I'm writing this to share (with those of you who haven't been following) a dream that’s been growing and transforming over many years—a dream rooted in community, creativity, and living in harmony with the land.
- Disclaimer: I have trained ChatGPT with a lot of my passed writings, feeding it most of my thoughts on what this dream is, and asked it to write this post for me. The post is edited by me, but over all, these are my thoughts put into words I couldn't articulate alone. I personally was very impressed to see how well the Ai has organized my thoughts to reflect exactly what the idea behind this dream are. That being said, I hope you can read this without judgement regarding the method I used for this post, it's worth reading, for sure! Also all the images are my own photographs.
It began as a vision called The People’s Caravan, a nomadic tribe of artists traveling and teaching, and has now evolved into a plan for a multi-family homestead. This homestead will be a place where people come together to live, learn, and support one another, all while cultivating a deeper connection with the earth. Here’s a look at where that dream started, where it’s headed, and why it means so much to me and my family.
Creating a multi-family homestead has been an evolving dream for me and my family, and it’s rooted in a vision that began over two decades ago with The People's Caravan.
The original idea was inspired by my travels, my love of art, and my time in Chile, where cultural centers were springing up in response to years of political repression. These centers opened my eyes to the potential of art and community in shaping a society that values creativity, self-sufficiency, and collaboration. I wanted to create something similar—a "nomadic tribe of artists" that would spread artistic skills, self-reliance, and environmental sustainability.
Over time, my wife and I realized that while the caravan was a beautiful concept, we needed a more permanent base where we could put down roots, create a real community, and build a place where people could live, learn, and grow together in harmony with the land. Our current vision combines these early ideals with a new practical focus: to create a multi-family homestead where people can come together to learn, support one another, and work towards a sustainable, self-reliant life. Here, I’d like to outline what this dream looks like, from the practical aspects to the philosophical underpinnings that make it so meaningful to me.
The Inspiration Behind a Multi-Family Homestead
The People's Caravan was originally designed to spread creativity, community, and self-reliance through art workshops, theater, movement and music. The idea was to travel and share skills with anyone willing to learn. But the road, while freeing, didn’t allow us to fully explore other key aspects of the vision, like sustainable agriculture and natural building.
This need for having strong roots grew over time, particularly as we learned about self-sufficiency. After years of exploring alternative lifestyles and experimenting with self-reliance, my wife and I bought 20 acres in upstate New York in 2016. Our goal was to create a space where like-minded individuals and families could live close to the land, supporting one another and live in alignment with nature. This community is a blend of the original ideals of The People’s Caravan and the grounded reality of homesteading.
Building a Community Through Shared Values
The core of our homestead dream is a community united by shared values—creativity, self-reliance, and environmental stewardship. We imagine a place where people bring diverse skills to the table: artists, farmers, craftsmen, educators, and healers all working together to sustain and uplift each-other and the broader community.
Everyone on this homestead would be committed to learning and sharing skills. For example, one person might be an expert in permaculture, while another has skills in carpentry or natural building. This diversity would allow each family to contribute to the community's development, whether through building projects, garden planning, or creating art. The homestead would offer opportunities for learning, both for the residents and for visitors who come to attend workshops or volunteer.
To support this kind of community, we’d have common goals that everyone buys into, like reducing waste, growing our own food, and living off the land. It’s crucial that every family and individual who joins is aligned with these principles because we want a culture of respect for the earth and each other.
Natural Building and Sustainable Infrastructure
One of my passions has always been natural building, and this homestead would be a place to experiment with different materials and techniques. I dream of constructing a variety of small cabins, each made from different sustainable materials—cob, straw bales, logs, stone. I even dream of building treehouses. Not only would these unique cabins provide housing for residents, but they could also serve as temporary homes for visitors, interns, or anyone coming to learn about sustainable living.
Sustainable infrastructure would be at the heart of the homestead. Each cabin would be off-grid, powered by renewable energy sources like solar panels and possibly small-scale wind turbines. Rainwater collection and composting toilets would help us minimize our environmental impact and close the loop on waste.
The barn, which we’ve already built, will serve as a community hall—a gathering place where we can host events, hold meetings, and share meals from time to time. This barn represents the communal spirit of the homestead and provides a space for the workshops and skill-sharing sessions that we envisioned with The People’s Caravan.
Food Sovereignty and Permaculture
Growing our own food is a cornerstone of this homestead vision. We’ve already been working on gardens, but our goal is to expand into a full permaculture system that provides a diversity of crops throughout the year. This way, we can reduce our reliance on outside food sources, cultivate a sense of food sovereignty, and work with the land to create a resilient ecosystem.
In addition to vegetable gardens, we’d plant a food forest with fruit trees, nut trees, berry bushes, and edible perennials. This forest garden would mimic a natural ecosystem, creating habitat for wildlife and beneficial insects while also providing food for us. Chickens and other small livestock would help fertilize the land, manage pests, and contribute to a self-sustaining cycle. As we grow our food systems, we’d also teach others about permaculture and sustainable agriculture, sharing the knowledge we gain through hands-on experience.
Education and Skill-Sharing: The New People’s Caravan
Though we’re rooted in one place, we’re still dedicated to the idea of teaching and sharing skills—the original goal of The People's Caravan. The homestead would host regular workshops in natural building, gardening, renewable energy, and the arts. These sessions would be open to the community and beyond, welcoming people from all walks of life to come and learn.
Workshops could range from practical topics like “Building with Cob” or “Solar Power Basics” to creative pursuits like “Introduction to Glass Blowing” or “Improvisational Theater.” By offering a wide range of classes, we could reach people with different interests and inspire them to explore new skills. The homestead, in this sense, would become a living classroom, echoing the spirit of The People’s Caravan but with a deeper focus on sustainability and land stewardship.
Challenges and Realities
Building a multi-family homestead isn’t without its challenges. There’s the practical side—coordinating resources, building infrastructure, and finding people who are truly committed to the lifestyle. We’ve encountered setbacks, from financial difficulties to challenges in finding like-minded individuals who are ready to commit. The pandemic, rising costs, and my own health setbacks have slowed down our progress, but they haven’t deterred us from the vision.
Finding people who share our values and who are ready to put in the work is perhaps the biggest challenge. We’re looking for individuals and families who are not just interested in homesteading as a concept but are ready to embrace the realities of hard work, cooperation, and a simpler way of living.
Moving Forward: Building the Dream Together
While the dream, so far, has taken longer than we anticipated, it’s evolved into something more resilient and grounded than we initially imagined. We’re learning patience, perseverance, and the value of slow, steady progress.
The dream of a multi-family homestead is not just a vision for a better life for ourselves, but an opportunity to create a legacy—an example of how people can come together to live sustainably, support one another, and build a truly cooperative community. In a way, it’s still The People’s Caravan, but it’s more rooted, more resilient, and more committed to the earth.
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And if you'd like to help us even more... We have our own little art shop on Etsy. That's our way to make a little extra cash to build this community: Fractal Jungle
Find me on Social Media:
LBRY: https://lbry.tv/$/invite/@MugwortExpress:5
Odysee: https://odysee.com/$/invite/@MugwortExpress:5
Minds: https://www.minds.com/register?referrer=NoMansLand
Posted Using InLeo Alpha
What an exciting post! Right now what I mean is not so much the project itself, which I've been aware of, and can relate to 100%, but the AI generated text. If I hadn't seen the disclaimer I would never have guessed that it was not you who wrote it. Hold on, actually you DID write it, just not directly. After all, you made the tool use your past writing as a basis, and in the end you edited the whole thing yourself. In a way the AI is nothing more than an advanced spell checker, which itself is simply a machine that types words for you, saving you from having to do the calligraphy.
So thank you for sharing this cool experiment with us. It proves yet again that tools are there to be used, preferably with skill and wisdom, and that there is too much worry floating around. Oh, plus it was great to see a bit of update on your project. That barn looks sweet as!!!
My husband is also interested in food forests and building treehouses. We have some people currently renting in our community, but no one permanent yet - our lots haven't been split, but hopefully soon! Your project sounds really amazing!
Thank you, I think it's an amazing project too... tho while there aren't anyone commited, the idea or the vison is changing and evolving.
We have one lot that we devided for a friend who is building a small dwelling. The way we're doing it is by "land lease" instead of subdivision. It works for us as otherwise it would cost way too much to make our property subdivisable.
But this friend isn't coming to live there, this will be his vacation home/short term rental
Do you all have some treehouses up yet?
That's a cool way to do it. We have some people who've made verbal commitments to build and buy a lot. We have 23 lots I believe in the neighborhood. No treehouses yet, but my husband is an architect, so he always has plans. Ha. We do have a 70 foot tall tower - lookout, future airbnb, water tank. It's nice to have likeminded people living right near you!
Ah that's awesome, I'm happy to hear you guy have at least some commitments!! I like the idea of building something on the tower, that's so cool. You could still even do a water tower thing with some sort of airbnb under or above it!
Here is what our tower looks like. It definitely stands out! Ha!
Oh nice! That's pretty awesome
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