What does 'community' mean for you?

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Imran Nazerali

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Hello all,

I am Imran Nazerali a Design Researcher in London working at the Royal College of Art, Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design. I just graduated from my MA/MSc in Global Innovation Design and I am currently working on a project with a large nationwide housing provider around the subject of improving community within Sheltered Housing schemes.

It would be great to hear your thoughts about what 'Community' means to you even if you haven't lived in Sheltered Housing. Your insights would be really appreciated and help significantly in making the world a better place for those who decide to live in Sheltered Housing accommodation in the future.

Feel free to share your thoughts in this post!

I also hope that everyone is keeping safe and well during these very unusual and unprecedented times!

Best wishes
Imran
 

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Wow! What an interesting and creative position you have! As for me, freedom and independence would be foremost. Actually, I could live comfortably in a tiny cabin in the wilds of Alaska. Community means nothing to me. Size of residence or comfort means nothing. Bigger is not better. Warm enough so I don't freeze, cool enough so I don't melt. I like solace and being able to listen to the music that I love. (not what someone else wants me to listen to)

People around are O.K.from time to time but I cherish my aloneness. Neither would I ever want another to dictate any of my activities. Being in nature, and around water,is crucial. I would have to shower twice a day. and bathe in the Winter. Ideally, I would need a stove and refrigerator with a freezer, a laptop and printer and a small place for creative pursuits. I could go without a TV, if needed. That's about it, for when I get old! Right now I want to eat up the whole world! The Earth is too wild and expansive to be stuck in "housing". I would RUN away screaming from that type of housing if it were offered. I'd be tearing my hair out! I'll get a one way ticket to something adventurous! As I age ,I'd rather die alone in the wilderness than have an extended life in inprisionment. "Life is either an amazing adventure or it is nothing at all!"

Oh, I DID have an entailed dream about housing as you might be working on though. It was dome shaped tenting; each about 12 foot diameter with flexible interior walls. Each had water and sewer and they were clustered in a "community". Could happen as I often have "futuristic " dreams.
Does this help at all?
 
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It doesn't take a lot to make me happy and I don't have all-or-nothing thinking as I am very adaptive.

I have been very happy for almost eight years living in a large one bedroom apartment with my dog and two birds

They keep me going and being needed is something I appreciate much.

Community to me means being in environment shared by many with the things we need and many of the things we want.
 

Gaer said:
Wow! What an interesting and creative position you have! As for me, freedom and independence would be foremost. Actually, I could live comfortably in a tiny cabin in the wilds of Alaska. Community means nothing to me. Size of residence or comfort means nothing. Bigger is not better. Warm enough so I don't freeze, cool enough so I don't melt. I like solace and being able to listen to the music that I love. (not what someone else wants me to listen to)
People around are O.K.from time to time but I cherish my aloneness. Neither would I ever want another to dictate any of my activities. Being in nature, and around water,is crucial. I would have to shower twice a day. and bathe in the Winter. Ideally, I would need a stove and refrigerator with a freezer, a laptop and printer and a small place for creative pursuits. I could go without a TV, if needed. That's about it, for when I get old! Right now I want to eat up the whole world! The Earth is too wild and expansive to be stuck in "housing". I would RUN away screaming from that type of housing if it were offered. I'd be tearing my hair out! I'll get a one way ticket to something adventurous! As I age ,I'd rather die alone in the wilderness than have an extended life in inprisionment. "Life is either an amazing adventure or it is nothing at all!"
Click to expand...
Wow! I could have written this. ♥️👍
 
I am an Australian and I have a slightly different understanding of community.
To me it means belonging to a group that is bigger than immediate family. It is not about geographical closeness so much as having something in common that binds people together. The most powerful bonds are altruistic, when we care for each other or work for the good of people outside the community.

My church congregation is an example of my understanding of community. We all have a common commitment to the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth but we don't all hold the same theological views. We try hard to be a community that cares for each other and are mostly successful in that endeavour. Then some of us volunteer to help out people who do not attend our church. We have a knitting circle of ladies who knit for the homeless, premi babies and poor people in Eastern Europe. This is a community in its own right. I am a volunteer for the playgroups that we run as a service for families. Most of the mothers and grandmothers do not attend our church but most see themselves as associated with our church community.

Australians when in trouble overseas tend to gravitate together and form small groups for mutual support. The men in the Japanese POW camps during the Pacific War were not individualistic. They formed small groups and looked after each other, unto death in many cases. The captured nurses also formed cohesive communities for mutual protection and survival.

During Hurricane Katrina there were a number of young Aussies trapped in that nightmare that was a sports stadium. In the dark they managed to find each other (Oi, Oi Oi, Aussie, Aussie, Aussie was most likely the call). The boys formed an outer ring around the group with the girls inside the perimeter. They also escorted the girls when they needed to relieve themselves to protect them from rape. Most did not know each other before the hurricane hit but common purpose allowed them to come together as a community that cared for the welfare of the whole group.

My thoughts may not be all that useful to you, Imran Nazerali, but common purpose, mutual concern and responsibility and social interaction is IMO necessary for community to develop.
 
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I had to do an internet search on what sheltered housing means in England. It's not a term used in the US. My drift is that these are apartments or other cluster type housing for seniors, disabled, and other vulnerable people, there are often an on-site managers or teams, and some branch of the government typically oversees/regulates them. Socializing opportunities and gathering halls may or may not be part of the complexes.

So, something akin to US assisted living complexes, but orchestrated, underwritten (to whatever degree), and macro (if not micro) managed by the government. Do I have this about right?
 
Community is a group of humans, who feel that they are all in the same class. Community is a shared belonging. Individuals acknowledge that another is a member of said class, and the other acknowledges being a member. Community is a sense of ownership. "That is my hand. That's my car. They're my people." Humans are "tribe" critters.
 
Gaer said:
Wow! What an interesting and creative position you have! As for me, freedom and independence would be foremost. Actually, I could live comfortably in a tiny cabin in the wilds of Alaska. Community means nothing to me. Size of residence or comfort means nothing. Bigger is not better. Warm enough so I don't freeze, cool enough so I don't melt. I like solace and being able to listen to the music that I love. (not what someone else wants me to listen to)

People around are O.K.from time to time but I cherish my aloneness. Neither would I ever want another to dictate any of my activities. Being in nature, and around water,is crucial. I would have to shower twice a day. and bathe in the Winter. Ideally, I would need a stove and refrigerator with a freezer, a laptop and printer and a small place for creative pursuits. I could go without a TV, if needed. That's about it, for when I get old! Right now I want to eat up the whole world! The Earth is too wild and expansive to be stuck in "housing". I would RUN away screaming from that type of housing if it were offered. I'd be tearing my hair out! I'll get a one way ticket to something adventurous! As I age ,I'd rather die alone in the wilderness than have an extended life in inprisionment. "Life is either an amazing adventure or it is nothing at all!"

Oh, I DID have an entailed dream about housing as you might be working on though. It was dome shaped tenting; each about 12 foot diameter with flexible interior walls. Each had water and sewer and they were clustered in a "community". Could happen as I often have "futuristic " dreams.
Does this help at all?
Click to expand...
Hi! Thank you so much for your response. What a very interesting perspective and I really appreciate you sharing, it is very helpful and insightful!
 
Ruthanne said:
It doesn't take a lot to make me happy and I don't have all-or-nothing thinking as I am very adaptive.

I have been very happy for almost eight years living in a large one bedroom apartment with my dog and two birds

They keep me going and being needed is something I appreciate much.

Community to me means being in environment shared by many with the things we need and many of the things we want.
Click to expand...
Hi Ruthanne. That's really lovely to hear and thank you so much for sharing it's much appreciated!
 
Warrigal said:
I am an Australian and I have a slightly different understanding of community.
To me it means belonging to a group that is bigger than immediate family. It is not about geographical closeness so much as having something in common that binds people together. The most powerful bonds are altruistic, when we care for each other or work for the good of people outside the community.

My church congregation is an example of my understanding of community. We all have a common commitment to the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth but we don't all hold the same theological views. We try hard to be a community that cares for each other and are mostly successful in that endeavour. Then some of us volunteer to help out people who do not attend our church. We have a knitting circle of ladies who knit for the homeless, premi babies and poor people in Eastern Europe. This is a community in its own right. I am a volunteer for the playgroups that we run as a service for families. Most of the mothers and grandmothers do not attend our church but most see themselves as associated with our church community.

Australians when in trouble overseas tend to gravitate together and form small groups for mutual support. The men in the Japanese POW camps during the Pacific War were not individualistic. They formed small groups and looked after each other, unto death in many cases. The captured nurses also formed cohesive communities for mutual protection and survival.

During Hurricane Katrina there were a number of young Aussies trapped in that nightmare that was a sports stadium. In the dark they managed to find each other (Oi, Oi Oi, Aussie, Aussie, Aussie was most likely the call). The boys formed an outer ring around the group with the girls inside the perimeter. They also escorted the girls when they needed to relieve themselves to protect them from rape. Most did not know each other before the hurricane hit but common purpose allowed them to come together as a community that cared for the welfare of the whole group.

My thoughts may not be all that useful to you, Imran Nazerali, but common purpose, mutual concern and responsibility and social interaction is IMO necessary for community to develop.
Click to expand...
Hi Warrigal! Wow thank you so much for sharing that. It's really interesting to hear about community from that perspective. This type of community has come up in my research before so it's so nice to hear it again. Big thank you once again for sharing, it's much appreciated!
 
StarSong said:
I had to do an internet search on what sheltered housing means in England. It's not a term used in the US. My drift is that these are apartments or other cluster type housing for seniors, disabled, and other vulnerable people, there are often an on-site managers or teams, and some branch of the government typically oversees/regulates them. Socializing opportunities and gathering halls may or may not be part of the complexes.

So, something akin to US assisted living complexes, but orchestrated, underwritten (to whatever degree), and macro (if not micro) managed by the government. Do I have this about right?
Click to expand...
Hi StarSong! Yes you've got it right!
 
fuzzybuddy said:
Community is a group of humans, who feel that they are all in the same class. Community is a shared belonging. Individuals acknowledge that another is a member of said class, and the other acknowledges being a member. Community is a sense of ownership. "That is my hand. That's my car. They're my people." Humans are "tribe" critters.
Click to expand...
Hi Fuzzybuddy! That's awesome thank you for sharing!
 

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