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Even those of us who aren’t so savvy about economics know that Greece is in big trouble – but the country’s very first eco-community, which is currently under construction, offers a green glimmer of hope. Situated on Mt. Telethrion, the Telaithrion community ^[5] aims to provide a model for sustainability and healthy living that is harmonious with the earth and its residents that the whole nation can learn from. When complete, the project will include a host of sustainably built geodesic domes and yurts, as well as a forest garden, sheds, compost heaps, and much, much more. But they need help, for which they are turning to the Indie GoGo crowd ^[6]. More deets and a video after the jump.

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Crowdsourcing ^[8] is becoming an increasingly important source of help for architecture and design projects – particularly those with a humanitarian bent. And the Telaithrion Project ^[9] is nothing if not that. At present they are only raising money for a 100 square foot central dome that will become the community’s foothold – a place to host seminars, awareness forums, and skills exchange festivals. The dome will be purchased from Pacific Dome International ^[10] sans the materials needed to create a floor and the community hopes to complete this aspect of the project by spring next year.

When the entire vision is realized, Teliathrion will consist of 3 basic sections – a geodesic dome ^[11] cluster, a residential area comprised entirely of different sized yurts ^[12], and the forest garden. Both the domes and yurts feature a cluster layout with a large central building surrounded by several smaller buildings of the same basic structure. In so doing, the group managed to reduce their energy and material needs by a factor of 5. The entire facility will be powered with renewable energy ^[13] and only green transportation will be used. It’s an amazing and necessary project that will help Greece make the shift to a more sustainable future.

+ Telaithrion ^[5]