A Collective Blooming: The Rise Of The Mutual Aid Community

As the old saying goes, a problem shared is a problem halved, and with the prospect of total ecological collapse on our radar, we’re more desperately in need of such communal support than ever before.

But when we increase the complexity of our communities, then we must also increase our ability to maintain healthy and supportive cultures within them. Part of this process involves learning to consider what kind of impacts the less integrated parts of our personalities may be having on the communities of people around us.

if we wish to see change in the world we need to start rewriting our cultural script, to begin constructing transformational new narratives that appeal to our noblest selves and encourage us to keep our more selfish desires in check. As Terrence McKenna put it, ‘if you’re not the hero of your own novel, then what kind of novel is it? You need to do

If we are to succeed in sustaining civilisation, the meaning we derive from our existence must arise from our connectedness; to ourselves, to other humans, and to the entire natural world.’

At some point in our headlong rush towards ‘progress’, we cut ourselves off from the communal crucible of close human connection that nurtured our species for hundreds of thousands of years. Since we first settled into agricultural civilisation we’ve engineered a series of socio-economic systems that have incentivised us to consistently exploit one

‘most of human history was spent in hunter-gatherer communities. And in these kinds of communities today—there aren’t many of them—you find a degree of cooperativeness, an absence of alienation that is unheard of in modern society. To ignore our social heredity is a serious mistake. There is a human capacity for good-natured cooperation that is sim

Community Creatures, a term I first came across in the work of M.Scott Peck.

A Sense Of Contribution - First identifying, and then offering up our unique gifts to our community, and feeling valued and appreciated for this. A Sense Of Purpose - Feeling as if the interactions we share with our fellow community members are having a positive impact upon wider society.

A Sense Of Connection - Having regular interaction with a distinct group of people with whom we share the same values. A Sense Of Belonging - Feeling seen, understood, accepted and celebrated for the many aspects that make us who we are.