Home of schoolofintegratedliving.org Founded in 1994, Earthaven is located on 329 acres in culturally rich, biologically diverse western North Carolina, about 45 minutes southeast of Asheville. We are dedicated to caring for people and the Earth by learning and demonstrating a holistic, sustainable culture. Earthaven Ecovillage is located on the traditional lands of the Catawba and Cherokee (Tsala
gi) people, who have stewarded this land since time immemorial. Living within our mission and vision statement is the goal of working “towards partnership culture, towards racial and gender equity, and against oppression in all its forms.” In support of this goal, and for our collective liberation, we are in the early stages of healing and being in right relationship with the local Catawba and Cherokee people. Varying between 2000 and 2600 feet in elevation, our forested mountain land consists of three converging valleys with abundant streams and springs, flood plains, bottom land, and steeper ridge slopes. In recent years, our community has consisted of about 75 adult residents and 25 children. We intend to become a village of at least 150 people on 56 homesites. As the village grows, we would like it to become more racially and culturally diverse. Our permaculture site plan includes residential neighborhoods and compact business sites, as well as areas suitable for farms, orchards, market gardens, and wetlands. Much of Earthaven is still under construction. Physical infrastructure so far includes roads, footpaths, bridges, campgrounds, ponds, constructed wetlands, off-grid power systems, farms and gardens, our Council Hall, a kitchen-dining room, many small dwellings, and a growing number of free-standing and commonwall homes. We govern ourselves with a consensus decision-making process and a Council and committee structure, with a Homeowners Association board. The HOA owns title to our common land, which we financed with private loans from members. We value sustainable ecological systems, permaculture design, elegant simplicity, right livelihood, and healthy social relations. We are spiritually diverse. We have both vegetarians and omnivores; some members raise livestock. Our small ecologically sound businesses include a permaculture plant nursery; carpentry and home construction; tool rental; solar system installation; plumbing and electrical installation; and consultants and courses in permaculture design, natural building, creating new ecovillages, herbal medicine, and women’s health. Mission and Vision
To create a village which is a living laboratory and educational seed bank for a sustainable human future. In the midst of planetary change the Earthaven experiment helps inform and inspire a global flowering of bio-regionally appropriate cultures. Goals:
Goal 1: To catalyze local and global change through learning, teaching, and networking. Goal 2: To shift from wasteful to regenerative use of resources. Goal 3: To develop and support a thriving local economy. Goal 4: To grow, raise, trade, and use our own food, fiber, medicines, and forestry products in an ecologically regenerative, bioregional culture and network. Goal 5: To tend the land in a way that optimizes for diverse ecosystem health, food and resource production, and soil and water quality. Goal 6: To practice fair, participatory, and effective self-governance. Goal 7: To encourage diverse spiritual practices and awareness of our interconnection with all beings. Goal 8: To work towards partnership culture, towards racial and gender equity, and against oppression in all its forms. [See our Statement of Transparency]
Goal 9: To nurture personal growth, interpersonal understanding, and mutual trust, as the foundation for a deeply connected human community. Goal 10: To practice healthy, holistic lifestyles that balance self-care with care for others. Goal 11: To create a culture of celebration, beauty, and pleasure. Goal 12: To attract, cultivate, and inspire residents and members whose presence contributes to vitality and functionality in our community. Goal 13: We recognize elders as the trunk and children as the fruit of our village tree, and collectively prioritize what all parts of our “tree” need to thrive.
