Whole Village – An Intern’s Experience

by Laurence Beaudry

If I could make you experience the things that I like the most about Whole Village, I would share the everyday laughter and the smell of soil after rain. I would share the sight of a sunflower opening up or the taste of a perfectly ripe tomato. I would share the warmth of camaraderie, but most of all, I would share the amazing feeling of being a part of something bigger than yourself.

Because that is what Whole Village is all about; an ambitious and grandiose project that comes to life with the smallest actions of every day.

What brought me here?

Two-and-a-half years ago, at the age of 17, I was putting an end to my scholarship journey with only one intention; to visit an ecovillage. I had known about ecovillages since the age of 10, and since then, I had always kept this amazing concept in the back of my mind. Over the years, I even began to imagine building my own community. Ideas would appear randomly, and I would write them down on pieces of paper, without really giving it much thought. However, when I chose to stop school, I saw it as a “now or never” moment. I knew I wanted to deep dive into the world of intentional communities, and I did exactly that.

How is it going so far?

In the last two months interning at Whole Village, I have learned more than I ever could have hoped for.

Not only have I been learning about soil health, permaculture, food forests, medicinal plants and a lot of other subjects, but I was also given the opportunity to step up as a leader and a mentor for three other interns. The willingness of residents to guide me into becoming a better version of myself was astonishing. Never had I met people who were as happy to answer my never-ending list of questions before. When I told them that I am on the path to creating my own community, they all started to give me references, books, ideas and questions to reflect on. I will say, without a doubt, that the people forming this community are part of the best people I have met in my life.

What could be improved?

Whole Village is not perfect. Like anything else on this earth, this community has its flaws and challenges. However, since I have only been here for two months, I cannot say that I have seen everything that Whole Village has to offer. I still consider myself being in the “honeymoon” phase, but I will share some things that I have noticed in my time here.

One of them would be the tendency that people have to avoid conflict. I believe, after visiting two eco-communities and observing human behaviour in general, that avoiding conflict, and therefore confrontation, is a world-wide problem. I also think that when you live in a community, you will automatically be confronted by others. I do not think that Whole Village is the only ecovillage in the world to experience such problems. However, I do think that there is room for improvement.

I think part of the solution to better communication around conflict are activities that generate bonding between the members of the community. By that, I mean activities that are not work related and that could create a space for emotional connection to happen. I offered a games night a few weeks ago that had this exact purpose; to connect with others. I have received many comments about how residents really enjoyed it. I believe that having more times like that would not only create a sense of emotional connection but also help with conflict resolution, because people would feel closer to each other and therefore may be more likely to open up.

Another thing that I have observed during my time here, is an issue that is shared around the world; money. Living in this community does mean that the cost of living is less that average. However, since there is no business scheme at Whole Village whose goal is to make money for the community, there is a lot of talk around the things that can or cannot be done because of limited community income.

What will I take away from Whole Village?

For me, this land and the people who inhabit it have become a second family. I will miss them a lot, but I am bringing home so many beautiful memories. They have helped me become a better version of myself and they have guided me on the journey of building my own community and that is priceless. No amount of words can really describe the incredible journey that I have gone through since arriving here, so I will simply say that I still have three wonderful weeks ahead of me before going back home, and I will make sure to make the best of them.