In late September, I had the great enjoyment of visiting a number of urban sites in Portland with many eco and people friendly design features. These are some great locations ranging in scale from single suburban property to 5 acre eco village.  Much thanks to Denny for showing me around Columbia Eco Village, his nearby neighborhood and the 42nd Av area.  Thanks also to Ole and Maitri at Kailash Eco Village, Noelle at Cully Grove Eco Village, Ridhi at the Goat House and Marisha and Zane at their very impressive home.  All these places are repurposed urban places.  They all show what can happen when people put their time, resources and talents to good use.

Three locations I visited were eco villages. Here is a brief description of eco villages.

Ecovillages are site specific communities with shared values to develop social, cultural, economic and environmental practices that are more friendly to people and planet than mainstream. They are close cousins to co housing. Most range in membership from 50 to 150 individuals, although some are smaller.  They can be urban or rural.  Some are built from the ground up, others can be repurposed pre existing buildings and properties.

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