Directory of Eco-villages in Europe - Kennedy Bibliothek

Village Convivial de la Paix-Dieux Belgium
Jehay
Inspired by the Eco-village Conference at Findhorn in 1995 (and with eco-village
more than two years of work) the association „Village convivial de la initiative
Paix-Dieu" was created in October 1997. Its aim is to circulate information
about the concept of eco-villages in French and to promote the
project of a convivial village. The site is situated at the end of the village
of Jehay in the locality Dieu le Garde and blends in with the already
existing village of Jehay.
Jehay is a small rural village situated between Liege and Namur, 4 km
from a motor way exit. Nearby is the small town of Amay, a former
town of brick makers with arich artistic, cultural and artisan past which
we would like to revive. Not far away you find the nuclear power sta 1
tion of Tihange (France) and the Tibetan Institute Yeunten Ling, well
known world-wide.
The village is airy, situated in a green valley at the bottom of which
flows the brook Paix-Dieu. It stretches between the castle of Jehay, a
very distinctive monument of the Province of Liege, surrounded by a
moat and woods, and the Abbey of Paix-Dieu, i.e. buildings of a former
abbey of the Cistercian order dating back to the 12th century.
There is a magnificent project of restoration of the Walloon Region
going on: to transform this abbey into a centre of training for ancient
techniques, calling on the knowledge of craftsmen from different parts
of Europe, and a school for craft apprentices.
The site of Dieu le Garde is a sloping plot of land of 12 ha between the
village and the abbey. It is in these energies of peace, beauty and art
that we have conceived a plan for an eco-village, consisting of about
75 housing spaces, a small nature reserve with a pond, a playground
for children and teenagers, shops and a cultural centre. The plan was
designed according to permacultural principles with collecting tanks
and water purification tanks, various types of grouped or other housing,
the possibility of building straw bale houses, waste management
and dry toilets.
Respectful of the past, we want to restore a former pilgrimage path
which ran across the village, defining the main axis of our village. The
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