Pragmatic Community Building
There’s a tendency in modern discourse to treat ideology as something abstract, or a social performance
Actual community builders, and people engaged in their civic responsibilities are embodying their principles; some times without discussing them or having a framework
Historically, diaspora communities have to live embedded in larger societies; a Colombian neighborhood for example usually starts with a restaurant, and grows when other families start moving in and opening stores, supporting each other with financial and legal aid
Survival and thriving originating from correctly navigating their context
In this article we wanted to present the idea of aesthetic intercommunalism, the ideas behind it, further reading, example projects and a roadmap
conversation within relationship can transform people; a real conversation can be messy, human, imperfect, and more effective than any institutional statement
Boundaries and Principles
A pragmatic approach requires community builders of offer a baseline level of competence and safety
Specially when aspiring to positively impact lives, or build a healing community. It is important to understand the safeguards that help preserve life
You are responsible for others, but not at the cost of destroying yourself
Even Maimonides argued that charity must be sustainable. If giving harms your ability to live, it stops being an act with good intentions
Successful examples have created sustainable care within real limits; Diaspora communities usually gather around a shared ethnicity, a space like Burning Man intends to welcome everyone that shares the principles
Non-Duality
In the philosophical layer of existence we look at thinkers like Baruch Spinoza and Kabbalistic traditions that explore non duality, the idea that divisions between self/other, sacred/profane, are social constructs
For our pragmatic approach, this also means:
If we are interconnected, then improving systems improves everyone
If people are not purely “enemy” or “ally,” then engagement becomes possible
If reality is relational, then relationships become the primary tool of change
So instead of organizing around opposition, the focus becomes:
How do we fix systems that we can't escape?
Building From The Inside
Some folks decide to reject society, and find themselves living off grid; it can be tempting when looking at the general vibes
We propose that rather than rejecting society entirely, we:
Work within existing systems where possible
Build parallel structures where needed
Maintain relationships across different locations and cultures
Create visible alternatives through culture
In our new communities and existing ones, is important to be civically engage and promote:
block parties
shared meals
art events
dance parties and raves
Those shouldn't be considered distractions; they exists as critical infrastructure for trust and belonging
Aesthetics is a branch of Philosophy
“Aesthetic” here doesn’t mean decorative or performative,
It refers to the philosophical idea that:
The way life feels beauty, meaning, joy is part of how systems function.
A working community requires more than food, housing and a post office; celebratory rituals, identity and functional design are essential
In Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl he introduces his theory of logo therapy, stating that the primary human drive is the search for meaning. Even in the most horrific suffering, humans can find purpose and the will to live
A beautiful and welcoming environment can help inspire those seeking for meaning
aesthetic intercommunalism in practice
Networks, Towns, and the Logistics of a Living Culture
Across the world, there are already communities, loosely connected through Burning Man Regional chapters; art culture and adjacent movements, that are already living parts of this model
As when developing the principles, we aim to be descriptive, to understand what helps some communities be successful and learn ideas we can adapt
Burners in rural areas are organizing with:
ranches
artist compounds
permaculture farms
stores and crafts
The easy access to land in these areas makes it possible to build art cars and fabricate large art installations. These communities usually collaborate with new artists that lack the space or expertise
These are no longer experiments, their micro economies and cultures have been running for a long time in some cases
Groups of friends, or small teams looking to start a rural community should look into:
lower cost of land
space to build
fewer regulatory barriers
existing but underused infrastructure
Urban Communities
There are also very interesting cases in big and small cities. In places like NYC, San Diego, Chicago; there are thousand of burners and hundreds of artists and producers creating engagement opportunities year round
Their networks organize art events, sober dance parties, workshops, parades and regional music festivals
This work naturally creates additional benefits as job networks, production companies, warehouses, shared knowledge, financing avenues
Being in a city there are many opportunities to find sponsors for projects, and access grants
Institutional Presence
The most important layer is usually invisible
When a local government is working ok is very easy to ignore it, but when is missing there's only chaos
The network of institutions combines public and private initiatives, including social workers, non profits, urban planners, sanitation departments, education
In New York City there are burners inside the department of health promoting harm reduction, interfacing with night clubs, education and refugee initiatives; these burners see their job as a privilege that allows them to impact many people
We've also seen great examples in places like upstate New York, Michigan, and major cities, where burners are influencing policy, fostering children, housing people, visiting sick children at hospitals
This is the kind of pragmatic engagement we love and encourage
International Diversity
Intercommunalism was born in 1970 out of the theoretical work of Black Panther Party co-founder Huey P. Newton to address the limitations of traditional nationalism in the face of globalized capitalism
We believe that many places don't need to change; in parts of Colombia and across Latin America, many towns already function beautifully:
strong traditions
stable community structures
cultural richness
tourism economies
They have nothing to be fixed, challenges exists everywhere, but their cohesion allows them to navigate with joy
Aesthetic Intercommunalism is not about replacing that, or creating new philosophies to export to force civilization on them
Creating centralized networks of controls makes any movement vulnerable, and risks elevating people to positions of uncontrolled authority
Liberation Theology
Latin American liberation theology starts in the 1960s as a Christian movement synthesizing faith with Marxian analysis to fight poverty and oppression. Our curiosity invites us to review successful initiatives and interesting ideas that we can consider in our communities
There needs to be a response to severe economic inequality, military dictatorships, and poverty; they're not inevitable and they harm our people and ecosystems
Actions by leadership should prioritize the people at biggest risk; with actions to transform their material living conditions, without judging their poverty as a moral Gustavo Gutiérrez Peruvian theologian gave the movements its name in 1971, A Theology of Liberation while followers of the movement have broadened it to include ecology and many were assassinated for their radical commitment to service
While we're agnostic in our approach, is important to recognize the freedom of every individual to chose their religion or encourage everyone to abstract useful principles from a variety of practices
Coordinated Clustering
A practical way to launch new communities, is to make it easy for interested people to join. Whether you wanna get more involved locally, or discover a new town to intercommunalize, consider the difficulty for others to:
relocate to the same area
acquire property
open spaces (cafes, studios, workshops)
host events
create visible culture
get permits for events
As more people join your project, your economic and political influence increases and a small group of people can participate to make significant cultural changes to an area
Interoperability
There are many interesting communities currently operating in isolation; an interoperability framework allows us to develop shared principles in multiple verticals, create open communication channels, share resources and promote travel
It brings Intercommunalism to life
Coincidentally is very similar to the false utopia sold by capitalist when they talk about the free market, where under the ideal conditions, different towns can specialize in producing certain goods and the free market magically delivers enough t-shirts to everyone
Our difference to capitalists is our lack of profit motive, or at least indifference. As described, we celebrate cultural hubs selling out tickets every night, as well as those who volunteer their time to visit children in hospitals
Proper autonomy for each community should allow them to operate in the systems they see fit, and still be able to participate in the international network
The Tipping Point
If we continue creating nodes and growing, it is inevitable that more people will learn about them and want to replicate. There will be more opportunities for participating, legitimacy increases and replication accelerates
A global network of viable alternatives grounded in working frameworks
rural creative communities
urban cultural networks
existing traditions around the world
people embedded in institutions
Making it easier for people to live in ways that are collaborative, meaningful, and sustainable
Conclusion
You don’t need to invent anything new, It’s already happening
Find each other. Build together. Make it visible.
