Communities: Life in Cooperative Culture is a quarterly magazine. It is a primary resource for information, issues, and ideas about intentional communities in North America - from urban co-ops to cohousing groups to ecovillages to rural communes. Articles and columns cover practical "how-to" issues of community living as well as personal stories about forming new communities, decision-making, conflict resolution, raising children in community, and sustainability.
History and profile
The magazine was started in 1972, first under the name Communitas and then (after two issues) as Communities. A variety of editing and publishing collectives, based in several different intentional communities, managed the magazine through its next 78 issues, until the end of 1990, when financial difficulties led to a hiatus in publication. The Fellowship for Intentional Community, based in Rutledge, Missouri, became publisher and resumed publication of Communities two years later. The magazine then returned to a consistent quarterly schedule, with the first issue of 2016 being issue #170. Its editor during 1993-2007 was Diana Leafe Christian; following two issues produced by interim editor Alyson Ewald, Chris Roth then became editor in 2008. Other current staff members include Yulia Zarubina (Art Director) and Christopher Kindig (Business Manager). Articles are written by a wide range of communitarians and people interested in community and/or cooperation, and submissions are welcome from anyone inspired to write. Each quarterly issue focuses on a specific theme.
In 2014 the magazine started publishing in digital as well as print form; made available all of its back issues in digital form; and also published 15 Best of Communities collections, each featuring a specific topic in community living. The website now features selected recent articles and also a complete index of articles published in Communitas and Communities since 1972.