robert Gilman, a specialist in the subject, defines the ecovillage as follows: "An ecovillage is an intentional human establishment, urban or rural, carried out on a human scale, having all the functions necessary for life, in which the activities are integrated without damage. To the natural environment while supporting the harmonious development of the inhabitants. It is a place where initiatives are taken in a decentralised manner according to the principles of participatory democracy, and in such a way as to be able to continue successfully into an indefinite future".

Common points in most ecovillages

This ecological, united, and responsible way of life is reflected in different ways:

• First of all, a method of organic production and consumption.
• But also habitats that favour eco-materials and renewable energies, aiming for energy autonomy.
• Optimal resource and waste management.
• The establishment of exchange and mutual aid systems.
• Decisions are taken collegially.
• A life in a community, with the creation of common economic, social, and cultural activities, following an ethical vision.
• A way of life based on voluntary sobriety.

An ecovillage: a philosophy of life

Ecovillages are therefore not limited to eco habitats. They become concrete solutions to a more sustainable and less individualistic way of life. They also encourage a reduction in social gaps.

Ecovillages can be very different. There are isolated ecovillages in the countryside, but they can also be parts of already existing villages or even districts of large agglomerations. Whoever they are, they have the same objectives and the same values:

• autonomy
• friendliness
• opening
• respect
• solidarity
• individual freedom of belief

Ecovillages do not impose any religious, cultural, or political orientation.

The history of ecovillages

The term ecovillage, a fusion of the words "ecology" and "village," was coined in the early 1990s by Ross and Hildur Jackson, founders of Gaia Trust in Denmark. This association supports sustainable development projects around the world.

It was intended to be the logical answer to environmental problems such as global warming, the scarcity of natural resources and especially water, the decline of biodiversity, and poverty in the world. Today, the ecovillages movement represents a very significant potential that can solve these many social problems.

Ecovillages, cities in transition, and other communities sharing this same global and sustainable vision have multiplied worldwide. In 1995, the Global Ecovillage Network was set up to encourage all initiatives in this direction.

The network is extended worldwide; it has nearly 250 members. Some members are themselves associations grouping together several villages such as RFEV. 

The network's interest is to create a synergy between all these entities and thus encourage the exchange of ideas, technologies, and feedback from each other.

It is challenging to know the exact number of ecovillages in the world. Some structures adopt the philosophy but do not qualify as ecovillages. Conversely, some places proclaim themselves ecovillages even though they only resemble them from a distance. Indeed, having green buildings and sorting waste is not enough.