As part of the Planning 403 Housing course, we visited New Zealand’s first cohousing neighbourhood, located in Waitakere City, West Auckland. Earthsong Eco-Neighbourhood’s vision is “to establish a cohousing neighbourhood based on the principles of permaculture that will serve as a model of a socially and environmentally sustainable community”. Resource consent was granted for the 1.67 hectare site in 1999 where a consensus decision-making process was adopted by the community in creating an innovative urban housing development. Construction of the first few houses started in 2000 and all 32 homes were completed in 2006. The homes in Earthsong promotes sustainable living as the houses were constructed using rammed earth, timber and non-toxic materials, and were designed to incorporate passive solar principles (warm in winter, cool in summer). On the other hand, Earthsong also promotes environmental sustainability as permaculture “…minimises environmental impacts by reducing stormwater runoff and encouraging self-sufficiency in water consumption, energy use and food production”. The housing arrangement in Earthsong is also significant as it is designed in a way that it encourages social sustainability. Community living is enhanced through having shared facilities such as the ‘Common house/Earthsong Centre’; having weekly common meals; and through a pedestrian-friendly environment.
I found the trip to the Earthsong eco-village very interesting and educational not only because it is the only cohousing community in New Zealand, but it also gave me a first hand insight on what an urban eco-neighbourhood is like. The trip definitely increased my understanding of sustainability in terms of demonstrating and promoting innovative community design and environmentally responsible construction. After the trip, I’ve now become more open-minded that creating socially and environmentally sustainable communities is possible if everyone in the community works together to achieve one goal. Adopting a consensus decision-making process is significant as it gives everyone in the community a fair and equal opportunity in making decisions towards achieving the community’s main vision.
There are however questions and issues that arise from the Earthsong Eco-Neighbourhood type of urban development in terms of adopting it within the New Zealand context. Firstly, will this type of housing arrangement work in a larger-scale community in New Zealand? Will most people living in New Zealand accept cohousing? How can we change the mentality of most people in order for them to accept and be open-minded about promoting community living? In what ways can we promote a social and environmental sustainable community in New Zealand?
In my opinion, I think that the idea of a cohousing development will not fit in the context of a larger scale community development in New Zealand. This is because I think that in order for a cohousing development to be successful, the people within the community must have fairly similar values and outlook on life and what kind of lifestyle they have. Hence, it would be very difficult to promote a cohousing type of community living in terms of building large-scale communities due to people’s conflicting views and stances. However, cohousing should definitely be encouraged in building small-scale communities and/or neighbourhoods in order to promote social sustainability in New Zealand. On the other hand, I think that promoting environmentally sustainable urban environments should not be encouraged. It is important that New Zealand should catch up with other countries on building and developing sustainable homes as not only will it decrease environmental impacts, but also will be economically cheaper in the long-run.
Overall, I think that the development of the Earthsong Eco-Neighbourhood is a big step in terms of promoting environmental and social sustainability in New Zealand. Earthsong Eco-Neighbourhood could serve as a model in creating sustainable communities that encourages a more cohesive and co-operative urban communities.
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