Uploaded May 2021 | Updated September 2026, 20 hours ago
We live in a time of multiple crises: a global pandemic, climate change, disastrous environmental degradation and rising socio-economic inequalities.
In this crucial historical moment, the UN has stressed the necessity of a coalition of governments, supranational institutions, citizens and civil society engaging in transformative grassroots initiatives.
The project EcoLabSS is an innovative study of one of them: the ecovillage movement.
So what is an ecovillage?
The term ‘ecovillage’ refers to a rural or urban community that is designed through local participatory processes to regenerate its social and natural environment.
In this sense, ecovillages are laboratories for radically transforming and rethinking all aspects of everyday life. This often involves bio-architecture, permaculture, food sovereignty, non-violent communication, alternative education, basic income schemes, and cooperatives.
For this reason, ecovillages are rapidly gaining recognition as living models of holistic sustainability and have been officially listed in the United Nations’ top 100 Best Practices.
Today there are more than 10,000 ecovillages scattered around the world, ranging from small groups to thousands of inhabitants. And the movement is growing.
The goal of EcoLabSS is to compare two ecovillages in Denmark and Italy to try and understand how the motivations and life trajectories of ecovillage inhabitants shape collective visions and practices and how these are diffused into mainstream society.
There is definitely a lot that we can learn from the ecovillage movement in the effort to achieve environmental, social and economic sustainability within the next decade.
Follow EcoLabSS to find out more.
We live in a time of multiple crises: a global pandemic, climate change, disastrous environmental degradation and rising socio-economic inequalities.
In this crucial historical moment, the UN has stressed the necessity of a coalition of governments, supranational institutions, citizens and civil society engaging in transformative grassroots initiatives.
The project EcoLabSS is an innovative study of one of them: the ecovillage movement.
So what is an ecovillage?
The term ‘ecovillage’ refers to a rural or urban community that is designed through local participatory processes to regenerate its social and natural environment.
In this sense, ecovillages are laboratories for radically transforming and rethinking all aspects of everyday life. This often involves bio-architecture, permaculture, food sovereignty, non-violent communication, alternative education, basic income schemes, and cooperatives.
For this reason, ecovillages are rapidly gaining recognition as living models of holistic sustainability and have been officially listed in the United Nations’ top 100 Best Practices.
Today there are more than 10,000 ecovillages scattered around the world, ranging from small groups to thousands of inhabitants. And the movement is growing.
The goal of EcoLabSS is to compare two ecovillages in Denmark and Italy to try and understand how the motivations and life trajectories of ecovillage inhabitants shape collective visions and practices and how these are diffused into mainstream society.
There is definitely a lot that we can learn from the ecovillage movement in the effort to achieve environmental, social and economic sustainability within the next decade.
Follow EcoLabSS to find out more.
