Today's morning class was particularly inspiring – watching and listen to Graham delivery a talk that was clearly a integral part of his life for many years really came through. Having spent 8 years living and studying co-housing, here is someone who really knows his stuff. The basis of co-housing is an intentional community laid out as a cluster of buildings with shared facilities including washing, occasional dining and garden. I had previously held misgivings about co-housing mostly due to my own misconceptions, an image of people living in each others pockets and to some extent wallets and how this model of housing could be translated to the building environment I am more familiar. I was surprised to what level the residents can drop in or out of social activities at their own will, and the financial commitment to the actual day to day running is minimum. I also like the aspect of encouraging people to live a higher quality of life through having more time and interacting more rather than the empty building up of material wealth. That's not to say that is also not possible in this model, but the environment it creates is itself an advertisement for the palpable benefits co-housing can bring. Grahams extensive research and presentation has planted a seed in my head regarding a possible dissertation topic, which is really exciting.
In the afternoon we were treated to another wealth of knowledge, Bob Martin, who recently retired as the head of planning with Moray Council and who was responsible in part for approving permission for Findhorns wind park. Although I have had some experience with plannings in my professional life, it was good to drop the barrier that usually existing between architects and planners and have a frank discussion about the motivations behind decisions, and where the real power lies. Sharing a meal and drinks as a group later on also emphasised this – a real opportunity to hear stories and opinions.
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