Being intentional: theories of social change
Intentional communities are widely defined and distinguished in contrast with ‘mainstream’ ‘randomly co-located’ or ‘master-planned’ neighbourhoods. Widespread implications of ‘being intentional’ for people and planet (common values and collective self-governance) suggest that intentional communities can serve as ‘laboratories of learning and change’ (Whitney 2013, Kozen 2004). Iris Kunze (2020) attributes renewed interest in ‘rethinking community’ directly to political discussions on how to deal with contemporary crises. Most of this academic work is case study oriented and as such it tends to gloss over structural barriers severing ‘the world as it is’ (unsustainable, structurally unequal) from ‘the world as it should be’. Scrutinising the journey between these points (rather than a mythical ‘utopia’) requires us to critically engage with theories of change (and ways to proliferate progressive global social change. Everyone wants to make change, whether it is to reduce loneliness, end racism, or save the planet. Yet, even when social change is a stated goal, few intentional communities align self-governance with methods of organising that are proven to achieve effective change – within and beyond their scale of belonging. This paper sheds light on the significance of place-based theories of change. It does so by developing a typology that considers the relational and multi-scalar cultural processes by which communities––however defined––determine their own solutions to contemporary crises. The discussion engages with theories of change on a continuum of intentional communities, social movements, and civil society organisations. The paper concludes with a call for further theoretically grounded empirical research.
