Over the past year I’ve found myself stepping in and out of different projects, helping my wife launch her Dementia Doula practice, exploring market-stall food ideas, briefly taking a senior role in aged care, and getting our own off-grid property to a functional, sustainable rhythm.
Through all of that work, one thing has become very clear to me: our region’s intentional communities are going to play a critical role in navigating the uncertainties ahead.
We’re living in a time when the wider system is showing real cracks. Housing is becoming unattainable for younger people, ageing in place is increasingly difficult for elders, and communities everywhere are being pushed to become more self-reliant.
The Northern Rivers, with its rich history of communal living, rebellion and ecological care, is uniquely positioned to meet this moment with creativity and co-operation.
That’s why I’m proud to share that I am working with elders and community advocates to reform the Northern Rivers Pan Community Council, under the original Northern Rivers Intentional Communities (NRIC) banner.
This isn’t nostalgia or an attempt to recreate the past. It’s a call to rebuild a regional network that can face what’s coming, together.
Honouring the Elders and the lineage
This relaunch is only possible because of the generosity, encouragement and deep experience of the people who shaped the first era of PanCom.
Jeni Kendell, renowned filmmaker, rebel voice and long-time community elder, has been a major inspiration. The talks hosted at the Aquarius 50th Anniversary and again this May electrified the conversations around intentional communities in the Northern Rivers.
Jeni is sharing her contacts, notes and reflections from those gatherings to help guide PanCom’s renewal.
Diana Roberts, a founding member of the original Pan Community Council, has opened up access to decades of documents and communications from 1986–97 – the era when PanCom became a vital link between communities across the region.
Her role as keeper of the flame ensures we aren’t starting from scratch, but building on a foundation grounded in lived wisdom.
I also want to acknowledge Megan James of Tuntable Falls Community, whose article in these pages pointed me toward Jeni and re-sparked this journey; and the NRIC group, who have offered the original infrastructure, website, bank account and organisational shell to support the revival.
Why PanCom matters now
The original Pan Community Council emerged during a period of political pressure, environmental activism, and community-building energy.
Today, many of the same issues are returning, only sharper.
We need a space where intentional communities can support one another on practical fronts:
• Ageing in place
• Housing affordability and pathways for younger generations
• Governance and decision-making frameworks
• Conflict resolution and community wellbeing
• Resource sharing and mutual aid
• Food security and labour exchange
• Collective advocacy at all levels of government
This time, we are building PanCom with two vital pillars: an Elders Committee and a Youth Committee, ensuring the region’s deep history and future generations shape the direction equally.
What happens next?
A founding working group is now forming, and the communities themselves will decide what the first priorities should be. I’m not prescribing an agenda; I’m helping to gather the people who will.
The intention is to begin quietly, with focused working groups and respectful collaboration, while also raising public awareness so residents across the Northern Rivers know this effort is underway. We want to build momentum, not secrecy.
An invitation
If you live in, grew up in, or want to support intentional communities in the Northern Rivers, I’d love to hear from you. This next chapter of PanCom will be shaped by those who show up.
Email me at: myles.beaufort@gmail.com
Stay tuned, there’s more coming soon.
Intentional communities have always been at the heart of our region’s resilience. It’s time to reconnect them, strengthen them, and prepare for the road ahead.
