Healing & Organizing through Permaculture Exchange (HOPE), will engage local constituencies in a series of “healing and organizing work that honors the environment in balance with community democratic outcomes.”

HOPE will provide a forum in which we will listen to people as they begin to cry—saying our dream in Sierra Leone is also their dream here in the US and in other parts of the world, so our local work is to engage people in affirming that this is a truly global or rather “glocal” dreaming process—and support people in designing and implementing their own eco-village models here in Minnesota, the larger US and in other parts of the world at whatever scale is appropriate or possible. Our work will address one or more of the seven domains of permaculture: we may build local and build regional economies; we may invest financially in local producers and projects rather than multi-national corporations and big business; we may develop rural and urban coalitions; we may support the acquisition of land by local people who want to relocate to rural areas to produce healthy affordable food for those who lack access to fresh foods; we may educate our families and communities about the impact of toxins on our environment and the connection between these toxins and the prevalence of different cancers and learning disabilities in our children.

Part of our work will inevitably involve creating a context conducive for us to learn and respect each other’s ancestral wisdom, traditions, and ways of being, seeing, and knowing. We believe that the sharing of our various stories is crucial to our survival. Because military-industrial racism continues to disrupt our traditional ways of interacting with others and the earth, we often find the flames of ancient creativity, healing, and wisdom residing in the work of artists. HOPE will therefore include regular community-wide events led by artists, teachers, and elders.