An ecovillage is a community which places ultimate emphasis on living in harmony with the environment.  This means paying careful attention to the use of resources, including energy, building materials, and lifestyle.  Typically, ecovillages are arranged in such a way as to provide easy access to central buildings without the use of motor vehicles.  Group dining, local government, and office buildings are also centrally located.

Ecovillages contain energy-efficient houses.  These houses rely on adequate insulation and sunlight to heat and illuminate the house.  Electricity is provided from clean generators.  The materials used to build the house should have minimal or no interaction with the environment.

There are several different things to consider when building an ecovillage.

LOCATION:

• Placing the village is one of the most important considerations. San Cristobal is theonly island with adequate natural drinking water. San Cristobal also has the only fresh water lake on the island.⁵
• Should the ecovillage be placed on San Cristobal, it is likely that building it between the arid and transition zones would be best. If it were built entirely in the arid zone, the soil would be sandy and dry, and many of the endemic species there would be endangered. If it were built above the transition zone, there would be too much danger of hurting endemic miconia and scalecia plants, and the atomosphere would be constantly humid and wet.
• The ecovillage should be placed as close as possible to the shore so that ocean water, if utilized, does not have far to be transported up hill.
• Great care must be taken to choose a location where access to the building site (with vehicles, materials, and building crews) will not disturb the environment. This may mean construction of a small, semi-permanent port somewhere on the east side of the island, so supplies don’t need to be transported all the way from Puerto Baquerizo Moreno.
• It's critical that the houses in the village be oriented correctly.  In the Galapagos and at other equator sites, this choice is especially easy because the sun's zenith is always overhead.  However, one must make sure that the house is not oriented on an angle. Otherwise the strong afternoon light will heat more than one side of the house and cooling will be necesary.  ¹¹
• San Cristobal is a very old volcanic island, and the ashy soil has begun to erode significantly. If the ecovillage is built on a hill, it must be stable.¹¹

EXTERNAL DESIGN:

• Ecovillage design should minimize the distance between important locations without crowding. This is most easily possible through the construction of circular units within a larger structure. A circular unit may consist of 25-35 households clustered around a central building. The central building should contain office space, local government, and even local dining. It also serves as a community center.¹⁹
• The entire ecovillage may be centered around one central building which serves the entire community as a school and government.

INTERNAL DESIGN:^11,18,17

• In hot climates, the accepted principle for house design is the "Naturally Ventilated House".  Such a house should have minimal window space in the east-west plane, plenty of northern light, and southern windows protected by an overhang of a few feet so the noon light doesn't get too intense inside.  All the windows should have thick curtains or blinds, and they should be well sealed during the day.  At night, the windows should be opened to allow the night time breezes to pass through.
• If it is possible to raise the house off the ground at all, the space between the floor and the earth will keep the house at a more constant temperature.
• The house's hot water tank should be put as close as possible to the bathroom or kitchen, (whichever uses more hot water) so that the water doesn't cool between the tank and the faucet.
• The placement of patios and gardens should be seriously considered, as should the placement of trees.
• Since the Galapagos is sunny, passive and active solar heating/lighting should be considered.  If you plan to use light tubes or skylights, it's important to put them in a place where they'll recieve the longest hours of light.  If you place them correctly, artificial light may only be necessary for a few hours. 

MATERIALS:¹¹

• In the Galapagos, you need a material that absorbs heat during the day (insulates against heat) and that radiates heat during the night.  Concrete and brick are especially good at this, but they are much more effective if they are covered in something else, like wood, than if they are out in the open.  Adobe plaster is also an option.
• Insulating the roof of a house is essential for keeping it cool without air conditioning.  Obviously asbestos is not a good choice.  Sheep or goat hair has been suggested as a highly effective "green" alternative. 
• Using black roofing is a bad idea.  It's better to pick a material that will reflect the sun.
• In order to waterproof the house, non-toxic paints and resins should be used.

APPLIANCES:

• Ecofriendly appliances are fairly straightforward.  They simply minimize the amount of water and chemicals they use, while also remaining extremely small and power efficient.  There are plenty on the market, and although they are expensive, most of them pay back the difference within 10 months of constant use. There are many comparison charts available that show how much money per day you're likely to save with energy efficient appliances.  I can't put in a link to it, though, because the page uses frames.¹⁶
• Water-saving faucets and toilets are a must. Composting toilets, which do not require a septic system and therefore release very few pollutants in to the environment, would be even better. The problem with such a system is that it may be undesirable for certain people. Depending on the population of the ecovillage, and its overall appeal, this may or not be possible. ¹⁵
• Keep in mind that not all appliances are necessary.  It's much more economical to use a clothesline under a well-designed patio than to use a dryer.

RECYCLING:

• For any ecovillage, simple recycling programs are a given.
• Purifying water for reuse is a powerful progressive tool. There are several ways of doing this. The most attractive options seems to the use of ocean arks. More information can be found at http://oceanarks.org.¹³
• Composting food waste is a very important program to implement, not only because it's good fertilizer and saves landfill space, but because methane gas given off by rotting food is really good fuel.¹⁴

RESOURCES:

• In order to be internally sustainable, the ecovillage must have many resources. These include: food, water, education, business, government, entertainment, and a healthy economy. In the coming months we will decide how to best include these things in the ecovillage.¹²