Intentional communities in Romania. Precursor stage of community integration

• Author: Andreea Claudia Mardache
• Position: Transilvania University of Brasov
• Pages: 87-92

Bulletin of the Transilvania University of Braşov

Series VII: Social Sciences • Law • Vol. 10 (59) No. 2 - 2017

INTENTIONAL COMMUNITIES IN

ROMANIA.

PRECURSOR STAGE OF COMMUNITY

INTEGRATION

Andreea Claudia MARDACHE1

Abstract: Intentional communities have been present worldwide for many years

now, and in Romania they are currently in the formation stage. The present study

showcases five such community projects in Romania. By using qualitative

research, I have studied the aspects that motivated the members of these

communities to be a part of this type of commun ity. The study revealed that the

members of intentional communities had different life experiences and internal

transformations that made them want to join these communities: health problems,

accessing a loan, interests in sp irituality, permaculture etc.

Key words: community, intentio nal community, integration.

1. Introduction

In Romania, in the past few years, there have been a number of projects that aim to form

intentional communities, as they exist worldwide and in a quite significant number. A part

of these communities can be identified online as well, by accessing web resources such as:

Fellowship for Intentional Community (www.ic.org), The Cohousing Network

(www.cohousing.org), Ecovillage Network of the Americas (www.ena.ecovillage.org), The

Northwest Intentional Communities Association (www.ic.org/NICA) or Global Ecovillage

Network (http://gen.ecovillage.org/).

I was interested in studying these community projects because I believe that „this social

phenomenon is closely tied to current issues humanity is facing, such as economic, social

and environmental distress etc. and it offers the alternative of a lifestyle that, on a short-

term basis decreases a part of these universal problems people all over the world face or

even fixes them in the long term” (Mardache, 2015, p. 17).

Regarding these relatively new types of communities, I find the following affirmations

made by Zamfir (1989, p.53) to be very relevant: “It is interesting to note that in the past 2-

3 decades, there have been searches for alternative lifestyles, even in capitalist countries, as

a reaction to the „dominant lifestyle”, a term coined by Galtung. (...) These alternative ways

of life differ from the dominant lifestyle because individuals refuse to live abiding by

capitalist rules and in the structures dictated by the capitalistic social organization, instead

attempting to build human communities that follow new life principles. These communities

1 Transilvania University of Braşov, andreea.mardache@unitbv.ro