Earthaven's guiding principles are pretty special and worth sharing here to show that Earthaven is not just a bunch of people living in the woods - they're part of a movement.
Statements of Principle in the Council Hall
The Council Hall is the central public meeting space at Earthaven. We host several regular public events here, including potluck dinners, farmer's markets, dances, yoga, and others.
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| Earthaven's Council Hall |
Every other Sunday, the governing body meets inside the Council Hall. All the chairs are moved into a circle in the middle of the room. Signs stating Earthaven's goals/ideals are permanently posted in a circle around the roof of the main room as a constant reminder to the governing body of what they're all here for.
Here are some pictures to give an idea:
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| Inside the Council Hall |
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| Inside the Council Hall |
You can see the posters just below the top windows.
Here are up-close shots of the posters, with the text also in the captions:
"Create a culture of celebration, beauty, & pleasure."
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| "Use & develop ecologically sound technologies for water, waste, energy, construction, & other essential systems." |
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| "Encourage diverse spiritual practices, conscious connection to all beings, and progressive social action to thrive." |
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| "Catalyze local & global exchange through learning, teaching, & networking." |
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| "Promote & ensure longterm structural integrity of the community." |
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| "We are creating a village which is a living laboratory & educational seed bank for a sustainable human future." and "In the midst of planetary change, our experiment helps inform & inspire a global flowering of bioregionally appropriate cultures. " |
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| "Use capital & labor resources to provide common infrastructure & meet our collective needs." |
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| "Practice healthy, holistic lifestyles that balance self-care with care for others." |
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| "Nurture personal growth, inter-personal understanding, & mutual trust as the core foundation for a deeply connected human society." |
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| "Practice fair, participatory, & effective governance." |
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| "Grow, raise, & trade our food, medicine, & forestry products in an eco-responsible bioregional network." |
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| "Develop & support a thriving local economy." |
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| "Shift from wasteful to regenerative use of resources." |
Earthaven's ReMembership Covenant - Their Vision For Community
Earthaven's membership covenant, what they call the ReMembership Covenant (Remember+Membership), outlines a more local vision for their community - how they relate to each other and the natural world around them.
First I'll show the whole page, then a picture of each column to make sure you can read it...
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| Earthaven's Membership Covenant. See below for larger pictures of each column. |
Blow-ups of each column for legibility:
Left side:
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| Left side of the Earthaven Membership Covenant. |
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Right side:
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| Right side of the Earthaven Membership Covenant. |
Conclusion
Earthaven's trying to address all the issues the founders saw around them - social issues, power politics, resource usage and waste, relation to the environment, you name it. While it's easy to point out one way or another they fall short of their goals, I greatly respect their ideals, determination, and progress so far.
