Income Generating Activities
The skills of Ecovillage design, ecological building, permaculture consultancy, renewable energy and water treatment are often gathered through experiences, research and education and provide a basis for starting up local businesses.
Establishing local circulatory systems (wind, water, soil) can create workplaces. Local water treatment systems alone can create three jobs per 100 families serviced by the systems.
Consultancy in community skills: Conflict resolution, meeting facilitation and Future Workshops are other possibilities for local income-generating activities.
Internet businesses are independent of location and fit in well in an eco-village setting.
Education: This is probably the most widespread and fastest growing money-earning activities in ecovillages. Although competition in this field is fierce, the integral villages differentiate themselves in that they implement what they teach in their living environment. (experiential education)
Food Production: This is an area in which it is difficult to earn or save money if one goes from the self-sufficiency mode into commercial production. However, some ecovillages have been successful in striking the right balance: One produces fresh foods for their nearest town such as carrots, potatoes and onions. Another one produces wines and cheeses; another one has the most wonderful herb garden and produces herbal teas and yet another one specialises in many different species of delicate mushrooms.
Healthcare, psychological and physical: Ecovillages increasingly integrate healthcare services in their activity pool. These activities can provide an income and enhance a village’s potential for building up a healthy lifestyle supported by professional practitioners. Integrating handicapped residents or building hospices may attract funding from the state.
Health Products: Essential oils, herbal medicines and other health items are produced and sold in a number of ecovillages. –with great success.
Arts and Crafts: Story telling, Music, dancing, theater, painting, pottery, spinning, weaving and other forms of artistic expression are often part of ecovillager’s lifestyle and can be offered for sale directly to visitors. They are also part of the educational curriculum.
Media, Printing and publishing: Some ecovillages produce music CD’s and tapes as well as films and photo exhibitions Some publish books, others have their own printing shops which services both internal and external businesses.
Ecovillage tourism: This activity is partly related to education, as many ecovillage visitors stay in ecovillages to help build and expand them, or to complete educational modules of the ecovillage curriculum. The Global Ecovillage Network secretariat in Italy started an ecovillage village tourism project called ecovillage Travels in 2001.
Shops: Many of the products manufactured in ecovillages are sold through integral village shops. Most organic food shops include a successful café.
Mail order businesses: A number of ecovillages have mail order catalogues; one is specially successful with a yearly turnover of £ 400,000!