Principles of Vermont’s Regeneration Revolution
1. We embrace the goal of healing Mother Earth as we heal all our relations.
We are one human family who all love and depend on the same mother. We recognize that repairing our relations with Mother Earth and all beings is a critical part of the healing we all need. All our work flows from and upholds the sacred nature of life on Earth.
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2. We are bound by the common mission of working on racial equity, racial healing, and economic justice.
The disrespectful and destructive environmental practices of our culture go hand in hand with the injustices inflicted on indigenous people, black people, and people of color (BIPOC). Racial equity affirms that all people, regardless of their racial/ethnic group identification, skin color or physical traits, deserve an equal opportunity to experience well-being in a just society.
Racial healing is a process that restores individuals and communities to wholeness, repairs the damage caused by racism and transforms societal structures into ones that affirm the inherent value of all people.
We must be sure that relevant voices of people directly affected by systemic racism are heard. Ways must be provided for spokespersons to represent and be responsible to the affected constituencies. It is important for organizations to clarify their roles, and who they represent, and to assure accountability within our structures.
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3. We believe another world is possible. The urgency of addressing systemic racism, runaway climate change, mass incarceration, exploding economic inequality, and failing school and healthcare systems compels our action. Radical hope sustains our work.
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4. We are nonviolent. We uphold nonviolent discipline in all of our language and actions. We use nonviolent communication skills in our meetings and resolve conflict as it arises with the goal of maintaining good relations.
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5. We build our power by taking bold, collective action. We are empowered to take direct action appropriate for our local communities. We work together to incorporate all the local actions into a larger plan for economic, environmental, and social justice in Vermont.
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6. We are inclusive; we welcome people of all backgrounds, identities, and circumstances. Diverse perspectives make us stronger and wiser. This requires more than tokenism, it cannot be achieved without diversity at the planning table, in staffing, and in coordination. It may delay achievement of other important goals, it will require discussion, hard work, patience, and advance planning. It may involve conflict, but through this conflict, we can learn better ways of working together
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7. We honor support of any shape or size. We draw strength from the diversity of skills and capacity among us. There are thousands of ways to help the work grow and prosper. Although the work is significant and hard, many hands make light work. We recognize the big and little contributions made by caretakers, teachers, workers, musicians, artists, and academics who are part of our work. We remember to thank one another.
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8. We take initiative. Our work is composed of local, autonomous organizations that will carry out the work. In that work, we all agree to abide by these fundamental principles. We rely on our own resourcefulness and serve the mission by drawing on the leadership within ourselves and those around us. By embracing a decentralized structure, we enable local organizations to innovate creatively and act without waiting for approval from a central authority.
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9. We lead by empowering others to act. To succeed, it is important to reach out into new constituencies, and to reach within all levels of leadership and membership base of the organizations that are already involved in our networks. We understand leadership as service rather than a means to dominate, profit, or gain status. We believe in the power of bold vision and hard work to inspire others. Only by giving every person responsibility, a voice and a role can we effectively grow to scale. A leader-ful movement requires training and mentorship.
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10. We sink or swim together. Our strength and resilience lies in our relationships. We build community through active listening, mutual support, and radical empathy. We treat each other with justice and respect, both on an individual and an organizational level. As we change societies, we must change ourselves from operating in the mode of individualism to community- centeredness.
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11. We fit into a larger puzzle. We recognize that many different organizations contribute to our work and we welcome partnership whenever possible to advance our common mission while upholding our Principles.
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12. We share power and responsibility. We strive to maximize collaboration so that all voices are heard. We use a dynamic governance process so that all parts of the growing revolutionary organization can be heard and our actions can be shaped by all of us working together. We work with conflict in a constructive way, following a respectful, non-violent process. We actively learn new skills for cooperation and conflict resolution.
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13. Solidarity. We recognize other injustices and show up for other organizations and issues that fit our mission. Groups working on similar issues with compatible visions should consciously act in solidarity, mutuality and support each other’s work. We pledge to support other organizations and amplify their work.
Footnote: These principles were adapted from the Jemez Principles for Democratic Organizing and Democracy Spring.