What do you think is the biggest obstacle preventing people from coming together to create affordable, imaginative communities from scratch? Is it strict building codes and regulations, a lack of initiative, a lack of trust among people, or the demands of modern life that leave little time to rethink the basics? Share your thoughts below!
I think more and more people are interested in creating community in some way. What that means is different for everyone, but we've definitely seen a lot more interest in any form of cohousing, whether that is simply a condo with extras or some more formal community for helping raise young children.
Yeah, all those factors. I think until society invests in promoting alternatives like this, it will remain rare. California’s relaxing of rules restricting ADUs is the sort of thing that encourages outside the box approaches to shelter, but we need so much more than that to overcome the dominant paradigm.
In the US, zoning laws and building codes are the biggest obstacles. Zoning laws often mandate - minimum lot sizes, - maximum building heights, - minimum parking requirements And they often ban - unrelated people living together - severely restrict mixed use (business and residential) - alternative building methods (cob, strawbale, superadobe, etc). See Jason Sorens work on zoning in New Hampshire for an example of the ways such regulation stifle new/innovative housing. For example, see Sorens article titled "To get more housing, NH must fix local regulations". Sorens writes about New Hampshire, but the pathologies are common to most US cities. IMO, US cities should move more toward Japanese-style zoning. See the article titled "Japanese zoning" by Urban Kchoze. Among other differences: "...Japanese do not impose one or two exclusive uses for every zone. They tend to view things more as the maximum nuisance level to tolerate in each zone, but every use that is considered to be less of a nuisance is still allowed. So low-nuisance uses are allowed essentially everywhere. That means that almost all Japanese zones allow mixed use developments, which is far from true in North American zoning." Cochise, AZ's zoning laws are a step in the right direction as well: they exempt owner/builders with at least 4 acres from construction plan review and inspections.
Building codes, fees, high permit costs has definitely decimated innovation in home building especially in people barely getting by. Things definitely need to change, this man is a gem, hope his voice is heard. We need more like him and we need better skills taught in building like this, just beautiful.
Steen is a real legend in Denmark, a trail blazer with real entreprenureal spirit. You can do this too when you are young and energetic but ,there's a lot of work involved.
Interesting to hear about Steen from your perspective. He told me he's in his seventies and still feels he has plenty of energy. It seems that way. We spent some more time with him at his current project of Grobund so it's obvious he's continuing to innovate.
Do you think he might invite an apprentice? We have Arcosanti here by me. It’s amazing, ya. And a community. But it’s become something else. A bit commercial in a way that now gives it less community or more posh exclusivity, it is not how it began. As is Sedona. When we allow capitalism to become the community motivation we lose the community.
Thank you so much for not becoming a “personality” and simply allowing all these incredibly useful lessons to find there way to so many starving minds. The hard sell disgusts me, the constant clamoring for attention…you are the antidote for this madness. Blessing to you and your family from Cascadia!
Having the fridge go through the wall like that is incredibly smart.. What he is saying makes sence.. In summer when its on, the radiator on the back removes the heat and pushes it outside so the house does not get even warmer, and in winter, he turns it off, but due to the back of the fridge being outside, the cold comes into the fridge from the back, but it does not go further and into the house, since the door and such of the fridge, is insulated.. thats so smart
i have always thought it is madness to make a cold box in a hot room in cold weather. i thought about making an enclosure for my fridge with vents to the outside that you can close in summer
I had a similar thought last summer and was wondering why nobody is doing that, now I feel vindicated! The only issue I see is that during summer you will need more energy since it is probably hotter outside than inside - though I guess his solution is about as close to optimal as possible, with the clay and the overhang keeping temperatures managable around the fridge.
@@willdatsunMe, too! I've been thinking about an air duct behind my refrigerator to move the warm air to my cellar, which is almost always about 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
It IS a good idea, but could probably be improved. I would make an insulated box over the back of the fridge that could easily be opened and closed, and perhaps eventually automate it with a thermostat, and also automate when to power the fridge. Because the temperature could vary pretty much during the change of seasons. Also; if you power up a refrigerant-compressor in to low temperature, the viscosity of the oil in the compressor is to low for lubricating enough, it will reduce the life of the compressor.
We are creators, we don't need things from outside, we're so busy we lost ourselves, we lost connection, what you need is here, cooperate with nature. Absolute genius.
I have studied about the ecovillage systems and passive solar houses thru out the world, but I believe this is the most efficient house I have ever seen. I am totally fascinated by his efficiency and design. His use of natural materials is stellar, especially the muscle shells!!!! His use of gray water in his greenhouse is stellar!!! I use all our urine as fertilizer here on our small farm. Our small pasture near my house is so green and much more productive than the rest of the farm that is not part of the gray water system. I would love to study from this man and incorporate more of his techniques on our land. Thank you Kirsten for spotlighting this innovative place💕💕💗
This man is brilliant and he is so right. I am so guilty of the I need more. This is helping me to change my thinking so I can change my life to be more and one with nature. Thank you so much for this wonderful video.❤❤❤
What he has created needs to happen all over the world. People have become so abusive to nature and such consumers. Great vlog! Thank you both for what you do. Merry Christmas!🎄
I dig it. Especially his fireplace, outstanding! Was a bit of a cliffhanger about trash but, yeah... Mass consumers even purchase large plastic bags just to throw them away. Great vid, bonus points for 22yrs experience rather than new and honeymooners. All good but this guy epic, cheers!
Another incredible profile of someone whose creativity, ingenuity and love for the Earth is on display. That closed gray water system had me in awe. Thank you, Kirsten and family!
Love that greenhouse - my highschool had greenhouse we called the "green machine", it was a series of septic 8 septic tanks that processed the school's sewage with plants and animal life. The first two tanks were closed, and each step introduced slightly more complex life. By the end we were left with water cleaner than the streams outside and used it to grow food hydroponically. The whole thing cost about $50,000 to set up for a school of 200 students and teachers.
1:49 the colour of that soil! No wonder Europe's so rich, with soil like that - even at the bottom of where they're digging, it's so dark I actually can't tell where the bottom is.
Wow, like always thx a lot for such a good made Video! Dear Mr. Møller, you are a legend, nothing more - nothing less. This year i will visit a perma cycle community in greece to learn from them. I will go there from Dortmund to Greece by a used E-Bike, which i bought not for that purpose at that time. I have two houses to live there, from a friend. On that land i plan to begin my project. Would be great if we met 2026, so i can learn from your set of experiences and skills. Hope the message reaches you! Greetings from Germany
ugh, i cannot stand it: "no pollution only production" we work together! awwwww little pockets like this of truth, hope, cooperation, respect are the EMBERS during these very depressing times! Every time I see one of these my soul smiles! It's still here! Love your work Kirsten......you bring that torch! TY
Thank you…. This is my favorite video I have ever seen, and I follow your channel faithfully!!! I hope you can film more eco village systems,,, we all need to learn how to be more connected to our environmen, even this old farmer loves to learn new ways.
The muscles shells add minerals to the water and soil too! You can do pistachio or other sort of items too. Even certain kinds of rocks.. but the muscle shells are brilliant❤
Thank you for showing this place. It’s incredible and like he said, easy enough to put into place. Instead, we live beholden to the grid and paying tons of $$ each month for sustaining that. I’m at a place in life where I’m 58, retired, no mortgage, no car payments, etc., but each month costs minimum $1700 for property tax and utilities + internet, phone. Does not include $ for food, clothing, repairs, lawn, medical. It’s expensive just to exist these days.
Has you considered moving out to rural areas, where everything (usually) is cheaper? Tiny House could be something you're interested in, but try it before you commit fully to the idea of living in a tiny home.
This community is so smart! And absolutely no reason we are not doing this all over the world! Greed and our inability to change are the only reasons. I need to find someone near me to help build this!
Greetings from southern Ontario Canada I recently had my home constructed by using 5 shipping containers and they are all the same color black the neighbors were offended but there was no constant noise of construction workers and heavy equipment on the site daily like in a traditional lot until my house arrived after a concrete pad was finished I dont have a basement my furnace and hit water heater are housed in one of the containers 😊
Steen, is someone who makes me proud to be danish! And I just dont get why danish politicians dont look his way. They, on the other hand me ashamed to be danish. I love watching your videos. Im amassed to see all the fantastic buildings you visit.
Wow, this was so inspiring! I have seen many ecohouses and ecological solutions, but this is on another level. Imagine if this was the normal way to live! ❤
There are many places like this in the US too, where people live together in communities. There are a million different ways of doing it, depending on wheter you want community or envionmentalism or freedom or self-build or living morgage free or whatever you want.
What a great showcase, you showed such an impressive mind to so many people here and shared brillaint ideas that should be utilized worldwide if we are to reunite qith nature. I agree " production over pollution" everyday of the week 👌
18:40 “Here we cooperate. I cooperate with nature” ❤ this is the most important lesson I teach my children all the time about how to heal the Earth and ourselves. We are here as shepherds, as guardians, as guides and companions along with the Earth, which is very much alive, and when we live as such, in harmony… we all thrive in abundant, purposeful, fulfilling lives. Everything we need we truly have around us.
Kirsten, this was so interesting, I LOVE these videos where you share revolutionary people and their genius ideas and stories, you both asked such good questions, really inspiring, my family is in the early process of creating a commune of sorts, we will have my ex-husband, youngest son, and his family, my daughter and her family, my brother, and myself with my husband, then a small ADU size guest house or if my 84 year old MIL needs needs to be cared for, she’s like a 50 year old with a very active social life, just got a brand new Cadillac sports car, something a successful millennial would drive lol, heck she might have to move in and take care of US! But I love your content, I can’t believe you were just in Van Alstyne, I’m about 60 miles from there, I would have bought you guys lunch at the gas station/ Burger King! 👑 😂
Agree. The bureaucracy of living, are decided by people who only know of limited things. In Australia, we just keep building wider instead of using every metre of land ...the water, urine and feces system alone for his greenhouse would be a good study in the breakdown of our waste, and the processes it needs to go through for plants and nature to use. He's consuming the produce, so the next step is testing it with the market produce and their standars of quality and prove that there are alternatives Because a lot of us were born into a consumerist world, we need reminders like these people, by Dirksen fam-types, to show alternatives be a standard too I like that theyre minimal in plastics and waste, too
But building codes serve a purpose also. When one cannot design and build one’s own home, one must rely on builders to build safe homes. The unscrupulous nature of so many humans would result in many builders producing unsafe homes. Thus codes. This village is a utopia but will not scale to the needs of the global population. But it can serve as an incubator for better ideas in sustainable and scalable housing. These techniques can then be become part of the required building codes.
I completely agree! Focusing on building communities is definitely a positive step forward, and it can help us move beyond this dualistic mindset. I have a project in mind focused on creating a platform for sharing and self-sustainability. I believe it would be beneficial for us to stay connected and collaborate on this initiative. ❤
Thank you for sharing!!! What a beautiful village!! That is how we all should be living... in tune with nature itself and they look quite comfortable. Love all his ideas!!
This is similar to pioneer community. Barn raising, sharing tools and labor, working together. Laws, codes, HOAS all create hurdles to doing this today. Notice he said the mussels used to be free, the timber used to be free, and zoning co-operated instead of astronomical fees and permits. Hope we can get back to doing this on a giant scale.
The wastewater system especially is perfect and amazing! Reminds me of John Todd's Living Machines in Vermont and the Rich Earth Institute, also in Vermont. Urine is not waste, it's nutrients for plants!
Hi friends! It’s impressive! Where does the drinking water come from? What about schooling? What if a school is not close? What if your work is not remote and you have to be at work at least 2-3 days? But it’s all very impressive? I would dream about a life like this!
@@vb7758 To your questions I would say the water is almost certainly from a well, as plumbing connection from municipal sources would be costly and inefficient. Also, rainwater catchment can be used. For school...possibly a contentious outlook, but why send your child to be educated by the state if you are capable of educating them yourself? The tools and resources to self-teach are more prevalent than ever before, and someone who is interested in learning will take advantage of those resources. If school's only motivating factor is to develop a marketable skillset, well, that person can also self-teach (or obviously the parents at young ages). For work, I think the whole idea is to divest oneself of the perceived need to give labor to others at an undervalued rate, as well as potentially contribute to actively harmful practices. Most of us cannot say we have the financial ability to simply walk away from conventional labor, but that is why there is almost always a transitional phase in which plans take shape, then develop, and as personal needs are met, the need for reliance on a day job becomes less and less. This gentleman talked about it in the video- "All we need is here." And so it requires an evaluation of what we consider as our needs; is it food, water, shelter? Or is it (expensive) toys, television, image? I personally think we do not need most of the jobs that exist, but removing them means leaving millions of unprepared people unable to fend for themselves. There is also a question of what is allowed by the state, meaning some may have easier times developing land than others. However, at its core it is an educational issue- if people had the knowledge and wisdom to organize and build, farm and steward their land, and live simply (but in fulfilling peace), we would overturn conventional norms and live free. There is a reason people are not taught these methods in state-sponsored schools... Hope that answers some of your questions 👋
This is incredibly inspiring. I get so depressed with modern society in America and this is really encouraging to see. I would like to live like this. It's so efficient and beautiful.
True true, I have friends that bought 25 acres together to be able to put in a road for electrical lines. They have all moved on now🤔. Very well done Sir💪👍! Merry Christmas✝️🙏🎄❄️🎅🤶 JO JO IN VT 💞☃️
Love the 'you are here' map. Would love to know how they encourage a community ecovillage mentality rather than individuals who happen to live near one another. Other tiny home villages featured on this channel have common spaces like libraries, workshops, fire pits, gathering areas.
Haha! I spent a week here two summers ago. Cool concept. I definitely felt kind of stuck being all the way out there. Also there’s a vibe of competition between home builders, who’s more sustainable, which feels a little uncomfortable/counterproductive. FYI, they don’t use the mussel shells foundations anymore, because they collapse and degrade and the house slumps and cracks. The fellow I was staying with had a big cob house, and they chopped down a massive living oak tree to use as the main support. It was really sad actually, that somehow “sustainability” justified killing this beautiful old tree.. maybe that’s not now all of friland thinks, but that’s the vibe I got
I live in Toronto, Canada. The biggest obstacle for me is rent. My partner and I pay almost 3K CAD per month for a small two bedroom for us and our 5-year-old daughter. The neighbourhood is wonderful - walkable, with great parks, schools, coffee shops and local grocers, and a lively and supportive community. My work keeps me downtown (I am a writer, but I work in contemporary art), so we have to pay to stay here, for now. I keep a flourishing edible garden in my small backyard and this connects me and my child to nature, and to the principles outlined in this video. I believe a better future is possible. We can all begin by reading more, having conversations with our neighbours, and volunteering/contributing to our local communities and economies. Thank you for sharing this - I would love to visit some time!
I think seeing so many "experiments" in architecture in one place was pretty exciting. We visited a few others, but I would have liked to have seen a lot more.
@kirstendirksen I was blown away by their local government giving them so much leeway on what they could build. Sadly that isn't nearly as common as it should be
@@lasseeriksen8731 That is sad. Did the initial enthusiasm and thoughts of innovation elude the current generation of bureaucrats, local governments and their planning departments?
Exceptional, but i did not understand how the plants in the greenhouse take the waste water from the underground pool he made... Is it like a hydroponic system or what?
Probably something like that. But he only talked about washing water and pee, and didn’t explain what they did with their poo. Semi-solid, Harder to handle
What do you think is the biggest obstacle preventing people from coming together to create affordable, imaginative communities from scratch? Is it strict building codes and regulations, a lack of initiative, a lack of trust among people, or the demands of modern life that leave little time to rethink the basics? Share your thoughts below!
I think that most people do not want this lifestyle.
Yes to all that
I think more and more people are interested in creating community in some way. What that means is different for everyone, but we've definitely seen a lot more interest in any form of cohousing, whether that is simply a condo with extras or some more formal community for helping raise young children.
Yeah, all those factors. I think until society invests in promoting alternatives like this, it will remain rare. California’s relaxing of rules restricting ADUs is the sort of thing that encourages outside the box approaches to shelter, but we need so much more than that to overcome the dominant paradigm.
In the US, zoning laws and building codes are the biggest obstacles. Zoning laws often mandate
- minimum lot sizes,
- maximum building heights,
- minimum parking requirements
And they often ban
- unrelated people living together
- severely restrict mixed use (business and residential)
- alternative building methods (cob, strawbale, superadobe, etc).
See Jason Sorens work on zoning in New Hampshire for an example of the ways such regulation stifle new/innovative housing. For example, see Sorens article titled "To get more housing, NH must fix local regulations". Sorens writes about New Hampshire, but the pathologies are common to most US cities.
IMO, US cities should move more toward Japanese-style zoning. See the article titled "Japanese zoning" by Urban Kchoze. Among other differences:
"...Japanese do not impose one or two exclusive uses for every zone. They tend to view things more as the maximum nuisance level to tolerate in each zone, but every use that is considered to be less of a nuisance is still allowed. So low-nuisance uses are allowed essentially everywhere. That means that almost all Japanese zones allow mixed use developments, which is far from true in North American zoning."
Cochise, AZ's zoning laws are a step in the right direction as well: they exempt owner/builders with at least 4 acres from construction plan review and inspections.
Building codes, fees, high permit costs has definitely decimated innovation in home building especially in people barely getting by. Things definitely need to change, this man is a gem, hope his voice is heard. We need more like him and we need better skills taught in building like this, just beautiful.
Regulation and excessive laws = Bad
Steen is a real legend in Denmark, a trail blazer with real entreprenureal spirit. You can do this too when you are young and energetic but ,there's a lot of work involved.
Interesting to hear about Steen from your perspective. He told me he's in his seventies and still feels he has plenty of energy. It seems that way. We spent some more time with him at his current project of Grobund so it's obvious he's continuing to innovate.
Do you think he might invite an apprentice? We have Arcosanti here by me. It’s amazing, ya. And a community. But it’s become something else. A bit commercial in a way that now gives it less community or more posh exclusivity, it is not how it began. As is Sedona. When we allow capitalism to become the community motivation we lose the community.
yes nice to see he is still going strong, we dont hear much about the project in the latest years.
@@tomjensen618 I am 56 ..and will still do this one day.
Winter lettuce for salad!
I want it
Thank you so much for not becoming a “personality” and simply allowing all these incredibly useful lessons to find there way to so many starving minds. The hard sell disgusts me, the constant clamoring for attention…you are the antidote for this madness. Blessing to you and your family from Cascadia!
I am sitting here with my mouth open.. I have been searching for way to live life like this.
Thank you for sharing.
Look up permaculture. To start. Then look up regenerative agriculture. Good luck.
Having the fridge go through the wall like that is incredibly smart.. What he is saying makes sence.. In summer when its on, the radiator on the back removes the heat and pushes it outside so the house does not get even warmer, and in winter, he turns it off, but due to the back of the fridge being outside, the cold comes into the fridge from the back, but it does not go further and into the house, since the door and such of the fridge, is insulated.. thats so smart
i have always thought it is madness to make a cold box in a hot room in cold weather. i thought about making an enclosure for my fridge with vents to the outside that you can close in summer
@@willdatsun - Just protect your freezer and fridge from frost, which is bad for the appliances.
I had a similar thought last summer and was wondering why nobody is doing that, now I feel vindicated!
The only issue I see is that during summer you will need more energy since it is probably hotter outside than inside - though I guess his solution is about as close to optimal as possible, with the clay and the overhang keeping temperatures managable around the fridge.
@@willdatsunMe, too! I've been thinking about an air duct behind my refrigerator to move the warm air to my cellar, which is almost always about 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
It IS a good idea, but could probably be improved.
I would make an insulated box over the back of the fridge that could easily be opened and closed, and perhaps eventually automate it with a thermostat, and also automate when to power the fridge.
Because the temperature could vary pretty much during the change of seasons.
Also; if you power up a refrigerant-compressor in to low temperature, the viscosity of the oil in the compressor is to low for lubricating enough, it will reduce the life of the compressor.
This is pretty impressive, it takes “self sufficient” to a different level!
We are creators, we don't need things from outside, we're so busy we lost ourselves, we lost connection, what you need is here, cooperate with nature.
Absolute genius.
As a Dane I can appreciate the very distinct danish accent, in this case called “jysk” named after the peninsula Jylland :-)
I have studied about the ecovillage systems and passive solar houses thru out the world, but I believe this is the most efficient house I have ever seen. I am totally fascinated by his efficiency and design. His use of natural materials is stellar, especially the muscle shells!!!! His use of gray water in his greenhouse is stellar!!! I use all our urine as fertilizer here on our small farm. Our small pasture near my house is so green and much more productive than the rest of the farm that is not part of the gray water system. I would love to study from this man and incorporate more of his techniques on our land. Thank you Kirsten for spotlighting this innovative place💕💕💗
No mortgage, no garbage. Amazing what he executed there. So many aspects of this make so much sense.
This man is brilliant and he is so right. I am so guilty of the I need more. This is helping me to change my thinking so I can change my life to be more and one with nature. Thank you so much for this wonderful video.❤❤❤
What he has created needs to happen all over the world. People have become so abusive to nature and such consumers. Great vlog! Thank you both for what you do. Merry Christmas!🎄
Worked with this man. Steen is the real deal, walking the talk. Big heart inside and out.
I love his energy and how humble he is with sharing knowledge.
I dig it. Especially his fireplace, outstanding! Was a bit of a cliffhanger about trash but, yeah... Mass consumers even purchase large plastic bags just to throw them away. Great vid, bonus points for 22yrs experience rather than new and honeymooners. All good but this guy epic, cheers!
Extraordinary, thanks Kirsten 👍🏾
Another incredible profile of someone whose creativity, ingenuity and love for the Earth is on display. That closed gray water system had me in awe. Thank you, Kirsten and family!
This gentleman has a wealth of knowledge and experience, his children are very lucky to have a gentle and caring father.
We are all the richer for this man
So wise and so inspiring. Sometimes the greater complexities are adaptations to simplicities.
Love that greenhouse - my highschool had greenhouse we called the "green machine", it was a series of septic 8 septic tanks that processed the school's sewage with plants and animal life. The first two tanks were closed, and each step introduced slightly more complex life. By the end we were left with water cleaner than the streams outside and used it to grow food hydroponically. The whole thing cost about $50,000 to set up for a school of 200 students and teachers.
This is truly wonderful to watch and observe. Thank you for sharing this with us. 😁🌹🏴🇬🇧.
1:49 the colour of that soil! No wonder Europe's so rich, with soil like that - even at the bottom of where they're digging, it's so dark I actually can't tell where the bottom is.
THEY’RE BEAUTIFUL!!!!! I love these homes!!!!!! Sir, you are a genius!!!!!!
Wow, like always thx a lot for such a good made Video!
Dear Mr. Møller, you are a legend, nothing more - nothing less.
This year i will visit a perma cycle community in greece to learn from them.
I will go there from Dortmund to Greece by a used E-Bike, which i bought not for that purpose at that time.
I have two houses to live there, from a friend. On that land i plan to begin my project.
Would be great if we met 2026, so i can learn from your set of experiences and skills.
Hope the message reaches you!
Greetings from Germany
Such powerful words at 5:04 - 5:43:
I grew up on a farm back in the 60s and at that time what you learned is to work and to save up money.
delightful!!!...what a genius!!!!
ugh, i cannot stand it: "no pollution only production" we work together! awwwww
little pockets like this of truth, hope, cooperation, respect are the EMBERS during these very depressing times! Every time I see one of these my soul smiles! It's still here!
Love your work Kirsten......you bring that torch! TY
Steens system appears to work like a dream- self-sustaining, no big workloads & produces food year round - a dream come true ❤
Thank you…. This is my favorite video I have ever seen, and I follow your channel faithfully!!! I hope you can film more eco village systems,,, we all need to learn how to be more connected to our environmen, even this old farmer loves to learn new ways.
I am sold. If only I could time travel back to the 70’s and youth was on my side. It would be my fantastical life. 🙏
The muscles shells add minerals to the water and soil too! You can do pistachio or other sort of items too. Even certain kinds of rocks.. but the muscle shells are brilliant❤
Steen Møller is amazing.. so much knowledge and idea generating in one person. Meeting Steen is always an eye opener.
Another amazing find ... Thank you
Thank you for showing this place. It’s incredible and like he said, easy enough to put into place. Instead, we live beholden to the grid and paying tons of $$ each month for sustaining that. I’m at a place in life where I’m 58, retired, no mortgage, no car payments, etc., but each month costs minimum $1700 for property tax and utilities + internet, phone. Does not include $ for food, clothing, repairs, lawn, medical. It’s expensive just to exist these days.
Has you considered moving out to rural areas, where everything (usually) is cheaper?
Tiny House could be something you're interested in, but try it before you commit fully to the idea of living in a tiny home.
Fair Plan insurance$650 a month.
Awesome! 🤩
This gentleman’s children & community have no idea how lucky they are to live there! 🤯
This community is so smart! And absolutely no reason we are not doing this all over the world! Greed and our inability to change are the only reasons. I need to find someone near me to help build this!
Greetings from southern Ontario Canada I recently had my home constructed by using 5 shipping containers and they are all the same color black the neighbors were offended but there was no constant noise of construction workers and heavy equipment on the site daily like in a traditional lot until my house arrived after a concrete pad was finished I dont have a basement my furnace and hit water heater are housed in one of the containers 😊
Incredible! I love this man. ❤
Steen, is someone who makes me proud to be danish! And I just dont get why danish politicians dont look his way. They, on the other hand me ashamed to be danish.
I love watching your videos. Im amassed to see all the fantastic buildings you visit.
Cooperate with Nature! Indeed, and thank you for helping show us ways to do so!
I adore your channel and love the work you do to bring us to the realization of saving the planet one person at a time!
LOVE this man and his mindset!!!
This is a fabulous idea! Thank you to all the people who worked on this village, and thanks for sharing this video too!
I love your videos and the people you interview and the wonderful ideas they have.
Wow, this was so inspiring! I have seen many ecohouses and ecological solutions, but this is on another level. Imagine if this was the normal way to live! ❤
Thank you for sharing this wonderful project. Brilliant and inspiring. Beautiful work and way of filming, too! Greetings from northern Germany.
That moss roof ❤
@5:00 where people ..."have become consumers" is a gem of perspective
Thank you for what you’re doing. This is truly a service to our species. I hope we can learn.
very valuable work and very valuable culture you're spreading sister .
As an "American" I love being reminded that there are much better ways to live.
Same here, this gives us hope.
USA has around 330 million inhabitants. Probably some people are also living this way? I know the Amish like to live a simple life.
North America has been falling so far behind the rest of the world that it's not even funny anymore.
There are many places like this in the US too, where people live together in communities. There are a million different ways of doing it, depending on wheter you want community or envionmentalism or freedom or self-build or living morgage free or whatever you want.
What a great showcase, you showed such an impressive mind to so many people here and shared brillaint ideas that should be utilized worldwide if we are to reunite qith nature. I agree " production over pollution" everyday of the week 👌
Could not agree more with the premise of this.
18:40 “Here we cooperate. I cooperate with nature” ❤ this is the most important lesson I teach my children all the time about how to heal the Earth and ourselves.
We are here as shepherds, as guardians, as guides and companions along with the Earth, which is very much alive, and when we live as such, in harmony… we all thrive in abundant, purposeful, fulfilling lives. Everything we need we truly have around us.
@@ConsciousConversations yes we just made it all complicated, gotta do the old switcheroo!
Beautiful ecovillage!
Love Steen, and his way of thinking - my former teacher ❤ Nice to have a revisit of his house here on youtube ☺
Kirsten, this was so interesting, I LOVE these videos where you share revolutionary people and their genius ideas and stories, you both asked such good questions, really inspiring, my family is in the early process of creating a commune of sorts, we will have my ex-husband, youngest son, and his family, my daughter and her family, my brother, and myself with my husband, then a small ADU size guest house or if my 84 year old MIL needs needs to be cared for, she’s like a 50 year old with a very active social life, just got a brand new Cadillac sports car, something a successful millennial would drive lol, heck she might have to move in and take care of US! But I love your content, I can’t believe you were just in Van Alstyne, I’m about 60 miles from there, I would have bought you guys lunch at the gas station/ Burger King! 👑 😂
What a caracter . Thank you Kristin .
ohhh my,what a beautiful and sustainable home!
This is for sure a kind of Freeland. Biggest Problem on the most Places are the Building-Codes. Hope, you'll show more Houses in this Place
th-cam.com/users/results?search_query=friland Videos from this place called Friland.
Agree. The bureaucracy of living, are decided by people who only know of limited things.
In Australia, we just keep building wider instead of using every metre of land ...the water, urine and feces system alone for his greenhouse would be a good study in the breakdown of our waste, and the processes it needs to go through for plants and nature to use. He's consuming the produce, so the next step is testing it with the market produce and their standars of quality and prove that there are alternatives
Because a lot of us were born into a consumerist world, we need reminders like these people, by Dirksen fam-types, to show alternatives be a standard too
I like that theyre minimal in plastics and waste, too
That's the biggest problem.
This would not be possible in most of the Europe.
But building codes serve a purpose also. When one cannot design and build one’s own home, one must rely on builders to build safe homes. The unscrupulous nature of so many humans would result in many builders producing unsafe homes. Thus codes. This village is a utopia but will not scale to the needs of the global population. But it can serve as an incubator for better ideas in sustainable and scalable housing. These techniques can then be become part of the required building codes.
@@gottasay4766 Exactly. People think they can make whatever they want.
Awesome and interesting builds. Love the greenhouse!.
Thank you sooo much for doing these videos, this information is so important!!
Thank you for this tour . Realy nice village😊
This is so wonderful and practical.I keep telling people round structures are better..They can handle wind much better.I love this place!
I completely agree! Focusing on building communities is definitely a positive step forward, and it can help us move beyond this dualistic mindset. I have a project in mind focused on creating a platform for sharing and self-sustainability. I believe it would be beneficial for us to stay connected and collaborate on this initiative. ❤
Love this and love this wise man!!! Such a fantastic character
Thank you for sharing!!! What a beautiful village!! That is how we all should be living... in tune with nature itself and they look quite comfortable. Love all his ideas!!
There is hope for our planet and our existence, thanks to people like this gentleman!!!❤
This is similar to pioneer community. Barn raising, sharing tools and labor, working together. Laws, codes, HOAS all create hurdles to doing this today. Notice he said the mussels used to be free, the timber used to be free, and zoning co-operated instead of astronomical fees and permits. Hope we can get back to doing this on a giant scale.
The wastewater system especially is perfect and amazing! Reminds me of John Todd's Living Machines in Vermont and the Rich Earth Institute, also in Vermont. Urine is not waste, it's nutrients for plants!
Hi friends! It’s impressive! Where does the drinking water come from? What about schooling? What if a school is not close? What if your work is not remote and you have to be at work at least 2-3 days? But it’s all very impressive? I would dream about a life like this!
@@vb7758 To your questions I would say the water is almost certainly from a well, as plumbing connection from municipal sources would be costly and inefficient. Also, rainwater catchment can be used.
For school...possibly a contentious outlook, but why send your child to be educated by the state if you are capable of educating them yourself? The tools and resources to self-teach are more prevalent than ever before, and someone who is interested in learning will take advantage of those resources. If school's only motivating factor is to develop a marketable skillset, well, that person can also self-teach (or obviously the parents at young ages).
For work, I think the whole idea is to divest oneself of the perceived need to give labor to others at an undervalued rate, as well as potentially contribute to actively harmful practices. Most of us cannot say we have the financial ability to simply walk away from conventional labor, but that is why there is almost always a transitional phase in which plans take shape, then develop, and as personal needs are met, the need for reliance on a day job becomes less and less. This gentleman talked about it in the video- "All we need is here." And so it requires an evaluation of what we consider as our needs; is it food, water, shelter? Or is it (expensive) toys, television, image? I personally think we do not need most of the jobs that exist, but removing them means leaving millions of unprepared people unable to fend for themselves. There is also a question of what is allowed by the state, meaning some may have easier times developing land than others. However, at its core it is an educational issue- if people had the knowledge and wisdom to organize and build, farm and steward their land, and live simply (but in fulfilling peace), we would overturn conventional norms and live free. There is a reason people are not taught these methods in state-sponsored schools...
Hope that answers some of your questions 👋
This is incredibly inspiring. I get so depressed with modern society in America and this is really encouraging to see. I would like to live like this. It's so efficient and beautiful.
True true, I have friends that bought 25 acres together to be able to put in a road for electrical lines.
They have all moved on now🤔.
Very well done Sir💪👍!
Merry Christmas✝️🙏🎄❄️🎅🤶
JO JO IN VT 💞☃️
You always bring the best content, Your videos are informative and very much useful for mankind. thank you very much.
Thanks, that's kind of you to say!
Love the 'you are here' map. Would love to know how they encourage a community ecovillage mentality rather than individuals who happen to live near one another. Other tiny home villages featured on this channel have common spaces like libraries, workshops, fire pits, gathering areas.
@@SoCalFreelance I thought I heard Steen say, early on in the vid, the house they were walking by had “turned into the common house”.
I would love to hear a more detailed explanation on how the greywater management greenhouse thing works. Truly amazing
Muchas gracias con gusto me uniría a la hecoaldea, lástima que estoy al otro lado del océano,, exelentes ideas y muy bien pensada, un saludo
Wonderful video!
Yes! Even my teen kids (as do I) all the time wonder at doors and houses and shapes and why!! 8:11
A dream come true! Thanks 4 the vid...health and blessings of this holy season! :)
So amazing eco-commuity, great houses design!
Really fascinating.thank you for this interesting story. I Love Friland ❤
The way you ended the video was great, understated but powerful.
Love this! I would love to see more !
Haha! I spent a week here two summers ago. Cool concept. I definitely felt kind of stuck being all the way out there. Also there’s a vibe of competition between home builders, who’s more sustainable, which feels a little uncomfortable/counterproductive.
FYI, they don’t use the mussel shells foundations anymore, because they collapse and degrade and the house slumps and cracks.
The fellow I was staying with had a big cob house, and they chopped down a massive living oak tree to use as the main support. It was really sad actually, that somehow “sustainability” justified killing this beautiful old tree.. maybe that’s not now all of friland thinks, but that’s the vibe I got
I live in Toronto, Canada. The biggest obstacle for me is rent. My partner and I pay almost 3K CAD per month for a small two bedroom for us and our 5-year-old daughter. The neighbourhood is wonderful - walkable, with great parks, schools, coffee shops and local grocers, and a lively and supportive community. My work keeps me downtown (I am a writer, but I work in contemporary art), so we have to pay to stay here, for now. I keep a flourishing edible garden in my small backyard and this connects me and my child to nature, and to the principles outlined in this video. I believe a better future is possible. We can all begin by reading more, having conversations with our neighbours, and volunteering/contributing to our local communities and economies. Thank you for sharing this - I would love to visit some time!
Big respect to you and your hubby
Absolutely brilliant!
I loved this so much ..this is my dream living ❤🌬💧🌦
Friland used to be on TV back in the day when they started. The man is a legend here in denmark 👍
Very good advice at the end 🙂
Love the unique architecture
Also so neat to just buy a piece of land and create a ”new village”
Beautiful home and ethos. Innovation personified ❤ new subscriber 🎉
I need more details on that waste water treatment. I've seen similar, but never that particularly.
Brillant ideas!
I haven't seen Kirsten this excited about a build in a long time
I think seeing so many "experiments" in architecture in one place was pretty exciting. We visited a few others, but I would have liked to have seen a lot more.
@kirstendirksen I was blown away by their local government giving them so much leeway on what they could build. Sadly that isn't nearly as common as it should be
@@victorkreig6089 it´s impossible now , their new place "grobund" it stil waiting on permits to build housing ....
@@lasseeriksen8731 I figured as much, everyone is so greedy these days
@@lasseeriksen8731 That is sad. Did the initial enthusiasm and thoughts of innovation elude the current generation of bureaucrats, local governments and their planning departments?
Bien, sigan construyendo
Thank you very much, Kirsten, for sharing this. I have lived in Denmark for 32 years now and never heard about Friland. An amazing project!
Exceptional, but i did not understand how the plants in the greenhouse take the waste water from the underground pool he made... Is it like a hydroponic system or what?
Probably something like that. But he only talked about washing water and pee, and didn’t explain what they did with their poo. Semi-solid, Harder to handle
@@AreHan1991 i am thinking that the human poo is probably used like horse poo or cow poo to enrich the soil.
Type : Steen Møllers Spildevand i Drivhuset , it comes with english subtitles
th-cam.com/video/6IX-wZI6gPA/w-d-xo.htmlsi=1dLgdHQ0-1cqeysW
@@CameronMcManus thank you very much
I agree with this man and his way of living 👏