Commune Life is a blog devoted to income-sharing, egalitarian communities, also known as communes. We look at the diversity of these communities, as well as what it’s like to live in one, and projects related to the communes. Our usual structure is that we have an article on communes and communal living every Monday, a video or a photoessay showing what life in these communities is like is published every Wednesday, and every Friday we usually have a recap of what has been posted on our Facebook feed over the last week or two.
For those new to this idea, there is a Federation of Egalitarian Communities in the US and many of the communities profiled here are in it. The FEC is also a good source for more nitty-gritty information about commune building.
Here’s some of the communities that we’ve looked at:
Twin Oaks, founded in 1967 and located in rural Virginia, is the oldest commune on this site. We have a good introductory article on Twin Oaks and some photoessays about it including this one.
East Wind, also founded in 1974, is located in the Ozark Mountains in southern Missouri. We have article about their kitchen renovations and several photoessays including this one.
Acorn, was founded in 1993 and is located near Twin Oaks in rural Virginia. We have an article on their labor system and here’s one of the photoessays we have on it.
There are also a lot of other communities covered here, many of which, sadly, are no longer around or income sharing or involved with the FEC. Some communities that are around (as of March, 2024) that we have information on include Living Energy Farm, which we have an essay on the technologies they use as well as why they were founded, the Magnolia Collective, whose Vision statement we published, Little Flower, a Catholic Worker community, and the Serenity Solidarity, a BIPOC-led community endeavor which has been doing a bunch of important projects, including a work party to rehab affordable housing and a road trip to support activists in Atlanta. All of these communities are part of the larger cluster of communities in Louisa County Virginia.
For people wondering what’s involved in building community we have articles on how to start a commune, as well as how to build lasting communities and why you can’t build a community by yourself, among many other articles. And there will new stuff on this blog three times a week.
Also, if you’re looking for more information on any particular community, project, or subject, please check out the list of CATEGORIES found under PAGES by clicking on the three lines in the upper right hand corner. (For example, there is whole section on “Creating Community” under the “What Else” category.)
Welcome to the world of communal living!
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