Community Facilitation

A MUST read for any person or business who wants to improve the way they plan and execute human gatherings. Priya Parker calls for us all to host intentional gatherings by starting with the purpose of the gathering in the first place and considering every aspect from location to which people to invite.

This long-form article dives deep into one of coliving’s biggest dilemmas: small coliving operators tend to develop great communities while large operators tend to scale more quickly. After identifying why the dilemma exists, the piece then presents the creation of multi-tiered communities as a potential solution to the dilemma.

In a world that seems to be increasingly customized and fragmented, Peter Block shares his views on the secrets of how to build meaningful communities.

Sebastian Junger traces the human need for connectedness back to the way tribal societies function. In the modern world, Junger believes the need for human connections is as strong as ever and that we are all better off when we come together.

Another very insightful community book based around seven principles for growing “enduring, effective, and connected communities.” Vogl also presents some tools and frameworks that can be utilized to help create live-enhancing communities.

This 350+ page book contains advice from more than 60 contributing authors on how to empower communities. With themes ranging from health and healing to holistic event production, the book is jam packed with useful information for creating robust coliving communities.

Written by three nonviolent communication experts, this toolkit contains countless activities and teaching tools to implement nonviolent communication.

Coliving expert Gui Perdrix gives his take on how community facilitators should be trained to successfully support thriving coliving communities. The article outlines the soft and hard skills coliving companies should focus on as well as suggestions on how and where to train community facilitators.

A fantastic and holistic framework on how to intentionally create a community. With three sections and seventeen themes, following this canvas can ensure that coliving companies don’t miss anything in the community creation process.

An excellent step-by-step guide on how to facilitate a purpose-driven event. This article contains many useful tips for facilitators as well as a “facilitator’s toolbox” with tools and techniques to spice up your next event.

An in-depth 70-page report describing how to use the ‘social sustainability framework’ and create great communities in new housing developments.

Coliving pioneer Carlos de la Lama-Noriega draws on his experience as the Founder and CEO of Startup Embassy to explain how a robust community is essential for coliving: “no matter the size of your coliving, there’s one things that defines it: community.”

Olivia Roche, the author behind UK housing blog Resident Sharer, presents her compelling community building model called the ‘Three Tier Framework.’ The main premise of the model is for living communities to intentionally and responsibly integrate into the larger neighborhoods in which they exist.

Micaela Connery, founder and CEO of The Kelsey, is joined by Common CEO Brad Hargreaves to discuss Micaela’s work in creating housing solutions that are inclusive and supportive, along with her unique insights into how developers and operators can incorporate inclusivity into their own projects.

Gaetan de Dietrich, the Head of Community at Singapore-based coliving operator Hmlet, delivers an in-depth 13-minute presentation on why and how humans form communities.

Co-Liv Director and coliving expert Gui Perdrix is the featured speaker in this 15-minute video from the 2021 Co-Liv Summit. The Ted-Talk style presentation covers a variety of community facilitation strategies including moving from top-down to bottom-up communities and a long list of best practices for coliving operators.

The Sixth Edition of Coliving Insights focuses on the best practices for building community in coliving. With case studies from around the world and dozens of expert authors, this edition is a must read for coliving operators hoping to foster a robust sense of community for their residents.

This piece is a summary of a talk given by Conscious Coliving co-founders Naima Ritter and Matt Lesniak at The Student Hotel Summer Festival in September 2021. Matt and Naima cover everything from the meaning of community to how to successfully integrate technology into shared living concepts. You can also watch the full 52-minute keynote video.