Village Homes RealtyThe first time I heard about the Witchcliffe Ecovillage was in November 2012 when Mike Hulme presented the idea for this innovative settlement to a Transition gathering at the (then) Tingrith meeting house. Over the years Boyd and I followed the Ecovillage from a twinkle in Mike and Michelle’s eyes to planning and eventual development. While we thought it was a fantastic concept, we were happily settled on our ½ acre block in Margaret River and had no plans to make a move. We had moved ‘down south’ from Fremantle in 2011, beginning our retirement in a cottage in Mammoth Street, Witchcliffe, that we’d owned for a decade as a rental with a converted shed on the back lane acting as our holiday retreat.1
Karen & Boyd in their garden, 2024
The move to Margs came in 2012, partly in response to our increasing volunteer involvement calling us up the highway several times a day.
We have both spent a lifetime in environmental careers and volunteer roles. Boyd, an ornithologist, was an environmental educator and completed his career as environmental manager for the WA Department of Defence. I have a background in science, media and sustainability, working in communications. My last employment was with the Maritime Museum in Fremantle and the Rottnest Island Authority.
When the first Ecovillage blocks came on the market, the chance to buy one overlooking the middle dam was tempting and we were impressed with Mike’s passionate presentations about the vision of sustainability and community that perfectly meshed with our values. In December 2020 we, like many others, bought the block just in time for the (we think misguided) government building stimulus grants. What followed was a roller coaster ride associated with Covid and stimulus grants, together with loads of fun designing our strawbale home and establishing our EUA vegetable plot while building began. I know we weren’t alone in suffering the impacts of the ‘perfect storm’ of building delays, supply issues and cost escalations over those post-COVID years. Nearly three years later the house was finally handed over. For personal reasons we decided to rent it out until we were ready to make the move. Finally in November we sold our house and here we are. We’ve been settled for nearly a month now and haven’t looked back. Here’s a brief response from each of us to Ecovillage life.
Boyd
For me, the key aspect of the Ecovillage is that our home footprints are minimized in order to maximise the ‘commons’ of natural, recreational, productive and social space. The jointly-owned EUAs (veggie patches) attached to each home greatly extend personal space dedicated to self-sufficiency and supporting biodiversity. The dams that supply irrigation for these gardens also double as habitat for a diverse array of wildlife.
Karen
I wake up every day counting my blessings. The house feels like home already and is performing beautifully with a steady temperature so far of 21 degrees. It feels like a cocoon, whisper quiet with its thick walls and rounded edges. Our favourite space is the north-facing indoor-outdoor sunroom. Our tiny garden is looking lovely and the veggie/fruit tree patch is producing, although I’m still struggling up the learning curve. We’re getting lots of advice in that regard as well as help with teething problems with the irrigation and heat pump – the willingness of our community to help each other is a revelation after suburban living. It’s sometimes easier to offer help than to ask for it, and a wonderful feature of cluster living is experiencing what it means to be truly part of a supportive community.
Our final 1B ‘Big Busy Bee’ for the year included a round-the-room reflection on highlights. It was inspiring – so many of us there and an overwhelming mood of thankfulness for our precious boodja, developing cluster and the friendships being formed. Almost everyone expressed appreciation to the people who are playing various roles in our working groups including energy and irrigation systems, gardens, fund raising, communications, and in governance. Participation is high but with no expectation or blame if someone can’t be involved for whatever reason. The best part is that participation is fun! We reflected that we are fortunate as ‘early adopters’ to be one of the most established clusters with an almost full tally of residents. Hopefully our experience of improving communications and building our community is something we can share with other clusters as they grow and tackle some of the same issues we’ve had.
On the subject of gratitude, Boyd and I want to express huge thanks to our founders Mike and Michelle – two very dedicated and fiercely hard-working people who have overcome mountainous obstacles to bring this dream to reality. Thank you for the vision and the opportunity to share and live it.
Karen & Boyd in their strawbale home, 2024
