Founded in 1967 in rural Virginia during the height of the back-to-the-land movement, Twin Oaks Community is one of the last remaining 1960s communes. Currently, over 100 people live and work together in an effort to create a society based on a common vision of cooperation, resource-sharing, non-violence, and gender, race, and class equality.

Dedicated to a more ecologically sustainable and self-sustaining way of life, those who live at Twin Oaks grow most of their own food organically, consume very few outside goods, generate very little consumer waste, and live lightly on the land. They share a strong work ethic and a desire to spend as much time as possible with close friends and family. Far from a collective of aging baby boomers, most community members are under 35 and have joined within the past ten years.

The photographs here are excerpted from a photo-essay and multimedia piece that explores the values and culture of Twin Oaks at the dawn of the 21st Century. It also examines why communes, ecovillages, and other intentional forms of community continue to be an appealing alternative.