Dear

Will you help write a manual that an organizing committee could use to grow a Network of Home-Based Communities (tentative name) rooted in a progressive, holistic worldview?

You could serve as either:

    1) a co-author with an equal voice in determining the content (at least five hours a week);
    2) an adviser giving feedback every two weeks or so (four hours a month);
    3) or an adviser giving feedback every month or so (two hours a month).

I'm inviting you and several others who've expressed strong interest in this project.

We could set up a semi-moderated listserv so the co-authors could communicate with one another directly and those advisers who wish to do so could follow the discussions. All advisers would receive periodic reports.

Down the road, some of us might convene a weekend workshop -- in San Francisco, Mexico, or elsewhere -- during which we could discuss the manual and experiment with some of its proposed methods.

Following are my current thoughts about the principles that would guide the project, while allowing for possible changes along the way: :

    GUIDING PRINCIPLES FOR THE HOME-BASED COMMUNITIES MANUAL - 1/24/08 Draft

    1) While recognizing that some of us might have some reservations about specific words, we generally endorse the following statement:

    What We Believe -- And How We Intend to Live

        What We Believe -- And How We Choose to Live (14/12/07 Draft)

        Our commitment is to promote the common good of the entire human family, help make the nations of the world more just and democratic, and protect the environment.

        Because life is mysterious, wonderful, and awesome, we cherish beauty and the experience of beauty. We encourage everyone to help make the world more beautiful.

        The Earth is a living system composed of many interdependent elements. Our responsibility is to safeguard it and participate creatively in its evolution.

        We aim to avoid both selfishness and self-sacrifice by loving others as we love ourselves. We will enjoy life, spread joy, and assist people who are less fortunate.

        Being fully human involves learning how to become a better human being. By taking care of ourselves, we can better serve others and help prevent suffering.

        We respect others as equals. When we criticize people, we do so constructively without condemning them, for all of us are imperfect.

        By coming together freely, we can have better relationships. We should use force only to protect life or prevent physical injury. If and when we use force, we should use the minimal amount necessary.

        We appreciate what is true about all points of view. No one person or group monopolizes truth. By sharing facts and opinions, we can better understand reality.

        No words fully express what is true. Ideas only point to truth. So we are willing to experiment with what works best.

        As a nation, we are responsible to assure that all of our people have the means to live decently. As individuals, we are responsible to help shape our nation’s policies.

        All people are entitled to have a real voice in public decisions that affect them. Our elected officials should listen to their constituents, help them find common ground whenever possible, and support the growth of supportive communities that nurture personal development rooted in shared moral values –- so we can better overcome egoism, consumerism, greed, and the temptation to be deadened by passive entertainment.

        As well as earning a profit, private businesses should serve the public interest, care for the environment, empower their workers, and treat them fairly.

        Strong individuals need strong communities -- and strong communities need strong individuals, healthy families, supportive friendships, democracy, justice, a sustainable environment, safe neighborhoods, and national governments that protect human rights and manage the economy wisely.

        The nations and the people of the world must cooperate with one another. By growing a loving, global community based on inclusive, democratic local communities, we can steadily improve the quality of life and eventually transform our social system –- including our institutions, our culture, and ourselves –- to better serve humanity and protect life on Earth.

    2) We anticipate that members of small home-based communities will:

        a) endorse this "What We Believe" statement or one that is similar to it in terms of length and content.

        b) advance those principles by engaging regularly in: 1) self-improvement, 2) social service, such as working with a soup line (perhaps for a minimum of two hours monthly); 3) political action (perhaps for a minimum of two hours monthly), and 4) providing mutual support to one another in these efforts.

        c) gather at least once a month for a shared meal and informal fellowship.

    3) Some of these communities might be informal extended families or other small groups (such as religious social-action committees) whose members already engage regularly in self-improvement, social service, political action, and mutual support and choose to affiliate with the Network of Home-Based Communities.

    4) Other communities might be already existing groups or organization whose members decide to supplement their activities by taking on one or more of those tasks (self-improvement, social service, political action, and mutual support) in which they had not previously regularly engaged.

    5) Still other communities could start from scratch, with one individual inviting a close friend to join the effort, and the two of them inviting another close friend, etc. Some of these communities could consist of people who already belong to the same organization.

    5) Those communities that choose to do so will also conduct a regular support group during which participants report on their recent efforts with regard to self-improvement, social service, political action, and mutual support and, if they wish to do so, ask for feedback and/or advice. (These support groups would not be problem-solving, therapy, or conflict-resolution sessions.)

    6) In order to deepen a sense of community by sharing more experiences, some communities could choose to back the same political action each month, though the form might be different -- for example, some individuals might make phone calls and others might write letters.

    7) In all of its materials and in the choice of political demands to back, the Network will adopt a majoritarian strategy by advancing progressive positions already supported by a majority of people nationwide.

    8) The Network will utilize a bottom-up, representative decision-making structure, with each home-based community that wants to do so sending representatives to regional coordinating bodies, and those regional bodies nominating representatives to a national board of directors (with the possibility that eventually the members will decide to elect the national leadership directly).

    9) The Network will try to develop a mechanism to enable all members nationwide to back the same proposal at roughly the same time. To enhance this possibility, it may encourage home-based committees to consist of people who live in the same Congressional district (in the United States) and persuade their Congressperson to convene monthly Community Dialogues, as described at http://progressiveresourcecatalog.org/index.php/Workshop/Proposal2

    10) The manual will probably include:

        a) easy-to-learn methods that with which all members would be encouraged to experiment and report on their experience.

        b) additional methods that all members could use, either with all members of their home-based community, sub-groups, or as individuals.

    11) We envision members participating in occasional regional events (perhaps quarterly) open to the public.

    12) This manual will be available to any organizing committee that decides to launch this project. Our strong recommendation is that anyone who decides to form such an organizing committee should make every effort to assure that the committee is diverse from the outset.

    13) This manual will also be available to any informal groups who want to use it to foster a deeper sense of community, as well as individuals who want to use it on their own, with the possibility that they would affiliate with the Network later.

    14) Any such informal groups or interested individuals could be asked to indicate their interest in joining a formal network of home-based communities if and when it forms.

With all of this in mind, I would appreciate your responses to the following:

1) I would like to serve as a co-author.

____ Yes ____No ____Maybe

2) I could serve as an adviser every two weeks.

____ Yes ____No ____Maybe

3) I could serve as an adviser once a month.

____ Yes ____No ____Maybe

4) I generally agree with "What We Believe -- And How We Intend to Live."

____ Yes ____No ____Maybe

5) I suggest the following changes to this statement (add space as needed):

6) I would more likely serve as a co-author or adviser if those changes were adopted.

____ Yes ____No ____Maybe ____Not Applicable

7) I generally agree with these "Guiding Principles for the Home-Based Communities Manual."

____ Yes ____No ____Maybe

8) I suggest the following changes to these Guiding Principles (add space as needed):

9) I would more likely serve as a co-author or adviser if those changes were adopted.

____ Yes ____No ____Maybe ____Not Applicable

10) I'm interested in participating in a weekend workshop.

____ Yes ____No ____Maybe

Thanks very much,

Wade Hudson