Many of us share spaces with others, but how can we make it easier to live together in a way that saves us costs, helps us live more ecologically, while really enjoying each other’s company?
Imagine the future is now. You live in a community home with 20 other people. How do you make yourself and others happy in this community?
We start from The Reef: a concept and future residential space where inhabitants have individual apartments and privacy, but share common spaces like kitchens, living rooms, and office(s). In the space, ecologically meaningful activities happen, and inhabitants are free to choose or initiate what interests them most. Over time, everyone transitions to a happier, healthier, greener, more social lifestyle. The Reef is in the design phase and anyone is welcome to get involved as a workshop contributor, a future inhabitant, or just a supporter!
Agenda 28th November: A co-design exercise to figure out collectively what would be The Reef from inside:
16:00 - 17:00 Intros & Getting up to speed with the project so far.
- Who is participating and what is your motivation?
- What is the work which has been done so far by the team and community? Presentation of a preliminary report to set a common knowledge base.
17:00 - 18:00 Group work:
- The Dream: how do we build the culture of trust and shared values among those living together? How do you deal with conflict? what legal organisation forms are best fit to help us have a good agreement?
- The House: is it enough to have green technology or do we need our behavior to change to preserve environment resources? how do you ensure everyone has access to common spaces, but also privacy? If you’re an extrovert or introvert, what would you need from others to feel at ease?
- The Community: what projects can you and everybody in the house make that reduce the collective carbon footprint? How will we engage the neighbors to participate and make the Reef an exemplary community?
- What is your question that you want to see addressed? Add it in a comment below and we will include it in the Agenda!
18:00 - 18:40 Food break: sharing a communal meal
18:40 - 20:00 Open discussion
- Reporting from the group work
- Future plans
Who you can meet:
- Kai Drwecki from Happy Pigeons co-living in Berlin
- Matthew Lesniak from Conscious co-living
- Sabine and Malcolm: ‘20 years in Brussels and I still have a feeling of not belonging here’
- METROLAB Brussels, a trans-disciplinary laboratory for applied and critical urban research
- people who care about living in community and connecting with others in the city
20:00 - Drinks!
LOCATION: Metrolab, Quai du Commerce, 48, 1000 Brussels
Outcomes
The workshop will collect documentation and synthesis about shared aspirations that can be implemented at The Reef, and enable those who wish to continue together to build their future home.
Registration
After you register, please wait for our confirmation (number of participants is limited to 15). Working languages are English and French.
The workshop is organised by Edgeryders. We are global network and a social enterprise. Our mission is enable projects for the common good and make them sustainable and rewarding for everyone involved (open, inclusive, participatory processes). In the past three years, some of us have experienced co-living and working together from a shared office in Brussels, and The Reef is our project to find a bigger residential space and bring together more people who wish to live affordable and healthy urban lives by joining forces.
Learn more
- The Reef website
- About Edgeryders
- About The Reef prototype: under way since almost 3 years.
This activity is supported by
