ECOVILLAGE DEVELOPMENT NETWORK PROGRAMME

Ecovillage become a breeding ground for innovation, regeneration and information- sharing that spin off technologies and systems for in-country scaling up. GEN’s long established network, reaching out to 10,000 people communities around the world, brings  a wealth of inspiring examples and pre-tested solutions to the table. Hubs from different pilot countries can share data, resources and skills regionally and internationally, causing a sort of positive snowball effect.  The Eco-village development programme will be designed to be SMART in nature, employing Specific, Measurable, Achievable action, focused on results with Timelines for implementation. it will be monitored on a regular basis and evaluated after two years by independent specialist to verify that it was achieving its objectives. Social Entrepreneurship allows ecovillages to raise living standards and invest in their own development. Ecological restoration, pride in cultural heritage and social resilience further increase inner and outer wealth. In past years, the government of Senegal has adopted a radical national program to transition 14,000 villages into ecovillages and this process is well underway. Zimbabwe and Morocco both signed an MOU for large-scale ecovillage expansion with GEN. Burkina Faso has decided to implement 2000 ecovillages by 2020. In all, 22 Governments have already expressed an interest in large scale ecovillage development. We believe the EDP represents a radically different, scalable, and effective new approach to meeting SDG targets and implementing the climate change agreements.