Abstract
The purpose of this study is to examine how the residents in Cohousing practice the childcare by using the common space and what this activity means to the residents and the community. Trillium Hollow Cohousing, which is an example of this study, has 9 families who have children, and most of the parents have full time jobs. With regard to the cooperative childcare, the parents practice the following activities in the common space. 1) Common Meal, 2) After School Program, 3) Events. Practicing these activities brings significant meanings to the residents. For example, the children learn how to discuss and plan the events cooperatively. Also, the cooperative childcare helps the parents to decrease the burden concerning the childcare and reflect the way to raise the children. Furthermore, the cooperative childcare contributes to creating the whole community. This study will be a good example for the collective housing, which is the same living style and is currently developing in Japan, and also show that the cooperative childcare helps to build and sustain the community.
