Emerald Earth is a rural intentional community in Mendocino County. Our key values include peace, sustainability, social activism, education, and consensus decision making. We believe it is our responsibility as human beings to rediscover ways of interacting with the land in ways that enhance its ecological health, and we choose a lifestyle based as much as possible on biological power rather than chemical, more on social solutions than mechanical ones. We are currently open to new members.
The community was founded in 1989, when a group of friends from Berkeley found and purchased the land near Boonville in the Anderson Valley, about three hours drive north of San Francisco. This group called itself the Emerald Earth Laughing and Drumming Society and came together regularly for singing, drumming, and ritual, both in the city and on the land. They spent a couple of years cleaning up the site and fixing the main cabin and other infrastructure, then five people moved onto the land in 1984. During this time, the non-profit corporation Emerald Earth Sanctuary was formed and the land was deeded to it. After a while most of this original community moved away, although several are still members of the Land Council. One member of the original group remained as the sole permanent resident for several years.

Starting in 1999, a new group moved onto the land. With their experience in sustainable agriculture and natural building, they began building cabins, planting trees, expanding infrastructure, and organizing work parties. An alliance was formed with New College of California in which students came to Emerald Earth for hands-on workshops in natural building, permaculture, and medicinal herbs. See “Workshops” for more information.

For the last few years, the membership has been fairly stable, although some new members have joined and some have moved on. The number of residents has fluctuated between eight and fourteen. We currently have seven permanent residents (including one child) plus several work-traders and prospective members. Our ages range from 7 to 62, with a concentration in our 30’s.

We have several kinds of regular meetings to take care of communication, decision-making, and group process. At our weekly business meeting we discuss scheduling, work priorities, and other day-to-day decisions. We also have a weekly sharing meeting and a monthly all-day process meeting to address emotional and interpersonal issues. Major decisions on policies, long-term planning, membership, and budget are made by the Land Council, which meets four weekends a year. The Land Council is made up of resident members and some former residents now living off site.

Life at Emerald Earth requires a large amount of physical work including building, gardening, maintenance, chopping firewood, preparing food, cleaning, and so on. We eat most lunches and dinners together, taking turns cooking and cleaning. Although currently none of us is a strict vegetarian, we do tend to eat mostly vegetarian and nearly all organic, with an emphasis on whole foods and local produce. Sometimes we have organized community work days, but much of the time members are working on various projects under their own initiative. For recreation, we might watch a video, play a game of volleyball, or play music. Often people disperse to their private residences in the evenings. During the dry months (May-October) there are lots of visitors, events, and projects; winters tend to be much quieter. We like to celebrate Solstices, Equinoxes, and other special occasions with non-denominational rituals.

Although it is relatively inexpensive to live at Emerald Earth, the community so far generates very little income on site. Most of us work at part-time jobs in the small town of Boonville (a 20-minute drive) or beyond, cooking, building, grant writing, consulting, teaching in the local school system, practicing Chinese medicine, or teaching natural building workshops. It’s important to us to maintain a strong social and political connection with the larger Anderson Valley community. Our main on-site income source at the moment is the hands-on workshops, which happen a couple of weeks each summer. Several other cottage industries have been proposed. Some of our full members share income, paying for all of their living expenses out of a common account.

More photos of community

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