What is urban homesteading?

Another “green” group for Iowa City; you may be asking yourself “so what is urban homesteading anyway?” So glad you asked! Urban homesteaders are a pretty diverse group, but there are some common themes. These are people who are making a conscious choice to make our world healthier by relying less on fossil fuel use in its many manifestations, from industrial farming to electric clothes washers. Urban homesteaders seek self-sufficiency and reducing their reliance on business and infrastructure for things such as food, electricity, and many other things that can be created at home. We are seeking to reclaim knowledge that we have willingly given up in favor of industrialized, cheap, and easy products: including food.

Homesteading has it roots in the “back to land” movement of the 60s and the 70s: the urban exodus to the countryside to seek a stronger connection with the Earth and foodways, living off the grid and by the sweat of one's brow. Urban homesteaders are trying to seek balance of the benefit of urban life with the same longing for a simpler, less consumptive lifestyle. Many of us start simply as gardeners with a small plot of organically cultivated vegetables, and our interests expand to include alternative energy, reusing and re-purposing things instead of carting them off to the dump, and trying to preserve our harvest to nourish throughout the year.

Whatever stage of urban homesteading you are at, from interest onward, your presence is welcomed in the group. We seek to build community, to learn from and to encourage each other.

Beginnings

Recently, some friends of mine and I were chatting on Facebook about forming an old-fashioned gardening group. You might remember your grandmother or mother belonging to "Garden Club". Generally these types of groups were social clubs. While each member would contribute their knowledge on a certain subject to the group, the allure of the group was getting out of the house to talk to people about something you enjoyed. Participants would swap plants, get together for potlucks, and admire the fruits of their neighbors' labor. Belonging to these groups provided members with connection, knowledge and the opportunity to to make friends. Unfortunately interest in such groups waned as television and subsequently the Internet replaced "community" in modern society.

The issue is that while not all of my friends are gardeners, they are devoted to "living lightly" on this planet and many were "green" before it was trendy. Many are striving to learn traditional skills which allow one to turn away from the culture of rampant consumerism that has devastated our planet's resources and the health of a nation.
-->
I put the idea out there to more friends and I received enough favorable responses to make the endeavor seem worthwhile. I think many people are longing for that sense of belonging to a community that so many of us lack in today's society.

So that is basically the story behind our conception. A few of us decided that getting together to discuss all aspects of "urban homesteading" and "sustainable living" sounded like something we would enjoy. Sarah stepped up and offered to be a co-organizer of the group, so we are off and running.

Iowa City Homesteaders is not another group formed strictly for disseminating information about how to garden or how to conserve energy. Iowa City is well-served in this area by wonderful groups such as Backyard Abundance, ECO Iowa City, I-RENEW and many other worthwhile organizations.

Iowa City Homesteaders was created to fill the niche in this community for a family-friendly support network for individuals, or families, committed to living a sustainable lifestyle. While we certainly intend on learning and growing together, the primary focus of this group will be to band together to share resources, to build friendships and to create community.

If you are ready to take (or have taken) your interest in living a sustainable lifestyle to the next level, please consider attending one of our gatherings. If you are just beginning your journey, feel free to join us as well. There is a wealth of wisdom to be shared by many of my friends.

Our first newsletter will be published in July. If you are interested , join our google group to keep updated and to help us plan our kick-off get together.