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Building Communities and Surviving Together – an Exchange Gathering by GEN Japan

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GEN-Japan held the Second Exchange Gathering Online from March 5th to 6th. Unexpectedly, one week after the beginning of the Russian military offensive in Ukraine, it highlighted the meaning of community building and the importance of unwavering cooperation, as well as networking among these communities. In this online event, about 20 communities and initiatives joined. Each speaker and community strongly announced it to the public and as a result, more than 200  participants participated in the gathering. Through the event, we were able to clearly understand the difference between a world that “tries to move people through violence and violent acts” and a world that understands and cooperates with each other through dialogue and we shall move towards the latter.

One audience member sent us her impression after the event;” I was encouraged by the fact that younger people are starting various initiatives.”Since last year, exchanges and cooperation among the participating eco-villages have begun, and at the same time, young people from urban areas are touring the eco-villages and such a population has been gradually increasing. They are beginning to experience a new way of life while there. On the other hand, there is a movement to learn from each other about the efforts of how they keep building ecovillages.

Tetora Tanizaki, representative of WorldShift Japan, an advisory board of GEN-Japan, suggested that we need to clearly show the innovative way of living in harmony to the public. This year GEN-Japan is having a Gaia Youth Education in March and April as well as GEN-Japan EDE course in April. We are trying to steadily promote the creation of a harmonious society through eco-villages.

Ecovillage Experience Week at Gaia Ashram, Thailand

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How do we get people to be inspired, interested to join the community, and learn deeply during their time at Gaia Ashram? This was one of the questions we contemplated during the lockdown in Thailand.

The pandemic affected Gaia Ashram as an international learning center and community due to the lockdown and shutdown of transportation for international travelers. This made us cancel a lot of programs offered in English for international travelers. However, We also observe that more Thai and local people have a stronger realization of how sustainable living and lifestyle such as ecovillage lifestyle is quite resilient in this kind of situation. We then emerged with the idea of launching the Ecovillage Lifestyle Experience Week (ELEW), where people can get an introduction to ecovillage design principles and also experience how it feels like to live this lifestyle.

We design the program where the participants get a theoretical session in the morning and join the hands-on/ practical work in the afternoon. The daily routine flows as Gaia Ashram’s usual routine where we start the day with daily yoga practice. Breakfast starts at 7.30 am where we gather together to bless the food and remind ourselves how grateful we are to be alive on this planet earth. After breakfast, we have our morning session which is class time for workshop participants until 12.00 am. The afternoon session starts at 14.30 pm, we do practical work together until 17.00 pm. After that, we continue with a dance session at 17.45 – 18.30 pm followed by meditation until 19.00 pm as the way to wrap up our day. Workshop participants join our daily chores to do dishes, tidy up, feed the chickens with kitchen waste, etc.

Our aim was to have people experience Gaia Ashram’s lifestyle and cultivate an understanding of why we designed our lifestyle this way. How we use ecovillage design principles as guidelines to design our life and the importance of holistic and whole system design.

This program and most of Gaia Ashram’s programs from now on are bilingual, English – Thai. We intend to start promoting the ecovillage concepts and Ecovillage Design Education to Thai audiences as well as international participants. 

We also made this Ecovillage Lifestyle Experience Week (ELEW) compulsory for those who want to volunteer or take an internship at Gaia Ashram. They have to join this ELEW program before starting their volunteering/internship period. 

We offer this program monthly at Gaia Ashram, usually in the first week of the month. We have done this program three times already so far.

We found that the participants value the programs both in terms of the experiential part of it as much as the theoretical inputs. The lifestyle where each day we find the balance of the use of the head, heart, hands and also the time to connect with nature, work with nature, and experience community spirit. 

We found that this program helped volunteers/interns to understand the big picture of Gaia Ashram, our core values, and why we have our structures as they are. 

The interest among Thai audiences has increased. As a result, more Thai People are interested and inquire about the full Ecovillage Design Education program which we will offer in November/December 2022.

Read an article by Lisa Sahj about her experience joining the Ecovillage Lifestyle Experience Week here.

Gaia Ashram

Gaia Ashram is an Eco-Education center on Permaculture, Ecovillage Design, and Deep Ecology. Gaia Ashram aims to be a place where we live holistically, practice, and realize the interconnectedness and the oneness of all beings.

For more information about them, visit their website and Facebook page.

GIFTS from the Heart: A year-end Celebration of Regeneration

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Typhoons were sweeping through The Philippines, and Myanmar continues to experience military crackdown, as we were celebrating “GIFTS from the HEART” last Saturday, 18 Dec, 2021.

How can we celebrate when there are all these disasters happening, manmade and ecological?

But celebrate, we must.

It may seem counterintuitive, but it is precisely with the full awareness that what we cherish and find meaningful can be gone any moment; in spite of that, we choose to live our best, as evident in all the incessant rescue efforts that continue to spring up after every hit — efforts that calls for agile leadership skills in times of complexity, experience in community-building and tools for collaborations — all of which is why we feel so called to share REGEN-Nations, a 6-month whole systems regenerative design programme with speakers and facilitators who are practitioners on the ground, sharing insights and knowledge from their lived experiences. 

During the celebration, we received news that Sarah Queblatin, one of the co-creators of REGEN-Nations, could not join us as intended because of coordinating rescue efforts in The Philippines. We took some moments to call in these forces of nature that is undeniable and present, into our circle, and harnessed a collective blessing to those facing it head-on, trusting that what we are doing here in this same moment, of celebrating regenerative ways of living, is part of the equation of a balancing force to hold the world together with our open hearts. Rescue and recovery are all essential aspects of our ecosystems, so are resting and nourishing our hearts in community.

Towards the end of the gathering, Karla Delgardo from Kai Farms joined us briefly, sharing why she was unable to join in earlier, with some first-hand stories of the situation in The Philippines where she lives. Although we are not physically there, hearing stories from the ground directly from members of the GENOA network brings what we might otherwise read from the news media so much closer to home – to our individual hearts and collective pulse – and to feel the interconnection of how we are all in this together.

Our small team at REGEN-Nations really wants to bring these leadership skills to more people, where we can be held in community as we continue to build capacity for co-creating a more regenerative and therefore more resilient world. What is unique about this multi-dimensional programme is also that it is based in our region, a culturally and ecologically diverse region that is also very climate-vulnerable.

For this programme to run, we need your help. You can check out our learning platform for more information about this programme, and donate on Indiegogo to enjoy the perks we are so eager to share with you too!

And of course, please do share with your friends and those who might resonate with co-creating a more beautiful world that our hearts know is possible. 

Let us plant these seeds for a new Earth together.

p/s: these are the seeds that we collectively planted for the New Earth in 2022 at the end of Gifts from the Heart gathering.

Tanya Mottl: Participating in Online EDE was an Enriching and Nurturing Experience

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WOW!

Why did I do the course?

What did I want to achieve?

How will I use it now?

What happened?

So what?
What Next?

Will it help me with MY projects?

I registered to do the Ecovillage Design Education Online course because I felt that I had a marvelous opportunity to learn from the diverse GEN speakers from all around the globe. I figured that even if this was a toe in the water, it was a great way to collaborate in project-based learning and get a sense of which tools and resources would best help me with my own projects of passion: co-creating a collaborative living co-housing home using universal design at Narara Ecovillage, helping to develop and participate in the learning business at the village using GEN principles and helping to grow the GEN Australia network.

My strongest recollection in starting the course was John Croft, an elder from GEN, and co-founder of the Dragon Dreaming project tool, saying “what would it take for this to be the best course you have ever done”?

(picture: Melody Simay Acar)

WOW! I thought, my dream: building an online community that can use tools and resources that can be used to strengthen the online network by creating events and sharing information that helps with regeneration projects.

I’d already participated in GENOA’s use of the tool for project planning with Hema Wu. So, I wanted to learn more!

I was thrilled at the diversity of participants and in the ensuing weeks and months that followed, the fabulous support team created lots of opportunities for the participants to be in breakout groups to discuss the concepts we were learning. I noted a common purpose – how can I contribute to regeneration and healing the planet?  We are all in this together.

We were at choice to join our preferred project groups; I chose Networking and our group became Seeds and Spores and we used this metaphor as we grew and morphed and learned together.

These are my tribe, I thought. And I was right!

What I loved about exploring governance and agreements in the social dimension was that we created them together – here is our agreement.

Each week we had a different presenter and their ecovillage projects and experience were all so different and yet, they were all based on people’s participation and the connection to nature. Through this diversity, we were able to consider how their model might apply to our team project or to my own projects.

I noticed how effective Sociocracy was in allowing participatory leadership. Did we do it perfectly, heck no! Was there learning in that? YES! I am keen to immerse myself in it more!

Our group returned to the Dragon Dreaming process repeatedly and imperfectly – dreaming, planning, doing, and celebrating. I’ve learned that it’s clearly a process that requires time to understand, practice, and integrate. Using MIRO online as an alternative to using sticky post-it is probably more environmentally sustainable, however, it does take a wee bit of practice. And yes, being together shoulder to shoulder in a circle, not on a zoom screen would be better YET I’m grateful for the technology we were able to make use of.

All of our sessions were recorded and we have access to these and to the additional resources that the participants and facilitators provided. A treasure trove of collaborative knowledge.

I’m also looking forward to further integrating all my learnings by diving into the 2021 Online Summit which was included in our fee.

As we dived into the Ecology dimension and had sessions about permaculture design and green building technologies, water management, regeneration & food security, climate change, and emerGENcies, I felt enormously grateful that I am already a member of an ecovillage with a strong vision based on permaculture principles. I had only done my own Permaculture Design Certificate in Oct/Nov (at the time of the GENOA Online Gathering) and reviewing these concepts in the EDE helped to better integrate them. 

(picture: Monika Hering)


I also felt grateful for the simple new measures I have been able to practice during COVID lockdowns – saving seed & regrowing the heads of spinach, beets, celery, beetroot, and parsnips.  I have deepened my love of composting and have yet to set up my own Share Waste project.  

As part of our group’s weekly Celebration and strong desire to integrate music and art, I introduced the group to an Australian permaculture group, Formidable Vegetable.

“Songs are some of our most powerful tools for learning, remembering, and sharing knowledge. Music can be so much more than entertainment”

Charlie McGee

You can see Charlie’s TedX talk More than a Tune: Make Music with a Purpose, Change the World!  Here:

Their songs are based on permaculture principles and I particularly love their song Our Street; which one do you prefer?

The Economy dimension was eye-opening with the first presentation by ecovillage founder Ross Jackson. How fascinating to hear Anna Kovasna, Head of Education present about the economies of different ecovillages, Taisa and Macaco speak of social currencies, community banks, and trade systems. It affirmed my orientation over many decades of work for the board and that we all have something of value to contribute.  May East’s decades of work around intrapreneurship and working on the edge was also informative.

This dimension has particularly inspired me during the lockdown as Narara has planned an Ecovillage Residential Experience Weekend and I am certain that there are other ways that we can all promote ecovillage living joyously? I love how GEN-Europe hosted a series of Meet the Ecovillages and now has the  Resilience and Regeneration series. 
How else can we demonstrate the benefits of ecovillage lifestyle and support income for our ecovillages – using the principle of Respect Indigenous Wisdom and Welcome Positive Innovation?

I really enjoyed the different styles of teaching that Macaco and Taisa were able to incorporate in the presentations including bringing in nature – even if it was a pot plant indoors with us!

(picture: Melody Simay Acar)

I loved seeing what new direction the pioneers of GEN Education have taken – Kosha Joubert now attending to collective trauma with Pocket Project, Daniel Christian-Wahl whose articles I’ve subscribed to in Medium, and Daniel Greenberg who’s now driving the importance of story-telling and Mugove.

I particularly loved Taisa’s presentation about Ecovillages and the SDGs and the activity we did to better understand such a complex idea. I am keen to see how GEN continues to work with Regeneration rather than Sustainability. The figures presented in the 2017 Impact Assessment are inspiring and I think it is our responsibility as Ambassadors to share this as much as possible.

“Let ours be a time remembered for the awakening of a new reverence for life, the firm resolve to achieve sustainability, the quickening of the struggle for justice and peace, and the joyful celebration of life.”

Earth Charter
(picture: Monika Hering)

It also really looks forward to implementing the new Impact Assessment Survey to present updated global data on the power of regenerative lifestyles.  

So what now? I am still integrating ALL the information, reviewing frequently, and seeing how I can practically apply the information.

Our project group will assess how we might continue our project and how we can collaborate with others from the program.  We are grateful to the support team (Abbie, Carolin) who set up a Slack channel for future communications.

I can’t wait to hear how it was for some of them who were able to go to Damanhur for part of the month-long EDE.

I followed up the EDE by attending a 4-week online workshop about co-housing at EarthSong in New Zealand which deepened my EDE learnings. I’m grateful for Robin Allison’s encouraging words:

I’d like to reiterate that ours was a very long and demanding journey because it was the first time the cohousing model was introduced and adapted to NZ conditions. It shouldn’t be so challenging for others. It’s for that reason that it feels important to tell the Earthsong story and share our learnings, systems, and agreements, to help other projects move faster.

Robin Allison

I have organized a Dragon Dreaming session with the generous support of Hema Wu and Amena Bal.  This collaboration has meant an opportunity to explore and expand our own online facilitation skills and for me, even more respect for their skills and their friendship.

What next?  

I want to find out more about the Transition Game as I think this will help our Collaborative Living project at Narara Ecovillage.

(picture: Melody Simay Acar)

I have got involved with helping to organize the Sociocracy workshop series at Narara in September.  Project-based learning like this has increased my skill exponentially – new online systems, uploading the FB events, and finding ways to be creative!

I also am looking forward to a deeper dive into the upcoming Dragon Dreaming workshop that is being proposed by GENOA.

Support and encouragement for the growth of PermaYouth who are in the top 10 for the Hildur Jackson Award 2021

Can I design an ecovillage now?

Maybe not by myself!!  However, having access to the GEN Map of Regeneration and having my own sets of cards with the SDGs attached, I’m finding ways of doing online presentations and having conversations about solutions to the climate crisis and the Regeneration that we can ALL participate in.

I remain in a state of both Outrage and Optimism, in the words of Christiana Figueres.

I will do the best I can with what I have learned.

How can you help us to build the GENOA network across Oceania and Australasia?

It would help if you visit our Facebook and Instagram pages.

Please comment and Like the posts and mark Interested in the events, even if you cannot go as this helps your friends to see what events are coming up.

Please feel free to contact me at tanya.mottl@genaustralia.org.au 

Would I recommend the online EDE?

Heck, yes! If not now, when? If not me, who?

Education and inspiration and action are essential right now.

About the Author

Tanya Mottl, GEN Australia, Australia.

Tanya is a GEN Australia Ambassador based in Sydney, Australia. She is also a member of the GEN Australia Management and Communications team since March 2020. An enthusiast for the GEN Regenerative Design process, Tanya has a diverse background and is driven by a passion for community, nature and the inherent human need for connection.

She is a skier, sailer, e-cyclist and a generalist and likes to play to her strengths – kindness and facilitating conversations around the current climate crisis. With a background in training, she is keen to see the SDGs and Ecovillage Design Cards utilised extensively during the Decade of Restoration. She is grateful for her upbringing in the Ku-ring-Gai Chase National Park on Pittwater in Sydney for the understanding of weather which helps her understanding of the Permaculture Design Certificate she’s currently doing. A novice eco-villager but a quick learner!

Celebrating the Gifts of EDE (Ecovillage Design Education) and Culture of Regeneration

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4-D Framework for Integrative Whole Systems Design for Sustainability (image: Gaia Education)

Why dream and design and do through GEN Map of Regeneration and 4D mandala of Design for Sustainability from Gaia Education?

“Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms and like books that are now written in a very foreign tongue. Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, live along some distant day into the answer.”

Reiner Maria Rilke

Living and loving my questions, celebrating the completion of participating in the first e-learning EDE course. Pre-Covid, EDE’s were often held in physical locations around the world for a month, by trainers certified by Gaia Education. This was a 41/2 months online program-  an international, intergenerational extravaganza of interactions and resources, a mosaic of experiences integrating inner and outer journeys through all dimensions of sustainability and regeneration. Weaving whole systems –  in essence, encouraging us to be anchored in the worldview of our inter-beingness, a powerful tool for transformation of consciousness. 

The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams

Eleanor Roosevelt

It all begins with a dream, tapping into the power of Dragon Dreaming- inviting you to take a deep breath, breathing with the breath of GAIA, being supported by the unconditional love of gravity and mother Gaia- close your eyes and connect to all your senses, breathing in the energies of the sun, the moon and all elements – now- as you experience stillness and silence tune into your dream- drumming in your heart, invite your dragons to dance and dream the win win win possibilities – 

Are you living your dream or wishing to make it come alive? 

Are you hearing a call for people and planetary wellness and 

being guided to serve society in a purposeful way? 

A Portal –  EDE is a portal to open many doors to new ways of thinking and doing regeneratively-  a perfect platform to explore and experiment with regenerative cultures, an invitation to create meaningful projects that will slowly shift us into self-development, community growth and maybe even align us with thriving through climate change by improving the health of existing systems.

This course honored the sociotones and gave me an opportunity to understand and apply  ‘edgework’ principles – following the flow, honoring synchronicity, playing to the law of three – 1) activation 2) resistance  3) reconciling. It encouraged bisociation, thinking with integral approach and moving with spiral dynamics. 

Trauma and Transformation – we were encouraged to honor, hold and heal traumas, making us recognise individual, ancestral, and collective trauma, facilitating resilience through resources of reconnection to nature and remembering our inner superpowers of presence and relationality. 

Learn by doing – dedicated facilitators Macaco and Taisa created a safe and sacred space for us to lead from authentic emergent self, listening deeply to inner and outer worlds and allowing weaving of friendships and collaborative projects.

Applying my gifts to this project based learning in my design group where we are dreaming and birthing the advocacy of SSH –  ‘Safe Sacred Havens’ – a soul- ution for supporting the vulnerable, especially those getting displaced by climate change disasters. SSH aspires to be a voice and womb for the vulnerable – creating lasting belonging as one family of humanity. 

The edgework projects of May East and Green Releaf  of Sarah Queblatin and my own process of project design with my heart centered group, has ignited a compassionate relationship with the refugee crisis – connecting me to the Kakuma Camp in Kenya through the presence of an inspiring peer Kadjosi. I am now activated to join his dream for refugee camps to transition into ecovillage living, giving the EmergGENcies and RefuGEN program new energy to rise up and support the impending refugee crisis. At the end of 2020 we had 82.4 million displaced people and the prediction for 2050 is 1.2 billion. 

I am now asking – “how can the GEN community support prevention, preparedness, mitigation and,or response and recovery from this crisis? “

Creating Community – this learning journey began with the first simple step – creating community in every cell of ourselves and honoring diversity. People coming together in a shared inclusive way – learning to govern with sociocratic lens and diverse worldviews, holding everything and everyone like essential fractals in the mandala of life, each one with intrinsic value, truth and beauty, aspiring to create a peaceful life together. 

A Design Thinking Program –  providing tools to think and design life and environment regeneratively through permaculture, harmonising inner and outer ecology to economy, fertilise the soil of life for peace, health and abundance. Encouraging us to know more about the value of composting toilets, biochar, and Terra Petra soil for carbon sequestering. 

TI is designed with permaculture zones

Designed to cultivate imagination and contemplate on questions: 

What are my inner and outer resources?

What is my personal impact? Could it be reduced somehow?

How do I manage waste?

How can I support regenerative agriculture and build food security?

Where does my food and water come from?

How can I help in carbon sequestering- to lower atmospheric carbon levels from 415 ppm to 270 ppm?

Am I realigning and reinhabiting for regeneration?

What economic models serve well-being, sharing, gifting,fairness, equality and happiness?

Can we live in a money-free economy?

How do we transition from global to national, bioregional to local Gaian economies and Gaian institutions?

Are we collectively exploring complexity and finding creative sou-lutions where the spirit is at the center for thriving communities and ecological balance?

Systemic Change – EDE helps create an ecosystem for supporting evolutionary approaches to education for planetary and personal transformation, helping each other harness the power of collective wisdom – metaphorically like ants coming together to make an ant hill ecosystem- individually we are not as activated and effective but when we work together in community collaboration like a human hive, we are able to tap into a wider web of wisdom, network of ideas, and our combined courage and strength. 


Heart Opening- the cultural dimension was weaved into the whole course. Participants were invited to share their creativity and culture. We had fun dancing and meditating together, sharing our passion for photography and documentary making, embodying flow with elements while diving into more serious topics like the Earth Charter and SDGs in ecovillages and their application, understanding, assessment and achievement in different regions and why GEN and Gaia Education use it as a bridge between different stakeholders of our planet to work towards the 5 P’s – Planet, People, Prosperity, Partnerships and Peace.

5 Ps of Sustainable Development Goals (Image: UN)

Cherishing my role as a volunteer and GEN ambassador, now an active member of the Network Steward Circle from GENOA, I am recognising and endorsing the EDE as integral to understanding the ecosystem of ecovillages and to learn from those that have dedicated themselves to this participatory process for decades. 

TI Ecovillage Bangalore India is the home of Amena Bal. Inspired by GEN and EDE, TI dreaming of becoming smarter and more regenerative

Remembering the ‘ Autobiography in Five Chapters By Sogyal Rinpoche from the ‘The Tibetian Book of  Living and Dying shared by Ina Meyer Stoll who facilitated personal and social transformation 

I walk down the street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I fall in.
I am lost…
I am hopeless.
It isn’t my fault.
It takes forever to find a way out.

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I pretend I don’t see it.
I fell in again.
I can’t believe I’m in the same place.
But it isn’t my fault.
It still takes a long time to get out.

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it is there.
I still fall in…it’s a habit.
My eyes are open;
I know where I am;
It’s my fault.
I get out immediately.

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.

I walk down another street.

Sogyal Rinpoche from the The Tibetian Book of  Living and Dying

EDE is a walk down another street!

Showering gratitude energies and love on the cherished facilitators, shining stalwarts paving regenerative pathways with persistence, perseverance, and possibility –  helping us remember how to care for and be in service to GAIA.

Keep a lookout for the next online EDE to engage with master trainers, co- dreamers that will become friends and project communities, setting sail into the ‘Great Turning’ celebrating the change by creating win-win-win futures!

More info 

https://learn.ecovillage.org/course/ecovillage-design-education/

https://www.gaiaeducation.org/about/learning-outcomes/

https://www.conectaecossocial.com/

About the Author

Amena Bal. TI Ecovillage, India

Amena joined the GENOA Council and GEN NSC to serve Mother Earth and to be an active voice for wellness and oneness in our world. As a permaculturist, living in TI Ecovillage in South India, she is on a mission to spread the ecovillage movement and share regenerative living through the path of loving-kindness and integral ecosystem sensing and designing. 

A spiritualist and devoted energy healer, her main purpose is to heal and compassionately harmonise communities with their environments. Working with land, youth and women is very close to her heart. As a member of Bangalore Birth Network and Birth Light UK, her dream is to create Birth Homes in nature that empower families to remember their connection to nature and sacred birthing. Her life is dedicated to connecting and working with communities and projects that are creating circles of a new healed humanity living happily in beautiful balance with Gaia.

How Can We Create a Society and Economy, in Which We Can Live as Human Beings?

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Article from GEN-Japan EDE, July 2021

It’s true for everyone, but especially for those in their 20s and 30s, the future of society is a real issue.

Recently, more and more people have been heard to say, “If we, the common people, stop capitalism altogether,” or “The economic system of capitalism is causing global problems” (Capital, Nature, and the Unfinished Critique of Political Economy, Kohei Saitoh). But even so, people will only be lost if they are unclear about a realistic alternative vision of society. 

In July, GEN Japan decided to take a step further and explore this issue in their EDE.

“In order to realize the society that I wish for, where everyone can live their own lives, I believe that by freeing ourselves from the frame of thinking of ourselves as having our own skills, our own homes, our own girlfriends, etc., we can greatly expand our possibilities for living.”

Taichi. Participant, 24 years-old

” Such as a warm society without hierarchy. I want to think more about my future”

Tamaki. Participant, 19 years-old

It was most gratifying for me to see the younger people begin to realize this.

“It is a great experience for me to feel that the community nurtures people.”

Azusa. Participant, 34 years-old

The July GEN-Japan EDE was held from July 17 (Sat.) to 19 (Mon.) at As One Suzuka Community. To make it easier for the general public to participate, an innovative way has been devised and approved. That is programmed to meet the requirements for five months of three days and one month of four days residential learning, instead of a continuous four-week program. 

Recently, humanity as a whole needs to be able to envision and visualize the image of the next society after capitalism. GEN, an international eco-village network, and Gaia Education have been working since 1995 with the aim of proposing a new vision of society in which people can live in reality with peace of mind in an easy-to-understand manner.

In order to realize the society of the future, the programs are designed to depict a comprehensive change in the four dimensions (worldview, society, economy, and environment).

In July, the focus was on the social area, “Building a community that respects each individual” and “New leadership and decision making“, and the economic area, “Transitioning from globalism to a sustainable economy“.

To avoid generalizations and slippage, the participants first looked back at their own footsteps to this point in their lives, and while facing themselves, they drew and listened to each other’s life maps to date.

Everyone in this room could feel that everyone wants to live a truly happy life.

As we listened to each other, there seemed to be something that came naturally to us when we talked about a society for people. Then, participants wondered what happiness truly meant, and their interest turned in the direction of their true wish, which they had never stepped into before.

‘A company for people, an organization for people, a society for people’

On the second day, we started exploring by listening to the actual operations of the As One Community, Takuya Kishigami from Suzuka Farm Co., Ltd., Shoichiro Yoshioka from Ofukuro-san Bento. On the final morning, Satomi Yoshioka of Oburo-san Bento, Takuki Okada, an academy student at the farm, and Masako Ogura, who plays the role of a “grandmother” at a voluntary childcare center, shared their lives and work in the community. 

Society is alive, and there is a “place and place to go” for people who are just as they are.

I was glad to know that the words of one of the participants, that she hoped that each of us would be able to find our own place and place of work. This was a common wish in the hearts of every participant. It gave us hope that we have the potential to grow to any height as human beings depending on our environment. In the circle of EDE participants, as we talked and listened to each other, we seemed to notice the changes in each other and to realize that this is one society.

Impressions from EDE Participants

I was happy to feel that I could share some of the elements that have influenced the “now” of the person sitting in front of me, such as their memories, experiences, and emotions.

Tamaki. Participant, 19 years old

It was interesting to see how the image of each participant in my mind changed. (Atsuko 60s)

Atsuko. Participant, 60 years old

It was great to hear directly from the people who actually live there. Their stories and the way they talk are not always clear and crisp. But there are so many things I can feel from them.

Unamed. Participant

This time, I participated while thinking a little about my future. A society without hierarchy, a society connected to oneself and to others. I thought I should think about it slowly and positively.

Risako. Participant, 24 years old

The theme that was interesting to me this time was “ownership”. By liberating the scope of “my” possessions, we can use more things, meet more people, and be of service to more people. I felt that there are many things that I feel like I own, such as my own things, my own skills, and my own partner. I strongly felt it is impossible that a society as a whole should not be a collection of “someone else’s things,” but something that we can all work together to create. I want to be in a state of “shared” rather than “give and take”.

Taichi. Participant, 24 years old

About the Author

Hiroko Katayama, GEN-Japan Executive Director

Hiroko Katayama is the Executive Director of GEN-Japan, an established non-profit organization since 2016. She has been actively working in building trust and network among people and organizations that have purpose along the line of social and environmental regeneration for five years. Sensing into the current context and wishing for a clear vision to a regenerative future, she and her team have been planning and facilitating this online event since last fall, and achieving it with a lot of support.

REGEN-Nations 2020

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Oceania & Asia hold many of the worlds climate vulnerable nations. With dense populations and great social and political divides, many countries already face challenges prior to the COVID19 pandemic and will face more vulnerabilities and challenges ahead. There is an urgent need for regenerative projects on the ground which both embody traditional wisdom and have a holistic and appropriate approach.

In 2020 the first REGEN-Nations course was run from September 2020 to March 2021 and welcomed 16 teams from around Asia and the Pacific, with 11 countries represented, Australia, Japan, India, Malaysia, Nepal, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. Each team joined with two lead members and several supporting members. They started with a project in either ideation or scaling stage and applied the learning from this program to develop and deepen their project design.

The program offered a wide range of online sessions from check-in calls, to leadership, mentorship, and coaching sessions, to workshops and webinars on the areas of regeneration of ecovillage design. In addition to the cohort of 16 teams (49 team members in total), the program REGEN-Nations reached over 120 participants through its open webinars and workshops in each dimension.

Through the ReGEN Nations program, GENOA was able to also engage a network of thought leaders, trainers, activists, ecovillages and kindred spirit organisations from the region. These were founders and spokespersons from Ahimsagram, Pun Pun Organic Farm, Moonshadow, Ecosystem Restoration Camps Gaia Education Course, Wellnessland Health Institute, Gaia Ashram, Permaculture Education Institute, Bahay Teknik, RetroSuburbia, Sunshine Ecovillage, Narara Ecovillage, BHW Lands Trust, the Good
Market Global, Transition Network, Slow Food Asia-Pacific and Regeneration International.

It was special to feature topics that ranged from Buddhist and Maori perspectives on right livelihood and economies, interfaith peacebuilding from Sri Lanka, Filipino innovations in disasters, to Permaculture design, popularized by Australians to offer more applicable solutions to the complex realities of countries in the region ranging from poverty, conflict, and the climate crisis, among others.

By the end of REGEN-Nations 2020/2021, 10 prototype projects- covering areas of permaculture, community gardens, food forests, regenerative agriculture, peace-building, health and well-being, community education and social enterprise- were incubated and we’re able to grant seed funding for 3 teams to supplement the development of their project.

Hear from some of the teams who joined the REGEN-nations prototype cycle in 2020

The next cycle of REGEN-Nations is about to start, with new speakers and flexible access. Find out more here:

ReGEN-Nations homepage

“Give the ones you love wings to fly, roots to come back and reasons to stay.”

The Dalai Lama

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Concluding ReGEN Nations

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It has been our great honor to host the first cycle of our recently concluded 6 – month whole systems learning journey and regenerative design lab called ReGEN Nations. We thank the 16 teams of 49 members across 11 countries from Australia, Japan, India, Malaysia, Nepal, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam for journeying with us. We celebrate the 10 prototype projects we incubated, covering permaculture, community gardens, food forests, regenerative agriculture, peace-building, health and  well-being, community education, and social enterprises. We were able  to grant seed funding for 3 prototypes and hope to manifest more for future teams participating. 

We thank our guest workshop facilitators and webinar speakers from China, Thailand, Japan, Philippines, India, Sri Lanka, UK/Nepal, Australia and New Zealand for sharing their wisdom to our participating teams and 120 public attendees. Our special thanks to the organizations or projects they represent: Ahimsagram, Pun Pun Organic Farm, Moonshadow, Ecosystem Restoration Camps Gaia Education Course, Wellnessland Health Institute, Gaia Ashram, Permaculture Education Institute, Bahay Teknik, RetroSuburbia, Sunshine Ecovillage, Narara Ecovillage, BHW Lands Trust, the Good Market Global,  Transition Network, Slow Food Asia-Pacific and Regeneration International.

We thank our GENOA team for shaping and holding the journey; our partners GEN Education for our online learning platform support; and GAIA Education for our Ecovillage Design Education certification for our active participants.

We hope you can join us in our next cycle. In the meantime, please sign up on our newsletter via http://eepurl.com/gxtA65,  like our Facebook page and Instagram to receive updates. 

Re-imagining Education Conference by Ecoversities Alliance

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The Ecoversities Alliance is a community of over 100 transformative learning spaces around the world. They were present in our last year’s Restore and Re-story gathering, holding a very insightful panel session titled “The Great REset- What do we have to RElease, REstore, REclaim and REimagine?”  that featured four Ecoversities’ members around Asia who have taken up the challenge to re-imagine education, healing from collective trauma and nurturing the shift to planetary consciousness. This year they have just hosted a four-day online conference on these topics. Read more about the outcomes of the conference and their reflection by downloading the file below:

Ecoversities Re-imagining Higher Education ConferenceDownload

Collaboration between GEN Africa and GENOA for Implementing Whole Systems in Ghana

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Thanks to the generous scholarship for the ReGEN Nations Webinar – Applying Whole Systems Design for Regenerative Communities, Mohammed Issahaku, and Iddrisu Abdul Salam Atom of the Dagomba people in northern Ghana got first-hand information over how ecovillages can develop in China and Australia. The Dagomba people are indigenous people of Ghana and it was a refreshing experience for Mohammed and Iddrisu to recognize that the international Global Ecovillage Network cherishes the values that come from working with the land and their people. Mohammed expounds,

”I learned to Identify aims, assets, needs and leverage, all three speakers talked about how they work with available resources on the land. Narara & Sunshine shared about zoning, they talked about working with the government, engaging with government policies. All shared about how we are able to work in stages. How we can create decisions that are safe enough to try good enough for now, and also to communicate better to work with policies. Working from dependence to interdependence – to frame the relationship of self – others .”

Mohammed Issahaku

As a GEN Africa Ambassador, I have been coaching Mohammed to expose his people to Syntropic Farming. In August 2020 his community planted a 10ha monoculture Cashew orchard. Over the winter season, we have developed a plan to add complementary plants to change part of his orchard into a Syntropic Food Forest. It was immensely helpful to hear from David Holmgren that Syntropic Farming evolved independently of Permaculture. We recognize that there are some similarities, and we were wondering if Syntropic Farming is an oversimplification of Permaculture. David explained that Syntropic Farming makes more sense in the Tropics and Subtropics whereas Permaculture is more suited for the temperate regions of our planet.

Design of the field project: Cashew plantation with complimentary plants

Since I am coaching the Dagomba people from  Switzerland. It was a great help that the ReGEN Nations team permitted Mohammed and Iddrisu to participate on a scholarship basis.  I do not live in a community, so it is impossible for me to demonstrate one. The Regen Nations seminar was an excellent substitute!

About Mohammed, Iddrisu and Alice

Mohammed Issahaku studies Tropical Agriculture at the Kumasi Institute of Tropical Agriculture. During his study at that school, he attended the Global Ecovillage Network Conference where he met and got into contact with Alice Güntert. Later Alice took on the role of becoming a coach for him to incorporate ecovillage principles and implement syntropic farming projects at his community in northern Ghana. Mohammed Believes that the combination of GEN ecovillage principles, syntropic farming and contour farming can be a vitalizing force for economic development.

Iddrisu Abdul Salam is a 29-year-old youth born in Gushegu region of northern Ghana. He attended agricultural school for high school and completed his studies in Damongo Agricultural College in 2017. He was introduced to the community farming project by Mohammed in August 2020 and developed interest in it. He was eager to incorporate orange flesh sweet potatoes that he’s been planting to the project as it is really beneficial for old women, children, and lactating mothers. With the support of his mom and his friend Mohammed, he wishes to take the project to a higher level.

Alice Güntert is a GEN Ambassador based in Switzerland. She has been involved with permaculture projects for over 6 years such as being involved in the development of board games in international economics called “Permapoly: The Game of Common Culture”. Alice is active in giving feedback and
recommendations for GEN including the idea that GEN should be on the Board of Trustees of the World Economic Forum. After GEN’s Communities for Future online summit, she got a friend request from Mohammed Issahaku and from then on they have been in correspondence. Alice is now coaching Mohhammed and Iddrisu to transform Mohammed community’s cashew orchard to be more diverse and abundant.