Part 3 - Current Iteration: Where We Are Now and the Next Steps
Throughout our journey, with its ups and downs, we have steadily and slowly cleaned and refined the spaces we inhabit. The help we received during the low points and the invaluable time for reflection have been essential. Working on the food forest and sorting and organizing the unwanted items left behind has mirrored our inner process of bringing order to chaos. Notable contributors to this process include Ara, Genesis, and Mikhaal, among others.
This time of cleaning and healing has been very potent for the process of integrating the wounds and the shadows that were exposed to the light of awareness through Tien’s journey. The process of healing is well underway for himself and his family. His relationship with the project is inspiring him to create art and is providing mutually meaningful and insightful reflections. He is taking one step at a time to find his way home and his loved ones are witnessing the ripples of his actions.
As we have been organizing, we have developed protocols for interacting in specific areas of the farm and for orienting new arrivals and contributors to the stages of stewardship. Our stages of stewardship framework and our partnership with the DBC for governing and managing the Commons are gaining clarity and experience. Based on our past iterations’ recognition and experiential learning, the Mutual Mentorship area of the Commons is undergoing the next iteration, refining the physical boundaries, responsibilities, and rights of the contributors as they move through the stages of stewardship.
Badges
From the beginning, we recognized the need to coordinate across land nodes to share training programs and experiences. This coordination helps individuals become harmonious, productive, and interdependent members of this alternative cultural experience. It also benefits the Land Nodes by providing honest and clear feedback on individuals’ roles and outlining forward-looking next steps for mutual collaboration. With the maturation of this experiment at Diamante Luz in collaboration with the DBC, we are at the threshold of creating “badges” through experiential learning, objective and subjective feedback, and documented with Web3 protocols.
At Diamante Luz, we are starting with the “ABC’s of Community Badge” as a first step and creating a learning program for badge holders to ensure interoperability between farms in the network. Other badges on the horizon include Kitchen, Hospitality, Infrastructure, Equipment, Relationship, and Syntropic Agroforestry Stewardship Badges. These badges represent essential roles necessary for operating a Commons that hosts mentorship programs and events.
Our small team is currently working on the ground aspect of the ABC’s of Community Training program, and we are evaluating Web3 platforms for mutually beneficial partnerships to document and ensure interoperability between farms. While we will continue to move forward without a blockchain solution, we aim to build our program with platform needs in mind to avoid retroactive adjustments. If you feel inspired or interested in creating a specialized guidance role, this could be valuable to other land nodes as a consulting service. Please reach out or respond to this post if you are interested in collaborating.
Multi-Faith Spiritual Integration Center
Through deep cleaning of our inner and outer landscapes, spiritual practices such as meditation, mindfulness, self-enquiry, postural yoga, and karma yoga (meditative awareness while being active in the world) have emerged as foundational aspects of life on the farm. We aim to utilize the Mutual Mentorship section of the farm for Karma Yoga Silent Meditation Retreats on a quarterly or bi-annual basis, grounding our cultural intention for self-aware, spiritually integrated co-creators. A small trial run (5-7 participants) will take place for 5 days at the end of August for our team and any locals who wish to join. A detailed description will be posted in the coming days.
Establishing the Multi-faith Fellowship at the heart and foundation of everything on this land is long overdue. Lessons from the past inform our current actions, aligning us with deeper introspection and disciplined practice. Nature, the land, and our bodies are temples where spirit and consciousness connect, ground, and interact. As we grow and build on this foundation of multi-faith spiritual practice, we intend to create a neighboring space dedicated to spiritual and physical wellness.
Men’s Circle
The majority of the work ahead in building communal structures, housing, trails, and expanding the food forest is physically demanding and often considered “men’s work.” Over the past few years of communal living, it has become clear that healing and alignment are significantly strengthened when men support each other in personal and collective growth. In this project phase, we are calling on the men and boys of the community to lead one another through the paths of the male initiatory journey. We aim to cultivate a space where women feel inspired by and attracted to men on their collective and personal missions. Simultaneously, women in the community are joining together to meet the men in divine union and collective healing, a critical step towards restoring healthy regenerative culture.
Residential Zone
Over the past 3.5 years, we have invested significant time, money, and mental capacity to pay off the land mortgage and build the foundation for the Commons. It is clear that the area, held in Trust and outside the Commons’ limits, is ready for expanded human interaction and awareness. This will help others find their stewardship path to their personally stewarded plots and stabilize the whole project as a greater number of aligned stewards care for sections of the land. Road design and collective decision-making regarding utilities are the first steps in developing the budget for raising funds.
The 8 stages of stewardship protocol, which we have worked on for years, is detailed in this forum. Now seems like a perfect time to explore more deeply the structure, timeframes, and energetic and financial contributions outlined throughout the steps on the path. Also recognizing an openness to other avenues for resonance building that provide alternate pathways for investment in the residential zone while maintaining the same level of interaction, culture building, and common understanding before collectively stewarding the land we call “home.” This topic will be addressed in another post to cover all aspects clearly.
Coliazul Cultural Center
This project at the top plantel of the Commons is at the forefront of our collective dreams and visions. It will drastically improve our capacity to host culture-building and celebratory events and create learning environments for all ages. The remarkable work their team has done with limited support is inspiring, and we are working on finding financial support for this cultural initiative that will benefit many generations.
