Author's Statement

SHARE SYSTEMS. A Prototype for Making Family

Canada is rich with an ethnic, cultural and linguistic mix from more than 200 countries of origin. We are largely foreigners in this land, choosing to make it our own. Many have come in search of new opportunities, freedom and safety; each bringing a wealth of knowledge, memories, customs and histories. According to Charles Taylor, the building of a democratic Canadian society “requires a politics that leaves room for us to deliberate publicly about those aspects of our identities that we share, or potentially share with other citizens. A society that recognizes individual identity will be a deliberative , democratic society because individual identity is partly constituted by collective dialogues”. We are part of a young nation that enjoys both the particularities and the peculiarities, of each new culture. It is in the confrontation and clashing of cultural elements that new things can begin. The unfamiliar and uncomfortable moments --what we call “awkward”-- are often hastily avoided despite the fact that they could represent a new type of possibility, a different type of growth. What better place to begin understanding the potential of these times than in the fundamental unit of the house, the home, the family.

I am now Canadian, having spent one third of my life in India, one third in Oman and one third in Canada. I am not alone in what I bring to this country -- this is the norm. I have had many homes in Canada: one that I shared with my immigrant family of grandmother, parents and sister, another where I lived with seven students, once strangers now friends, with backgrounds from Trinidad, the Philippines, small town Ontario, Israel, Shanghai, and El-Salvador, and lastly my student apartment where I lived alone. The constant shift between living with family, friends and on my own has changed me; I make my own family.

This thesis examines, predictively as well as descriptively, emerging living systems that strengthen the growing demographic of culturally diverse “chosen” families. Dwelling units have been more commonly understood as housing provided for 1, 2, 4, or 100 people: the studio apartment for the bachelor, a semi-detached home for the couple, a single family suburban home for the young family or an apartment block for seniors. With a few variations, this has been the general theme. In the light of the emerging reality of the “chosen” family, there appears to be room for a prototype that encourages 7-12 people to live together in one unit. These are distressed times, both financially and socially, where seniors are lonely, young families struggle without household help and middle-aged couples still pay large mortgages in their “empty nest” homes. We cope. Seniors move into annexes of their children’s homes, two young families share responsibilities, and middle-aged couples wish they could sell their properties to move into a joint home with friends. This is happening all around us, and much could be done to provide the infrastructure to both accommodate and encourage the shift.The codependency of “chosen” families is crucial in strengthening individuality and community, thus maintaining self identity while reducing alienation.

This is an experiment.