Introduction
The Alpha Village is a proposal for a small intentional community, which would bring together like-minded people. It would be considered a transitional community, going beyond virtual status and acting as a prototype for a new society. This new society has the name Alphistia. More information about its current virtual aspects and the vision for the future is at: Project Alphistia. The Project welcomes new members, particularly in this preliminary, virtual stage.
Members of The Alpha Village (as well as Alphistia) would live in harmony with their natural surroundings, avoid contemporary polluting and expensive auto-based lifestyles, form co-operatives to market niche products to pay their own way, and pursue a simple but comfortable, cultured everyday life balancing work with leisure.
Sound utopian? Of course, both the Alpha Village and Alphistia would be made up of people with all their faults and foibles, so it would not be a utopia. Such a place though would provide residents the chance to escape much of the unpleasantness of what is nowadays offered as the ultimate model for humanity: cars, suburbs, shopping malls, overwork, junk pop culture. Instead the Alpha Village would offer the alternative to build and live somewhere human and humane.
At the moment though, the Alpha Village is just an idea, as is Alphistia.
These ideas about the Alpha Village and Project Alphistia are somewhat similar in concept to Paolo Soleri’s Arcosanti (although most details are actually quite different). He has envisioned a world left largely in its natural state by building enormous urban megastructures for everyone to live in. Obviously it’s a utopian project, but for several decades, Soleri and others have been building a prototype Arcosanti in Arizona. It’s a rather successful tourist attraction but has a permanent population too: a community living according to Soleri’s ideas.
This website describes what the Alpha Village might be like. Details could change, of course, but there are certain fundamentals that both the Alpha Village and Alphistia share. These include:
green ways of living
democratically elected councils for self-government
co-operative economics
lifelong learning and the integration of culture into everyday life
egalitarianism
humanism
equal treatment of heterosexual and gay partnerships
The Alphistian scenario includes the creation of an Alphistian language, since such a small country would thrive culturally with its own language (anyone who has visited Iceland knows just what I mean). English would be the everyday working language of the Alpha Village though, and the most important secondary language in an established Alphistia. Only those committed to the long-term development of a unique Alphistian culture would likely want to make the effort to learn a new language during the virtual or Alpha Village stages. More information about the Alphistian language though is at: De Alvesteane Lantase.
This website does not describe an extremely radical departure from modern life. The Alpha Village and Project Alphistia offer a way of living modeled primarily on the best of the northern European welfare states, with an extra emphasis on green principles. In other ways, ideas for this community and new country are inspired by the kibbutz movement and Zionism. The Alpha Village though would not have the strict communalism of the kibbutz or provide a homeland for a chosen people. Instead, both the Village and Project Alphistia would involve self-selected membership by those of any race, background, or national origin.
There are other important influences, such as the Swedish concept of the "People's Home" called the Folkhemmet , the humane urban planning and everyday life of the Netherlands, the cohousing movement popular in Denmark, the folkschools of Scandinavia with their commitment to lifelong learning, the Mondragon co-operatives of Basque Spain.
Although currently existing only on paper and in cyberspace, anyone interested in learning more about the Alpha Village or possibly participating in the project is encouraged to get in touch via e-mail: alphistia@yahoo.com
Principles of the Alpha Village
As members of the Alpha Village, we hold certain principles in common. These ideas and ideals connect us to each other and serve as an example to the world at large.The three most important concepts we share are: community, humanism, and caring for others.
Community
We live together because we freely choose to be part of the Alpha Village community. This community is based on mutual respect, tolerance, co-operation, harmony with the earth, and love for learning. We govern ourselves through democratically elected councils. We live in a community where we connect at work and in our leisure time, forming friendships and families, but we do not live communally, respecting individual needs for privacy and home autonomy. We design our living environment as though we are living in a garden, focused on small-scaled and sensitive urbanist goals. We live according to green principles in our use of energy, recycling materials, in our farming and manufacturing methods, and in our means of transport.
Humanism
We strive for equality. We understand the need and desire for a spiritual outlook but do not require it. We respect partnerships based on love and commitment. We integrate culture and the arts into our everyday lives, includes learning as part of leisure, and balance our working lives with the need to rest, learn, and have time with friends and family. Our greatest wealth is the cultural life we create and share with the world, teaching others about our community, our way of life, and our goals.
Caring for Others
We organize our community so that those in need physically, spiritually, and economically are assisted and can live with dignity and in comfort. All the members of our community have access to health care, adequate free time, and security during disability and old age. We believe in persuasion instead of coercion and harmony instead of conflict, and strive to reduce the stress that dominates life outside the Alpha Village. We advocate and participate in programs around the world which further the cause of human rights, reduce poverty and illness, and encourage respect for nature.
Background and Description of the Alpha Village
The Republic of Me
When I was a boy nine years old, I created a virtual country. That was in 1967. I called it Alpha for a while, but soon changed the name to Alphistia. As time has passed, Alphistia has become my homeland more and more.
It’s still a virtual country, and might just remain so, but I would like to share my ideas and ideals for what the future could be. This website covers those ideas about an intentional community I call the Alpha Village. The timetable is open-ended of course, but perhaps the time will come when the Alpha Village exists, and then perhaps it’ll be on to Alphistia...
”You may say I’m a dreamer....
...but I’m not the only one. I hope some day you’ll join me...” John Lennon’s song is about imagining one world, without countries, with universal love and understanding. A laudable goal, but a bit beyond what I can imagine. I CAN imagine a small community where people get along as well as they are able (we’re only human after all), and the basis of this more or less, is that the members of the community share some common values. This web page describes some of those shared values that those choosing to live in the Alpha Village would identify with. It’s not for everybody, but then again, that’s what’s “intentional” about an intentional community.
”A map of the world without Utopia on it isn’t even worth looking at.”
Oscar Wilde said that. Alphistia as a country will perhaps just remain my own personal project, but such a virtual country could serve as a model. My ideas are far from utopian, but even a place on the shelf with all the other utopias would be an honorable spot. And the Alpha Village could be just a subset of my own private utopia, but I’d like to see either or both on the map one day. Take a look at your atlas sometime in the future and you might see something surprising there. And if you’re interested, you’re welcome to join in.
For now, take a virtual tour of the Alpha Village. What follows is an imagined visit.
A Visit to the Alpha Village
Early on an autumn’s day, you’re on a small tour bus that meets you at the nearest town to the Alpha Village. The community is located on what used to be a medium-sized farm that grew vegetables. It’s about 10 miles outside of town along a two-laned road. There’s a train that rolls through town bright and early every morning, and almost every day there are at least a couple of people met by the Alpha Village’s hybrid electric/natural gas powered bus. You can drive right to the Village too, but you’ll need to park your polluting car in a lot about a quarter mile away from where the residents actually live. Inside the Alpha Village, there are no internal combustion engines.
It’s a pleasant ride through woods and by a few other farms until reaching the gate to the Alpha Village. In the distance you can see the seven story Alpha Institute, the only tall building for miles around. All the other buildings in the village are no higher than 3 floors.
Since the bus pollutes minimally on natural gas, it can pull up right to the Alpha Institute building, passing the community vegetable and fruit gardens. The ground floor of the Institute building has an Information Center. You can get some booklets and a map there, talk to one of the staff about things to do, and even get a room if that hasn’t already been arranged. Otherwise you can start your tour on your own or with a guide, or go to your cottage or hotel room. One of the inns is right next to the Information Center.
About 150 people live in the Alpha Village full-time. Others who are sympathetic to the community but can’t live there permanently have time-shares in cottages or apartments, while visitors can come for a day or much longer, since there are spa facilities and an extensive adult education program to keep you busy.
Passing through the Info Center you’re facing south toward the Alpha Village’s “main street”. This street is for pedestrians only. Other streets are open to bicyclists and the small number of electric cars which serve as taxis and vans to get people and their luggage to their accomodations, or to help residents get groceries or largers items around town. The Alpha Village is not large though, and you can walk end to end in less than 10 minutes.
You’ll notice that the main street (called Alpha Prospekt officially but known just as “the Prospect” by everyone) is fairly bustling. It’s lined with yellow and red-bricked two floor buildings, with shops on the ground floor. Above are time-share flats with balconies facing the busy street. Since it’s autumn, you’ll notice the pretty colors of the trees, which flower in the springtime. The Prospect, like the whole Village, is beautifully landscaped.
Among the shops, there’s a cafeteria, an outdoor terrace cafe with an ice-cream nook. You’ll notice the fairly big bookstore, which sells lots of informational materials about Alphistia and the Alpha Village as well as useful books about the various ideas and movements that have inspired the community. The bookstore has cd’s and videos too. There’s a telecomm center with internet access, a post office (the Alpha Village uses its own stamps for local mail, and sells them for souvenirs too), and a bank. The Alpha Village has its own currency, sold one for one in exchange for the US dollar, and that makes a nice souvenir too. You’ll see a gallery with large posters in the windows, because the Alpha Village is known for its colorful poster art.They’re for sale, and so are other crafts and artworks made by community residents. You’ll pass a cozy sit-down restaurant too.
At the south end of the Prospect is Alpha square, the focal point for the village. On the north side are the Co-Op, the local supermarket and mini-department store, and the Alpha Village council hall. On the east side of the square is the Alpha Folkschool. It has classes for the children of the village residents, but its main purpose is adult education. Behind it is a residence hall for students. Courses on many different topics for fun and learning are offered. There are day-courses and programs that can last up to 6 weeks. Of course you can study all about Alphistia and its language too, which you’ll no doubt hear spoken. About 25% of the residents use it as their everyday language, but English hasn’t been forgotten.
The west side of the square has the cultural center. This has an excellent library, an art garden with a gallery behind it, and a theater building where movies, plays, and concerts are held.
The south side of the square has the impressive glass and redwood Aula building. This is the assembly hall for the community, which can be used for celebrations, and the regular village buffet dinners. Lectures are also given here. The building’s large windows overlook the Village lake, complete with a mini-island in the center, and popular for fishing, rowing, and feeding ducks. You can’t swim in it, but just to the west of the cultural center is the town’s sport-hall, with an outdoor/indoor pool. There’s a spa hotel on the east side of the lake too, with a sauna and another indoor pool.
Along the lake there are some guest cottages and some very pleasant houses for residents. Most people living in the village have small cottages or flats along tree-lined paths to the east and west of the Prospect. Although often compared to a kibbutz, the Alpha Village isn’t a commune. The residents live in their own homes, with their children if they have any. Actually privacy is a big part of the village way of life. People are rather house-proud of their modest but cosy homes, each with a small deck and garden. A popular part of social life is having dinner at each other’s houses.
A visitor is integrated into the town. Guest cottages are along the same streets as those of the residents, and the hotels are right on or next to the Prospect.
In the evening, people are out even on weeknights. They’re at the cafe or restaurant, or going to the scheduled cultural event that night at the theater, and of course since there are always visitors in town, there are night classes at the folkschool and often a lecture in the Aula.
Sundays are the quietest day of the week. The Co-Op is closed, although the bookstore is open for visitors, and there are cultural activities scheduled. There are non-denominational religious services in the Aula, but most of the village residents are quite secular. That’s one of the reasons many came to live in the community: to leave behind the religiosity of the larger society, even as they seek to live a moral life on humanist principles.
The tour bus takes you back to the train station rather late in the evening, but that gives the day visitor quite a long time to explore the Alpha Village. Overnight guests can settle into the extremely comfortable cottages or rooms in the two inns or the Folkschool’s dorm. And in the summer, there’s a camping ground just outside the Village.
The nearby town is a college town with a large state university, known for its live-and-let-live attitude. The Alpha Village isn’t always completely understood by its neighbors, but there have never been any serious problems. Many visitors also spend time and money in the area, a benefit that builds goodwill with the locals.
Hopefully a visit (albeit imagined at this point) to the Alpha Village will leave you with goodwill as well toward this unique community.
Links to other sites on the Web
