Saving space, sharing time: integrated infrastructures of daily life in cohousing.

A study explored the concept of collective housing to understand better the functions of space and time at the neglected scale of collective, colocated, interhousehold collaboration. The focus was on the North American model of purpose-built cohousing, the defining features of which typically inclu...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Publicado en:Environment & Planning A Vol. 43; no. 3; pp. 560 - 578
Autor principal: Jarvis, Helen
Formato: Artículo
Publicado: Pion Limited March 2011
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Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
Descripción
Sumario:A study explored the concept of collective housing to understand better the functions of space and time at the neglected scale of collective, colocated, interhousehold collaboration. The focus was on the North American model of purpose-built cohousing, the defining features of which typically include the clustering of smaller-than-average private residences to maximize shared open spaces for social interaction; common facilities for shared daily use; and consensus-based collective self-governance. Data were obtained from observations from eight communities in the U.K. and U.S. Selected ethnographic vignettes were used to illustrate a variety of alternative temporalities that coincide with a shifting and blurring of privatized dwelling. Findings exposed multiple temporal scales and innovative uses and meanings of time and space. The contemporary significance of collective living arrangements and the role this might play in future sustainability are discussed.