Like oases, which are fertile places amid desolate areas, oases of change are living spaces where the new, the life-giving has begun to germinate; they are glimmers of hope amid a collapsing civilization that is destroying the foundations of people’s lives and their environment. Typical oases of change are, for example, the ecovillages that already exist all over the world.
The new pushes toward the light
A growing number of young people would rather devote their energy to developing an ecologically sustainable way of life than waste their lives in a system that is waging war on nature, i.e. on their future. Change and transformation come from below, from within, from the individual and the small – rarely from above. Oases of change are like dandelions sprouting on the pavement. The new does not wait to be called, it comes and makes its way into the light.
At first, it develops into individual cells of life, which over time become complex organisms, living communities, clusters of houses, and nests of resistance, which do not exhaust themselves in ideologies, but remain open to the constant change that accompanies all healthy life. All these social organisms need and create spaces in which reorganisation can take place. It is here that new ways of living and coexisting are tried out, and where an earth-friendly future is visualized, exemplified, and communicated in practice. More than ever, it is important to create social and cultural oases where, in addition to an ecological infrastructure, a cooperative and sincere way of living and interacting determines the way people act and communicate. Places are being created where people can be self-determined, efficient, and self-reliant.
Spaces for a new way of living
WandelOasen are spaces that we carry within us like a silent hope. They are home to a way of life that is ecologically and planetary conscious. Their inhabitants know that life, land and community, water, air, and food are gifts and organize their daily activities accordingly. These ‘places of the future’ nurture and develop the self-efficacy of each individual involved in the project. Ideally, this is done in a cooperative, benevolent, and peace-promoting way. The aim of each WandelOase is to create an increasingly self-sufficient and self-determined living space in order to make the contours and forms of an earth-friendly way of life tangible for others. WandelOasen is counter-design and are therefore always a political project, even if this does not have to be emphasized every day.
Hand to heart – commerce with heart
What kind of change is this? In the WandelOasen, people do not think in terms of friend-enemy, top-down, or profit schemes. They work for a modern, sustainable, and trustworthy way of life. Ecological thinking and behavior, non-violent and cooperative coexistence, sustainable management, and spiritual awareness are their core values for living together. Competition would primarily create something undesirable: disruption. The creative development of human potential is central.
The sharpening and broadening of consciousness and awareness go hand in hand with external and material organization. Heartfelt action and benevolent cooperation for the common cause are the currents on which the Oases of Change are based. The better they are nurtured, the more powerfully they will gush forth. In the WandelOasen, people are educated and formed by life itself, by doing and being together. Everything is done with the conscious and attentive intention to establish a non-violent way of life among people and to dedicate oneself to one’s own personal spiritual development.
The WandelOasen are
– Courageous projects in squares, cities, and neighborhoods, in villages, mills, and farms, in and on which socio-ecological changes in agriculture and energy supply, in the design of living spaces and personal communication, are embodied, as well as their inner and spiritual transformation.
– Spaces for experimentation and development, true social laboratories where the cultural evolution of society can and must take place, where old paradigms are overcome and the collective spirit of a sustainable, non-hierarchical ‘we’ consciousness is found.
– Small and large living spaces – an alternative community, an organic farm, an ecovillage or a commune – where the fresh wind of change is already blowing, spreading the scent of visions of a new way of life and inspiring visitors with the spirit of change.
– A way of living in harmony with nature and creation.
– Places that spread and practice the magic of self-determined and cooperative living.
Literature:
WandelOasen, Handbook for Solidarity Villages and Sustainable Communities by Alander Baltosée 171 pages, ISBN 978-3-947707-003, €14.80 or ebook ISBN 978-3-947707-010, €7.49.
To order from Books on Demand or directly from the author: baltosee@oekoligenta.de.
