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Robert C. Gilman (born 1945) is a thinker on
sustainability Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): env ...
who, along with his late wife Diane Gilman, has researched and written about
ecovillage An ecovillage is a traditional or intentional community that aims to become more socially, culturally, economically and/or environmentally sustainable. An ecovillage strives to have the least possible negative impact on the natural environment ...
s. The Gilmans’ work was important in giving definition to the ecovillage movement and shaping the direction of the
Global Ecovillage Network The Global Ecovillage Network (GEN) is a global association of people and communities (ecovillages) dedicated to living " sustainable plus" lives by restoring the land and adding more to the environment than is taken. Network members share ideas ...
. In 1991, the Gilmans co-authored ''Eco-Villages and Sustainable Communities'', a seminal study of ecovillages for Gaia Trust. Also in 1991, Gilman, who was publisher of the magazine ''In Context'', wrote an article entitled “The Eco-village Challenge” that set out a definition of an ecovillage as a: *human-scale *full-featured settlement *in which human activities are harmlessly integrated into the natural world *in a way that is supportive of healthy human development and can be successfully continued into the indefinite future

This definition was to become the standard definition on which the ecovillage movement was founded and is still considered by many to be the most authoritative.


From astrophysics to global sustainability

Gilman's academic training is in
astrophysics Astrophysics is a science that employs the methods and principles of physics and chemistry in the study of astronomical objects and phenomena. As one of the founders of the discipline, James Keeler, said, astrophysics "seeks to ascertain the ...
. He graduated from the
University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...
in 1967 with a bachelor's in
astronomy Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest includ ...
. He received a Ph.D. in astrophysics from
Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...
in 1969. Gilman has taught and conducted research at the
University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...
, the
Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...
Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and was a research associate at
NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...
's Institute for Space Studies. Another phase of Gilman's life began in the mid 1970s when he decided that "the stars could wait, but the planet couldn't." He turned his attention to the study of global sustainability,
future The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently ex ...
s research and strategies for positive
cultural Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...
change. He and Diane designed and built their own
solar Solar may refer to: Astronomy * Of or relating to the Sun ** Solar telescope, a special purpose telescope used to observe the Sun ** A device that utilizes solar energy (e.g. "solar panels") ** Solar calendar, a calendar whose dates indicate t ...
home in 1975. In 1979, they founded the Context Institute, one of the earliest NGOs to focus on sustainability.


''In Context'' magazine

The institute launched ''In Context: A Quarterly of Humane Sustainable Culture'' in 1983, with Gilman as editor. The journal won the ''Utne Reader'' Alternative Press Award for “Best Coverage of Emerging Issues” in 1991 and 1994.


Global Action Plan and GEN

In 1989–92 Gilman co-developed the **Global Action Plan Household EcoTeam Program**, an early behavior-change model that organized neighbors into teams to cut household waste, water, and energy use; the model was later adopted nationwide in the Netherlands and other countries. Building on their Gaia Trust study, Robert and Diane helped convene the 1995 Ecovillages and Sustainable Communities conference at Findhorn, Scotland, which formally launched the Global Ecovillage Network. Gilman later spent three years living in Winslow Cohousing on Bainbridge Island, Washington, to test ecovillage principles firsthand.


Recent initiatives

Since 2016 Gilman has led Bright Future Now, an online six-week course and alumni network that trains change-makers in what he calls the transition from an “Empire Era” to a “Planetary Era.” He continues to speak internationally on regenerative design and cultural evolution, including at Pakhuis de Zwijger’s “Regenerative Design” forum in Amsterdam (2023) and in Vicki Robin’s 2020 *CoVida Conversations* interview series.


Diane Gilman

Diane Gilman (1945–1998) was a painter, potter and writer, co-founded the Context Institute, co-authored the 1991 Gaia Trust report, and served as initial coordinator of GEN after the 1995 Findhorn conference.Shaw 1995.


External links


Biography - Robert Gilman
20th-century American astronomers Sustainability advocates University of California, Berkeley alumni Princeton University alumni University of Minnesota faculty Harvard University staff Year of birth missing (living people) Living people {{Sustainability-stub