Freetown Christiania

Freetown Christiania or the Free Republic of Christania or Christiania is a former squat turned intentional community run by anarchists in Copenhagen, Denmark that began in 1971. It has a population of around 1,000 people. It is possibly the largest and most famous squat in the world.

Decision-Making

As Georgy Katsiaficas explains, decisions are made by consensus in a community assembly:

In the Free Republic of Christiania, hundreds of people illegally live in an alternative community where no authority counts except that of the Ting, an ancient Danish form of consensual decision making. One of the central buildings is known as the Tinghus (Ting house). Sitting in a circle at meetings of the communal council, each resident may go to the center and speak, and decisions are made by the eventual agreement of all through consensus rather than a majority vote. Direct democracy within the Danish movement does not have to be explained. - it is almost second nature - nor is it limited to occasional gatherings of political groups who use it as a formal method of decision-making.

If a problem comes up, it is first discussed in the house where it originates, where it hopefully will be resolved. Only if the issue is still not taken care of will a neighborhood meeting be called to discuss it. This way, the house and then the neighborhood must fail to deal with the problem before it becomes necessary to have a community meeting, and by then, most people have already heard about the matter and considered the various options. We never vote at community meetings nor do we have a council, because then some people make decisions for others. We only have community meetings when we need to - sometimes not for years, other times once a week.

Economy

Industries and work performed in Christiania performed include:

• Blacksmiths
• Metalworkers (who specialize in making eco-friendly ovens and bikes)
• Jewelers
• Potters
• Candle makers
• Shoemakers
• Restaurants
• Drug trade

The drug trade is the largest portion of the economy but is controlled by outside cartels. Christiana is the only place in Denmark where drugs are legal, and for this reason the Copenhagen police raids the area regularly.

All of these industries are self-managed, and pay a tax/rent to the community where it is then used for community projects and to pay for utilities.

Environmental Protection

Despite receiving over one million visitors a year, they have managed to keep the streets, buildings, restaurants, public toilets, and public showers are all very clean and much of the neighbourhood is covered in trees. The houses use solar and wind power and composting and reed beds to filter waste. Leading to the commune being shortlisted for a pan-Scandanavia award for ecological living.