A cohousing using sociocracy: Pioneer Valley

A cohousing using sociocracy Pioneer Valley - A cohousing switches to sociocracy - Sociocracy For All

In 2012, Pioneer Valley Cohousing adopted sociocracy. Since its founding in 1994, members had based their forms of decision making on Consensus, in which all would need to agree in order to move forward with a decision.

A cohousing using sociocracy Pioneer Valley governance - A cohousing switches to sociocracy - Sociocracy For All

A core of seven members of PVC spent a year, studying sociocracy by practicing and shaping a proposal to make the switch. This case study focuses on a snapshot of cultural changes within the community by interviewing five resident enthusiasts.

You can also see this video on the same topic.

Why Leave Consensus Behind?

Problems with consensus seem to involve recurring themes: A backlog of decisions to be made and typically, at times when there is a near consensus for the community, it is difficult to push things through as a small minority can block movement causing stagnation.

A cohousing using sociocracy Pioneer Valley structure - A cohousing switches to sociocracy - Sociocracy For All

Read the full case study if you’re interested in learning:

  • Switching from a different type of governance to sociocracy on an established community
  • Cultural shifts that a community might face when implementing sociocracy
  • The sociocratic circle structure of a cohousing community
  • How different levels of sociocratic training can affect the implementation of sociocracy.

This case study was written by Deborah Mangrum-Price for the Sociocracy Leadership Training.

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