Rethinking the Home & Habitat as Productive Assets

The uses of many homes have become as narrow as our roles as mothers and fathers.  At home, we eat, watch tv, sleep, and surf the net.  Whether it is free-standing or located in multi-unit buildings, most of our housing space is set aside for sleeping, consumption, and leisure.

But, this is changing as the numbers of home businesses explode, as more parents school their children from home, and as productive home gardens multiply.

Many Americans tend to think of their homes in terms of their resale values only, rather than their productive potential.  For a different view, see The World Bank's work with Asian families.

A good example of a project that makes housing a productive asset in the fight against poverty is India's Gujarat Mahila Housing SEWA Trust.

For an inspiring example of a home-based farm in a US city, visit www.pathtofreedom.com.

In the United States, 53 percent of small businesses are home-based.  The U.S. Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy has contracted for interesting studies of home-based businesses.  See, for example, Joanne Pratt, 2000. Home-Based Businesses: The Hidden Economy. Washington, DC: U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy.

The family habitat can be an enriching, productive resource strengthening members economically, nutritionally, educationally, and spiritually.  Families create home-based and home-linked enterprises in many shapes and forms.  With funding from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Rich has written two papers on this subject.  The first, Housing as a Productive Family Asset, can be found on the Casey Foundation's website.  One doesn't have to look too closely in any community to find families using their homes and habitats for productive purposes - growing food, operating businesses, making crafts, and hosting neighborhood and civic meetings.  Such uses of habitat enable families to be co-producers with larger institutions of the goods that they and their neighbors need.

Thomas Dolan Architecture (TDA) is a leading firm specializing in live-work housing design.  Mr. Dolan has built an informative website that delves into many design, planning, and zoning aspects of housing built to link work and life. 

Kraus-Fitch Architects helps people plan co-housing developments.  These communities are designed in part to encourage home-based and home-linked productive activities.  Pioneer Valley Cohousing, which Kraus-Fitch helped to design, includes a small office building where some families from the development, including Kraus and Fitch,  work.  Their families benefit from the 60-second commute to and from their offices.