Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get involved and learn more?
Come to an orientation to learn more about ecovillages and Whole Village. Then become an associate member so you can receive all the up-to-date minutes and event notices at Whole Village.
Come to a WorkBee where friends and neighbors come together with members to help with activities, then enjoy a delicious lunch.
For calendar of events click here.
I love it! I’m ready to move in, what do I have to do?
Slow down! We have a comprehensive membership process for prospective community members at Whole Village. Your first move should be to check our membership section on the website and then, if you’re still interested, come to our next orientation. A community mentor will guide you from there.
What does it cost to live here?
We have different types of memberships with different costs. Shareholder members pay monthly dues and are legally responsible for the land co-op and housing co-op. Renters pay monthly rents between $1200 and $1950, with an additional $75 per month after 12 months of residence. If separate rooms are available, rent is $450 – $600.
Sustainability can be such a buzzword. What is Whole Village doing specifically to help mitigate climate change, restore natural ecosystems and lower its environmental footprint?
It’s important to collectively decide on specific projects which further our aims. At the moment we have various projects meant to lower our carbon footprint, sequester carbon or create meaningful and useful careers.
We have an agroforestry plan to continue planting trees as windbreaks and shelter belts; a few small livestock operations to feed ourselves and create great compost; many fruit, perennial vegetable and veggie gardens. A few small enterprises grow food and produce maple syrup to create income for community members.
There are also a few experimental ongoing projects : biochar, cover crop field restoration, edible food forests, to name a few.
A key way to lower our carbon footprint is simply by sharing. We share bicycles, our laundry room, tools, cars, and much more as part of our commitment to sustainability. We also run fundraising carbon offset initiatives like our Trees for kilometers vehicle mileage program and other programs to account for and minimize our energy use.
Greenhaven, our common residence, was designed with low-impact living in mind. Our masonry-heater burns wood very efficiently and its thermal mass means that heat stays with us much longer.Our personal suites are heated by in-floor radiant heating and our domestic hot water is warmed from the sun.
What's the difference between an intentional community and an ecovillage?
An intentional community is a group of people living together based around a specific interest, value or belief. An ecovillage is a type of intentional community with various definitions, but mainly focused on ecologically-minded living.
I’d like to help out. What can I do?
Come to our monthly work bees to join the community in farm activities and enjoy a delicious lunch with us.
Contact Brenda at info@wholevillage.org to arrange for a possible volunteer stay from two days to an entire growing season.
You can donate to our Carbon Sequestration program which helps us financially to continue to practice tree planting, regenerative agriculture and biochar creation & demonstrating. Click here for more info.
Are you a commune or kibbutz?
Close, but not quite. Most communes are income-sharing with all residents pooling their financial resources together and dividing them up according to whatever cooperative decision-making structure they practice. Most ecovillages do not practice income-sharing. Members are financially independent but pay dues of some sort to maintain and develop the community. An ecovillage can be a commune but Whole Village does not fit this model.
A kibbutz is an intentional community built around a religious commonality (an example is Judaism). It may follow an ecovillage type lifestyle. That being said many ecovillages subscribe to a common spirituality centered around Earth care.
What are the challenges of living in community?
Sharing space, with people outside family and friends, and living outside the box can be difficult personally, financially and emotionally. Soft skills like clear communication, conflict resolution, compromise and negotiation are important to develop for success in community living. Most people with intentional community living experience see these challenges as necessary, rewarding and important for promoting personal growth.
How do you make decisions with so many people?
Short answer: slowly and methodically. Instead of relying on a simple majority to make decisions we practice consensus decision-making. This allows all members to voice concerns and attempts to create a culture where all issues are addressed.
Do you work with other like-minded organizations?
Absolutely! We are members of many organizations that we strongly support: the National Farmers Union, Ecological Farmers of Ontario, Canadian Organic Growers, conservation groups and many more.
Many school groups, environmental and farm organizations visit to learn and tour our project. We also give special orientations to groups who wish to start ecovillages elsewhere.
Our outreach program involves members visiting schools, conferences and local groups to share experiences.
I don’t think I could personally do what you’re doing, but I’d like to support your cause. What can I do?
Yes, we understand it’s a very unique way of living. Many people over the years have voiced similar opinions. Luckily there are many ways for you to support the work we are doing here without moving in! A few have been mentioned: come to a work bee or become an associate member. You could also donate to our various causes like our tree-planting initiatives or our affordable housing fund.
You may be also interested in some of the enterprises and the products or services they offer: we have B&B accommodations, a community supported agriculture market garden, maple syrup, honey, and other seasonal treats depending on the time of the year.
Check our Events Calendar page for upcoming concerts, dinners and fund raising activities.
Of course you can offset your carbon footprint and help us continue our work in carbon sequestration by donating. Click here for more info.
Our farm is in constant need of equipment and infrastructure to continue our work. Please contact us at info@wholevillage.org if you’d like to know more about our wish list. Items we’d love to have include a wood splitter, a heavy-duty wood chipper, a seed drill, a keyline plow, and when we’re dreaming big, a Ranger EV.
How do I get involved and learn more?
Come to an orientation to learn more about ecovillages and Whole Village. Then become an associate member so you can receive all the up-to-date minutes and event notices at Whole Village.
Come to a WorkBee where friends and neighbors come together with members to help with activities, then enjoy a delicious lunch.
For calendar of events click here.
I love it! I’m ready to move in, what do I have to do?
Slow down! We have a comprehensive membership process for prospective community members at Whole Village. Your first move should be to check our membership section on the website and then, if you’re still interested, come to our next orientation. A community mentor will guide you from there.
What does it cost to live here?
We have different types of memberships with different costs. Shareholder members pay monthly dues and are legally responsible for the land co-op and housing co-op. Renters pay monthly rents between $1200 and $1950, with an additional $75 per month after 12 months of residence. If separate rooms are available, rent is $450 – $600.
Sustainability can be such a buzzword. What is Whole Village doing specifically to help mitigate climate change, restore natural ecosystems and lower its environmental footprint?
It’s important to collectively decide on specific projects which further our aims. At the moment we have various projects meant to lower our carbon footprint, sequester carbon or create meaningful and useful careers.
We have an agroforestry plan to continue planting trees as windbreaks and shelter belts; a few small livestock operations to feed ourselves and create great compost; many fruit, perennial vegetable and veggie gardens. A few small enterprises grow food and produce maple syrup to create income for community members.
There are also a few experimental ongoing projects : biochar, cover crop field restoration, edible food forests, to name a few.
A key way to lower our carbon footprint is simply by sharing. We share bicycles, our laundry room, tools, cars, and much more as part of our commitment to sustainability. We also run fundraising carbon offset initiatives like our Trees for kilometers vehicle mileage program and other programs to account for and minimize our energy use.
Greenhaven, our common residence, was designed with low-impact living in mind. Our masonry-heater burns wood very efficiently and its thermal mass means that heat stays with us much longer.Our personal suites are heated by in-floor radiant heating and our domestic hot water is warmed from the sun.
What's the difference between an intentional community and an ecovillage?
An intentional community is a group of people living together based around a specific interest, value or belief. An ecovillage is a type of intentional community with various definitions, but mainly focused on ecologically-minded living.
I’d like to help out. What can I do?
Come to our monthly work bees to join the community in farm activities and enjoy a delicious lunch with us.
Contact Brenda at info@wholevillage.org to arrange for a possible volunteer stay from two days to an entire growing season.
You can donate to our Carbon Sequestration program which helps us financially to continue to practice tree planting, regenerative agriculture and biochar creation & demonstrating. Click here for more info.
Are you a commune or kibbutz?
Close, but not quite. Most communes are income-sharing with all residents pooling their financial resources together and dividing them up according to whatever cooperative decision-making structure they practice. Most ecovillages do not practice income-sharing. Members are financially independent but pay dues of some sort to maintain and develop the community. An ecovillage can be a commune but Whole Village does not fit this model.
A kibbutz is an intentional community built around a religious commonality (an example is Judaism). It may follow an ecovillage type lifestyle. That being said many ecovillages subscribe to a common spirituality centered around Earth care.
What are the challenges of living in community?
Sharing space, with people outside family and friends, and living outside the box can be difficult personally, financially and emotionally. Soft skills like clear communication, conflict resolution, compromise and negotiation are important to develop for success in community living. Most people with intentional community living experience see these challenges as necessary, rewarding and important for promoting personal growth.
How do you make decisions with so many people?
Short answer: slowly and methodically. Instead of relying on a simple majority to make decisions we practice consensus decision-making. This allows all members to voice concerns and attempts to create a culture where all issues are addressed.
Do you work with other like-minded organizations?
Absolutely! We are members of many organizations that we strongly support: the National Farmers Union, Ecological Farmers of Ontario, Canadian Organic Growers, conservation groups and many more.
Many school groups, environmental and farm organizations visit to learn and tour our project. We also give special orientations to groups who wish to start ecovillages elsewhere.
Our outreach program involves members visiting schools, conferences and local groups to share experiences.
I don’t think I could personally do what you’re doing, but I’d like to support your cause. What can I do?
Yes, we understand it’s a very unique way of living. Many people over the years have voiced similar opinions. Luckily there are many ways for you to support the work we are doing here without moving in! A few have been mentioned: come to a work bee or become an associate member. You could also donate to our various causes like our tree-planting initiatives or our affordable housing fund.
You may be also interested in some of the enterprises and the products or services they offer: we have B&B accommodations, a community supported agriculture market garden, maple syrup, honey, and other seasonal treats depending on the time of the year.
Check our Events Calendar page for upcoming concerts, dinners and fund raising activities.
Of course you can offset your carbon footprint and help us continue our work in carbon sequestration by donating. Click here for more info.
Our farm is in constant need of equipment and infrastructure to continue our work. Please contact us at info@wholevillage.org if you’d like to know more about our wish list. Items we’d love to have include a wood splitter, a heavy-duty wood chipper, a seed drill, a keyline plow, and when we’re dreaming big, a Ranger EV.
