ASCILOS, an acronym for a symbiotic community in the land of the Sioux, is a new land settlement pattern designed by the Center for Community Organization and Area Development (CENCOAD), sponsored by Augustana College, Sioux Falls, South Dakota. ASCILOS covers a 60-mile radius around Sioux Falls. ASCILOS, based on symbiosis in nature, assumes that unlike communities, working together for mutual benefit, make for a strong social fabric. CENCOAD's objectives are to improve the human condition in the area by increasing the performance of the social systems and to develop a religious force at the local and area level that has the power to influence the lifestyle in the area. Citizens need to develop a value system that combines economic forces with religious forces to achieve community advancement. In order to develop a symbiotic community, citizens need: (1) a catalyst such as CENCOAD; (2) to organize resources to best meet their needs; (3) a new image of community; (4) a sense of community among individuals; and (5) a new approach to resource development that will be sensitive to the national, social, and ecological cost. The three basic factors in community development are a major input of education, horizontal communication, and a motivational force. Development of a symbiotic community requires a study of the value system, development of an aware, responsible, positive spirit among the people, leadership, and a catalyst. (KM)