Trend of the Day: Coliving

Excerpted from Jessica Reeder:

“The underlying concept of coliving will be nothing new to anyone who’s had roommates: sharing a house, sharing the rent, living with near-strangers for a shared purpose. “Roommate situations are typically based on who can afford to pay the rent and who has one or two things in common,” says Chelsea Rustrum, an entrepreneur and coliving advocate. In a coliving home, the connections are stronger. Even if residents don’t know each other prior to moving in, “we have this vision in common of how we want to change the world,” she says.

Inspired entrepreneurialism is a central tenet. Residents are carefully chosen for their ambitions and ideas, and are often working on individual projects. “We want to be around people who want to make a difference,” says Schingler. But “making a difference” comes with infinite possibilities. Within a single house there may be scientists, artists, entrepreneurs, engineers and everything in between.

Coliving is influenced heavily by coworking, a practice in which independent professionals share a workspace rather than working individually at home. With no boss, no distractions and a building full of inspiring peers, synergy is the quick result of this separate-yet-together environment.

Coliving spaces often include a coworking area. For example: TheGlint, a hilltop townhouse in San Francisco’s Twin Peaks, has a dedicated space furnished with desks and computers. But “it’s not just a live-in coworking space,” says TheGlint cofounder Damian Madray. He points to events like ArtFlux, a “participatory art experience” hosted in TheGlint’s gallery. Coliving houses regularly host events, from lectures to dance parties to hackathons, all designed to enhance creativity, professional development and good old-fashioned networking. Serendipity and collaboration abound.

The coliving movement may freely use terms like “commune” and “cooperative”, but this ain’t your grandma’s commune. Contemporary coliving builds on communal living practices, embracing a networked tech, business and science-fueled culture built upon innovation and realizing a better world through collaborative design.”

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