CREATING HARMONY
for people who want to make a better world

There is a dawning of a new renaissance. It seeks to combine science, art, ecology and spirituality, and explore new ways of creating harmonious communities which conserve and enhance the land upon which they are built, whilst also nurturing its people.

This movement is spreading across the world and through its cultures, acknowledging the richness of many traditional wisdoms and celebrating new ideas: self and community development, ecological design, and sustainable agriculture... It is seeking new ways of living and working together sustainably in eco-villages and communities, large and small, rural and urban, and finding ways of living harmoniously with each other and our environment.

'Creating Harmony' is a collection of signposts towards this new renaissance with contributions from leading people in the movement. It is full of first-hand knowledge, practical experiences, useful techniques and inspiring stories. The wisdom contained in this book is for anyone who wishes to overcome humanity's greatest stumbling block - conflict - and explore new, holistic ways of living and working together. It is essentially a handbook of hope.

"Creating Harmony is an exciting, groundbreaking project and is full of
original ideas and inspiration. It has contributors from all over worldwith a fascinating breadth of experience in setting up communities, eco-villages, forming proactive groups and pioneering new techniques. It combines the practical with the spiritual, the humorous with the profound."
Hildur Jackson, editor

CONTENTS
The first part of the book looks at the philosophy that underpins this movement: it considers the role of traditional cultures and spiritual values; describes how sacred architecture and esoteric practices can help found harmonious communities; explains how permaculture can be a key framework in designing sustainable communities; and looks at how people can work together on their personal development in groups to create a more harmonious and vital community.

The second part of the book is a series of powerful accounts of people who have lived and worked in communities all over the world and share their lessons with us here. Read about conflict resolution in India, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, Germany, the US, Australia and the UK. There is no substitute for experience!

The third part of the book offers techniques in conflict resolution which have been tried and tested by the authors; including the six 'ingredients' for forming eco-villages: consensus; collaborative meetings; the importance of song, dance and music; humour and passion (by Dr Patch Adams); and understanding ourselves and others.

ISBN 1 85623 014 7  SIZE: 234 x 156mm  PAGE EXTENT: 288pp  BINDING: Paperback