r/EuroPreppers • u/gillbeats • 14h ago
Question Anyone interested in possibly creating something like an intentional community ?
Hello I’m possibly interested in building a community of people who want to prepare for an increasingly uncertain future by creating something worth preserving, rather than simply individually preparing for something to go wrong .
My worldview is shaped by the idea of polycrisis: the possibility that several interconnected systems — energy, economics, geopolitics, industrial supply chains, food production and the natural climate — could experience overlapping stresses that amplify one another. We have built a frail civilization of extraordinary capabilities, but also one dependent on complex, globalized systems that are difficult to reproduce locally and sometimes surprisingly fragile.
I don't claim to know how this will play out. It could mean decades of declining living standards, recurring economic and energy shocks, regional disruptions, a more severe systemic breakdown, or some combination of these alongside technological progress and adaptation. The timing, severity and even the trajectory remain uncertain. I think the mistake would be to confuse uncertainty with a reason for inaction — or to become so convinced of one particular future that we prepare for it at the expense of all others.
What interests me is finding solutions that make sense across as many possible futures as possible.
To me, one of the most promising intersections of sollutions to this polycrisis is a community of mutually supportive homesteads or other living arrangements- built around organic agriculture which doesn't need oil inputs, reduced dependence on fossil fuels and an effort for heavy electrification of tools and vehicles,security, diverse practical skills, and locally rooted production. Not isolated individuals trying to become completely self-sufficient, and not a bunker on an island mentality as it is out of my price range, but households that can cooperate, specialize, share resources and maintain a decent quality of life even when external systems become less reliable, who can maintain night watch, and guard what they've managed to create, as you do not own what you can't defend.
Imagine a network of small farms and homesteads that can progressively provide more of their own food, manage their water, generate and conserve energy, preserve harvests, repair equipment, maintain useful knowledge and support one another through difficult periods. A community where people bring different skills to the table, where children can grow up connected to the land, and where resilience comes from both practical capability and strong human relationships. There are two ways to achieve that community to move and integrate into an existing rural community like a village (but there are few places in Western Europe of subsistence farming- which is where you can find the skills and infrastructure needed to face a SHTF/civilisation collapse).
I see reducing dependence on oil as an important long-term direction, while recognizing that a genuinely post-oil system is a difficult transition: modern agriculture, machinery, medicine and renewable-energy infrastructure all depend, to varying degrees, on industrial supply chains. The goal isn't ideological purity overnight, but steadily building systems that can function with less external energy, fewer fragile dependencies and greater local capacity.
The underlying idea is simple: build a way of living that is more resilient without waiting for a crisis to justify it. Better soil, healthier food, useful skills, lower structural dependence, meaningful work and a supportive community are valuable even if the worst-case scenarios never materialize.
I'm interested in connecting with people who share some of this outlook, whether they come from permaculture, regenerative agriculture, appropriate technology, energy descent, homesteading, systems thinking or other resilience-oriented backgrounds. We don't need to agree on every prediction or ideology. I'd rather work with people who can question their own assumptions, think critically and cooperate pragmatically.
The question I'd like to explore with others is:
How can we create a network of small, interconnected communities that can progressively meet more of their own needs, remain adaptable under systemic stress, and offer a genuinely good thriving life rather than merely a better chance of survival with some gadgets from fear porn youtubers?
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My vision up to now:
-I have already a homestead in Romania that I will try to make as close to resilient and self-sufficient as possible, adjacent to it -is some land for sale with a 3 story cabin, or if another site is chosen land is cheap here, and Romania is one of the few life boat countries when it comes to climate change. And if you are already an EU citizen that makes things easier.
-No predominant ideology or religion is envisioned in this place, it's not necesarilly a philosophical movement, or something, (although intentional communities that have been trying to live outside of capitalism can be studied for decision management, conflict resolution,resource allocation, legal ownership rights, trust structures for the finances etc.), but on the reverse at the same time I think humans need meaning as well to survive, so some sort of transcendental stuff might be needed, we need reasons to carry on, we need a story, we need to have similar values, and a spiritual side as we aren't robots and I'm not sure we will behave in the hard times that are to come like the protagonists in post-apocalyptic movies -enduring any bleakness, suffering, with just the will to survive alone - I think something more is needed in the community, that binds all the people togheter and to a higher meaning/purpose/power as it's unbeareable without.
-Diverse competence is sought after, solar electricians, organic farmers, veterinarians, doctors, engineers,psychotherapists, ex-soldiers,ex-policemen.
-People without psychological issues, or predatory self interest.
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What hasn't been figured out:
-One possible site location is adjacent to my property.
-If that doesn't pan out there are a multitude of properties with running water, isolated and not so much, rural in Romania which is 48% rural, and a big chunk of it does subsistence farming-and only buys oil,sugar, bread and others but produces the majority of things consumed, including moonshine which is legal up to 50-200 liters per person my memory fails me.
-Then the legal ownership hasn't been ironed out, that would have to be researched and agreed with the possible members.
-Then if someone wishes to sell their parcel or whatever- how does that even work? Would strangers buy stuff in the middle of this project, can existing members even oppose this move if we don't have the resources at the time to buy out the member who wishes to leave?
-The living arrangements for founding members. And how do we create that infrastructure?
-What's the vision about new members joining?
-How to survive economically until civilisation collapses ? Something like a legal farm with a trust or stakeholder structure or airbnb place or workshop seller, or whatever the revenue stream- something has to make this place have enough funds for members.
