Page 29 - C.A.L.L. #36 - Summer 2013
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KOMMURAGE, INTERCOM and the KOMMUJA NETWORK
By ICD Member Michael Livni
The Kommuja Network in Germany Mondays is devoted to a meeting in the
numbers some 500 members in 34 morning and maintenance work and new
different communes. The members of development in the afternoon.
the network have all consciously opted
out of the normative (competitive) ABOUT KOMMURAGE
society in favor of a modest collective In 2009 the core members of
life. One of the largest of the Kommuja Kommurage joined together and
communes is Niederkaufungen (C.A.L.L. established a registered non-profit
#32 – Summer 2010). Six of these association (“Verein”) and bought 7,500
communes are located in Lower Saxony,
some 160 km/ 100 miles West of Berlin.
They are organized into a local network
– “Intercom” with some 50 members in
total. The Intercom network meets
monthly. The meeting site rotates
among the member communes.
Central Building, Kommurage
In June 2012 I spent four days visiting
Kommune Kommurage. During this time I square meters of land (7.5 dunam) in a
also visited two other Intercom small village, Meuchefitz. The land
communes – Karmitz Clan and Krumme included a large old farmhouse parts of
Eiche. My stay on Kommurage was which date back 200 years as well as a
coordinated by Kerstin Mally. I had few smaller buildings. Part of the area
hosted Kerstin, together with Patricia is forested. Firewood is harvested from
Saif from Niedkaufungen, on Kibbutz the forest. The property cost 120,000
Lotan two months previously. (Patricia Euro. One member put up 80,000 Euro
and Kerstin were also guests at a and shortly thereafter left. Kommurage
meeting of the International Communes is paying him back in installments. All
Desk during their stay in Israel.) members pay rent to the Verein which
Kerstin practices acupuncture in formally owns the property. The old
Luechow – a neighboring town. All farmhouse is the center of the
members of Kommurage do outside community – it contains the communal
work. For example, Kerstin’s partner, kitchen, meeting space and some
Hans, does accounting and business residence rooms, a shower and toilet
consults. All income is pooled. There is facilities. At the time of my visit, only
enough flexibility so that time can be the central building had toilet and
allocated for work in Kommurage . shower facilities. Most Kommurage
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