sustainability Article Collective Identity Supporting Sustainability Transformations in Ecovillage Communities Ciska Ulug * , Lummina Horlings and Elen-Maarja Trell   Citation: Ulug, C.; Horlings, L.; Trell, E.-M. Collective Identity Supporting Sustainability Transformations in Ecovillage Communities. Sustainability 2021, 13, 8148. https:// doi.org/10.3390/su13158148 Academic Editor: Allen R. McConnell Received: 4 June 2021 Accepted: 18 July 2021 Published: 21 July 2021 Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affil- iations. Copyright: © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/). Department of Planning and Environment, University of Groningen, Postbus 800, 9700 AV Groningen, The Netherlands; l.g.horlings@rug.nl (L.H.); e.m.trell@rug.nl (E.-M.T.) * Correspondence: c.r.ulug@rug.nl Abstract: Ecovillages are collective projects that attempt to integrate sustainability principles into daily community life, while also striving to be demonstration projects for mainstream society. As spaces of experimentation, they can provide valuable insights into sustainability transformations. Through shared values and interpersonal connections, ecovillages possess collective identities, which provide a platform for enacting their ideals. However, many ecovillage residents question how to best enhance their role as models, resource centers, and pieces of a greater movement toward sustainability transformations, while simultaneously preserving their unique community and iden- tity. In relation to the above, this paper addresses the questions: What can collective identity in ecovillage communities teach us about the objective and subjective dimensions of sustainability transformations? Furthermore, how can the perspective of collective identity highlight challenges for ecovillages for initiating sustainability transformations? Sustainability transformations encompass objective (behaviors) and subjective (values) dimensions; however, the interactions between these spheres deserve more scholarly attention. Using ethnographic data and in-depth interviews from three ecovillages in the United States, this paper reveals the value in collective identity for underscor- ing belonging and interpersonal relationships in sustainability transformations. Furthermore, the collective identity perspective exposes paradoxes and frictions between ecovillages and the societal structures and systems they are embedded within. Keywords: sustainability transformations; ecovillages; collective identity; intentional communities 1. Introduction Multiple scholars have called upon the necessity for societal transformations in order to address current sustainability challenges, such as spatial inequalities, poverty, resource depletion, climate change, ecological hazards, and food insecurity [1,2]. This so-called “transformative turn” in sustainability research attempts to address the unsustainable systemic roots in our society and confront different kinds of knowledge and experiences [3]. Ecovillages, or intentional communities (ICs), can be considered “frontrunners” and spaces of experimentation in sustainability transformations [4,5]. Intentional communities refer to communal living arrangements more broadly, with sub-categories also including religious communities and communes [6]. Ecovillages focus specifically on living sustain- ably and in a way that reduces their environmental impact [7]. The Global Ecovillage Network (GEN) is an umbrella organization which provides knowledge-sharing oppor- tunities, as well as a database of different categories of communities, such as transition towns and indigenous and spiritual communities. While the database has recorded over 1000 ecovillage communities in the world and 109 registered in the United States [8], there are many more existing that are not registered. Ecovillage sustainable food practices, for example, have gained prominence in sustainability debates [9,10], through centering food systems around local communities and environmental care [11]. Rather than being concerned with the “symptoms” of unsustainability, ecovillages also address its structural Sustainability 2021, 13, 8148. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13158148 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability