Guiding Principles and Priorities
Guiding Principles
Mother Earth, ecological vitality, and all species are sacred and interdependent, and they have the right to be free from ecological destruction.
Each human person has dignity and value.
Benefits and burdens shall be shared equally among peoples.
The aspirations and needs of people of all genders shall be considered and valued equally.
All peoples have a fundamental right to political, economic, cultural and environmental self-determination.
All workers have a right to a safe and healthy work environment.
Education has the power to transform.
An adequate educational program includes social and environmental issues and an appreciation of our diverse cultural perspectives.
Everything is connected in ways that are profoundly complex and beautiful, and no one part of a system can change by itself. To heal a system, connect more of it to itself.
Guiding Priorities
Addressing harms caused by human activities.
Addressing underlying causes rather than treating symptoms.
Supporting self-sustaining solutions rather than cause dependencies.
Supporting the transition from a consumption-based economic society based on growth and the exploitation of resources toward a low-waste empathic society based on the sacredness of all life.
The foregoing principles and priorities reflect the Founders’ deliberations and draw partially from the writings of Paul Hawken, the Polyglot group, the Mary Robinson Foundation and the First National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit.