Sample Membership Agreement

Yarrow EcoVillage

Sample Membership Agreement (based on Earthaven Ecovillage's)

A covenant is a pledge, an agreement. This is the covenant we enter into at the Yarrow EcoVillage.

I desire (full, or Associate) membership in the Yarrow EcoVillage and am aligned with the following purpose, beliefs, agreements and goals:

PURPOSE:

To be a learning community dedicated to caring for both people, the Earth and her creatures by learning, living and demonstrating the skills needed to create a holistic sustainable culture. recognizing the Oneness of all life.

BELIEFS:

1. We come together as a circle of diverse individuals, committed to nourishing ourselves, others, and this planet through a simple, sustainable lifestyle which incorporates and celebrates life, love, work, play, free inquiry, learning, multi-cultural expression, and each ofour own unique spiritual practices.
2. We honor the inherent dignity and worth of all life and of all people, regardless of age, gender, race, sexual orientation, financial resources, or spiritual and political beliefs. We commit ourselves to supporting each other in living this vision.
3. We now face a great challenge: to co-create a just and sustainable culture, in balance with the natural world, and to serve as a living example, manifesting a vision of a new reality, in our daily lives.
4. We see cooperation as the fundamental model for human endeavor. When a proper balance exists between the independence of the individual and the interdependence of the community, each serves to enhance and complement the other. While we choose to live in a cooperative community, caring for and supporting each other's physical, emotional and spiritual well-being, we each take primary responsibility for our own actions and needs.
5. Conflict solutions generated through cooperation and mutual creativity often transcend solutions generated by any single person, and can transform the very arena of conflict itself. We commit ourselves to transcend mere compromise and to reach for truly transformative solutions.
6. Decision making power is earned by active participation in the shared life of the community.

AGREEMENTS:

We will strive to abide by these basic agreements to:

1. Live in respect with the land and one another,
2. Seek soft consensus of all active members concerned as the most valid basis for action in our community.
3. Deal directly, openly and honestly with each other, avoiding physical and emotional abuse in our relationships, and treating all life with respect.
4. Remain as open and conscious as we possibly can to feedback from other community members. If conflict arises, to first seek resolution with the individual involved. If that fails, to seek assistance as available in our community We also commit to supporting and encouraging each other in moving ahead with a clearing process, if we notice that conflict has arisen.
5. Sustain my individual involvement in the community by contributing my ideas, talents, and energies in the spirit of active commitment and participation.
6. Encourage my own and other's fulfillment and observance of these covenants, by holding them as a touchstone, and by living in conscious awareness of the vision and purpose that has brought us together.

GOALS:

I support these goals to:

1. Make conscious our connections and our interdependence with the web of all life;
2. Facilitate the transition toward a life of elegant simplicity;
3. Nurture an increasingly abundant world by enhancing living systems while reducing consumption of resources;
4. Foster the lifelong learning and growth of every community member, recognizing that each individual is both teacher and learner;
5. Preserve our landholding through proper stewardship and ecologically sound use of our resources;
6. Create a learning center that serves as a living demonstration of our beliefs;
7. Envision a positive restorative future and develop the skills needed to create it;
8. Promote personal and planetary healing on all levels;
9. Serve and reach out to the local and global community, encouraging spiritual and cultural diversity and other forms of creative expression while providing a sense of inclusion, integration and celebration through responsible community activities;
10. Encourage the growth of our village.
11. Encourage the establishment of member owned and managed ecologically sound businesses;
12. Actively support the intentional communities, permaculture and land reform movements as we are able.

I have read and agree to affirm and uphold this Covenant, the ByLaws, the Vision, Principles and Strategies and policies of the Yarrow EcoVillage and affirm to MAKE IT SO!