MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – Ever dreamed of more community in your life -- of knowing your neighbors, and growing relationships with people who care and share key values with you?

Join Valley Fire Phoenix Rising members and cohousing coaches Raines Cohen and Betsy Morris in discussing how to rebuild Lake County using principles from resilient, cooperative, thriving intentional communities around the world.

They will speak at the Valley Fire Phoenix Rising assembly at 6:30 p.m. Monday, March 14, at the Middletown Art Center, 21456 Highway 175 (at the junction of Highway 29).

Resilience is the ability to recover and thrive in the face of natural disasters, financial disasters, ongoing climate change, unequal economies and uncertain futures.

Ordinary people are creating cohousing, ecovillages and tiny home villages. Local officials and businesses are starting to see the need and importance of:

– housing affordable to the current and next generation;
– earth-sharing and environmental commons;
– participatory design and governance of our human habitats;
– balancing privacy and sociability;
– building smaller homes with more common facilities;
– supporting locally owned and worker owned businesses;
– alternative finance and community currencies.

In addition to serving individual clients and groups around the state and beyond, Cohen and Morris serve on national boards, frequently advise and give talks at conferences.

They are founders and community organizers of Cohousing California, a Web site that supports five regional networks of established and forming communities (and several out of state), producing weekly events with and for more than 4,000 members. Learn more at http://calcoho.org/ and http://www.cohousingcoaches.com/ .

Phoenix Rising meets every Monday night at 6:30 p.m. at the Middletown Art Center. The community action group is rapidly growing and is seeking new members who share the mission to provide housing solutions for people in the aftermath of the Valley fire that are available, viable, doable and affordable.

The goal is to strive for a community rebuild in a manner that is environmentally conscious, resilient, and creates economic opportunities for a better future. 

The group’s Facebook site is at https://www.facebook.com/groups/1502848316699710/ .