Transformative Community Projects in East Germany (Anhalt), the Global South (Bali), and Beyond

Theoretical Framework & Publication Record

The project builds on a theoretical foundation in Critical Social Theory, adapting it to evaluate collective living practices, social cohesion, and socio-ecological transformations across different regional contexts.

This research expands upon prior foundational publications:

Peer-Reviewed Research: Broecher, J., & Painter, J. F. (2023). Transformative community projects in East Germany's rural spaces: Exploring more sustainable forms of learning, working, and living. Frontiers in Sociology, 8, 1164293. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsoc.2023.1164293

Monograph: Bröcher, J. (2025). Transformative Community-Projekte. Zukunftsmodelle des gemeinschaftlichen Lebens, Lernens und Arbeitens. Bielefeld: transcript Verlag.

Empirical Focus & Key Research Strands

Rural Transformation in East Germany: The "Dreiseitenhof" Model

The European core of the project centers on a traditional Dreiseitenhof (three-sided farmstead) in rural East Germany. It serves as both a living laboratory and a case study for self-organized communal living, exploring how intentional communities in post-industrial rural areas negotiate social cohesion, local integration, and socio-ecological sustainability.

Traditional Support Systems in the Global South: The Banjar System

Expanding the research scope to Indonesia, the project examines the traditional Balinese Banjar system—a neighborhood-based governance and mutual-aid network. The investigation focuses on the socio-emotional resilience factors, informal safety nets, and collective care structures embedded within these traditional social frameworks.

Progressive Hybridity in Kuta, Bali

A primary field site of the expanded project is located in Kuta, Bali, where an innovative community initiative bridges traditional Hindu structures with open, Western, non-traditional forms of living. The research documents and analyzes this unique convergence, investigating how traditional social organization can interface with progressive, inclusive living arrangements without erasing local cultural roots.

Objectives & Knowledge Transfer

By establishing a multi-sited, comparative research methodology, the project aims to: 
Document and analyze hybrid communal spaces that synthesize traditional socio-emotional support systems with marginalized and progressive modes of living.

Reverse knowledge flows by integrating insights, resilience strategies, and social mechanisms from the Global South back into European academic and socio-political debates on community building.

Advance Critical Social Theory by contextualizing its European premises against non-Western, traditional community practices.

Links:

Publications

YouTube

Change.org