Meadowdance is an egalitarian, child centered community that welcomes human diversity, ecological sensibility, mutual learning and joy.

Meadowdance was a group of adults and children who chose to live, work, and raise children together in the beautiful state of Vermont. After three years of planning, both over e-mail discussions and at gatherings, the first members bought a home and moved in together in May of 2000. Over the next eight years, Meadowdance grew and thrived and welcomed new members. We came from a variety of locations in the US and range in aged from newborns to 50 somethings. Our members included those who were married or single, straight or gay, atheist or agnostic or spiritual, vegetarian or omnivorous, outspoken or quiet. We shared a love of children, decision-making by consensus, an enthusiasm for learning as part of daily life, and a sense of fun. And of course we all were committed to the project of learning to live closely with others.

In Meadowdance, we shared housing as well as income. Our primary income as a group came from Wordsworth, a home business offering typing and transcription services. Part of that business later became Editide and both still continue on.

In 2008, the last of our members parted ways. Over the years we forged many friendships, dealt with many difficult issues, and welcomed wonderful children into our home.

Our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page, gives a great deal of detail on a wide range of subjects.

Following is an excerpt, describing our main values and goals.

Intentional communities have a broad range of goals and values. It's probably fair to say that communities that define these goals and values clearly have a tendency to be more successful than communities that don't. Our major goals and values include:

• Providing a safe, challenging, and nurturing environment for children
• Being part of a community where people know, help, and support one another, and where people can come together to do things they couldn't do alone (art, activism, conversation, shared child care, etc.)
• Having a work requirement for each adult member, and in return being able to ensure that each member has the basic necessities of life (a comfortable place to live, good food, medical insurance, clothing and a stipend)
• Putting few or no restrictions on outside income, earning or spending money, as long as a person's basic work requirements are met and a person honors the community's agreements, values, and guidelines.
• Equality among all members, including an equal say (through the consensus process) in community decisions
• Equality among all people, regardless of race, color, gender, religion or spirituality, sexual orientation or background
• As much as reasonably possible, living and working together, so that people's lives aren't divided between a 9-5 community of co-workers and a nights-and-weekends community where they live.
• Ecological responsibility, especially in regard to living in the most sustainable, beneficial (and non-harmful) way possible
• Encouraging this and other models of intentional community
• Having friendly, mutually beneficial relationships with our neighbors in our town

You can contact info@meadowdance.org if you have questions or comments to pass on.