Abstract

CAVALCANTI, Andrea Douat Loyola. Civilization and its discontents of the collective: an analysis of individual freedoms in an ecovillage. Pesqui. prát. psicossociais [online]. 2019, vol.14, n.2, pp.1-16. ISSN 1809-8908.

This article aims to analyze how individual freedoms are expressed in a proposal of coexistence geared towards the collective, as are ecovillages. The present study contributes to a reflection on life in a community, as well as to create a debate about possible exchanges and concessions between individual and society. From a field research, with a qualitative approach (with participant observation and interviews), it was possible to perceive that conflicts are part of local daily life, but that coexistence becomes viable through constructions of strategies and purposes - which may be important for the elaboration of alternatives to the current society. We realize that the challenges to building a community-based life in an ecovillage are daily, and are observed by its residents in different ways - at the same time as they are still seeking to combine individual freedoms with collective needs, in a continuous process.

Keywords : Ecovillages; Sustainable communities; Individual; Individual freedoms.

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