Bioregional_Congress

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2008, Living Mandala
creative services by: 360 Degrees

What is Bioregionalism?

Bioregionalism embodies the effort to preserve, restore and enhance life. Since the first Continental Bioregional Congress in1984, people have come to the Congress to envision, exchange and develop realistic, restorative ways of living in the bioregions of the Americas.

With the recent escalation of ecological devastation in the U.S. and around the world, along with the current global economic and political crises, the answers bioregionalism offers �� based on ecological principles, and local economic and community development �� are more important than ever!

The congress will spark and strengthen ecological and social networks to exchange information, strategies, and approaches about how to forge meaningful lives in balance with our local ecosystems and communities. The congress will be packed with informative speakers covering diverse topics related to earth care, community development and economic resiliency. We'll also share and celebrate stories of place, model the communities we wish to support and create, and replenish ourselves, so that we leave CBCX empowered with new tools, strategies, support and inspiration to further manifest our social change efforts. Together, we'll find transformations that ripple out from our lives into our home communities and bioregions.

People working to create a sustainable and just human culture are invited to participate in this year's Congress as delegates representing bioregions across North America. Local organizers are also needed to identify representatives and coordinate regional events that will bridge with the Tennessee gathering.

Proposed Program

The final program will be finalized with participant input at the start of the congress.

In general, the congress will include:

�� Mornings of small talking circles, big group circles, and plenaries

�� Afternoons of hands-on workshops and open space discussions

��Evenings of cultural sharing and celebration.

The Congress operates by consensus, collectively developing the agendas and fostering a common commitment to the process. The open consensus-based process is balanced by the skills of deeply experienced facilitators who know how to guide large groups toward consensus in efficient, compassionate ways

In addition to the traditional consensus-based forum of large and small group discussions and activities, this year's Congress will include a youth program and a bioregional certification curriculum �� a toolbox of workshops that focus on building, sustaining and relocalizing communities, reinvigorating culture and arts, and organizing for ecological restoration and policy change. (more info below)

Plenaries

During The Plenary Sessions we are proposing an agenda to create a unified vision for bioregionalism in the world, pushing for a 10 point document outlining our commitments as a body politic and our next steps towards furthering the vision of bioregionalism in the world.

Bioregional Certification Curriculum

A certificate in Bioregionalism will be awarded to participants who complete 15 hours of training, including both Monday and Tuesday sessions, and at least six hours of workshops of their choice throughout the congress.

Bioregionalism (Monday)

History of the Bioregional Congresses

Decentralization and Ecoregional approaches to sustainability

Reinhabitation and Ecocentric philosophy

Decision-making: inclusion and empowerment

Action learning

Pageantry and Celebration

World Café

Tools for Sustainable Communities (Tuesday)

Bioregional grassroots community organizing and stewardship

Strategic planning

Bioregional right livelihood

Group process and consensus-based meetings

Community-making through the arts, ecological education and more.

Outreach and Web-tools for organizers

Event planning

Rites of passage and other ceremonies

Reinhabitory Tools (Throughout)

Relocalizing Communities Toward Sustainability

- Transition Town Movement

- Ecovillages

- Permaculture

- Renewal Energy/Energy Conservation

- Re-storying the Landscape and Communities

- Relocalizing Education

Reinhabiting and Restoring Local Ecosystems

- Landscapes and Bioregional Mapping

- Orienting to Watersheds

- Ecoregions

- The Seasons and Migratory Patterns: Charting

- Planetary Connections

- Reinhabiting the Body: Health, Wellness and Restoration

Participants

Everyone is invited to participate in the Congress, particularly people working to support social and ecological sustainability. From this inclusive invitation, a diverse experience of community forms allowing people to exchange multiple viewpoints to inform, inspire and celebrate the possibilities for harmonizing how humans live on earth. The Tennessee gathering will bring together hundreds of activists, artists and writers, permaculturalists and farmers, business people, public policy-makers, scientists and researchers, children and adults, and others concerned about the state of this continent and the planet.

Children

The Farm School will be running a youth program in bioregionalism and permaculture education within a parallel youth congress. The youth will join the adults during several plenary sessions focused on Intergenerational Dialog to help craft a vision for the next seven generations to live in peace and justice.

In addition to creating a space for the youth voice and creating excellent opportunities for hands-on learning, The Farm School will also be hosting a workshop series on Community Schooling and bioregional education solutions.

There will also be information available for parents with babies and toddlers who wish to find childcare or pool childcare with other parents

How to Create a Bioregional Congress

For more information on How to Create a Bioregional Congress click here.

The History of Bioregionalism

Just over 30 years old, Bioregionalism �� and the Bioregional movement �� represents a comprehensive way of defining and understanding the places where we live, and of living there sustainably and respectfully through integrative ecological design. At the same time, Bioregionalism's essence has been reality and common sense for native people living close to the land for thousands of years; even beyond human experience, bioregionalism is rooted in the ecological principles of all life.

Over the years, the Bioregional movement has helped spawn and support many other powerful movements and trends, such as the Green Party, Permaculture, Ecovillages, Ecological Restoration, Eco-Poetics and much more.

Continental Congresses have taken place in the tall-grass prairie of Missouri, the Great Lakes Bioregion (Michigan), Cascadia (British Columbia), the Gulf of Maine, the Edwards Plateau (Texas), the Ohio River Valley (Kentucky), Anhuac bioregion, (Mexico), the Flint Hills of Kansas and at the Earthhaven Ecovillage (North Carolina). In a sense, there has been just one congress, going in and out of session, for nearly 20 years, maintaining its continuity between gatherings through bioregional offices and coordinating councils.

Location & Venue: Cumberland Green Bioregion at The Farm

The 10th Continental Bioregional Congress (CBC X) will be held on The Farm in the Cumberland Green Bioregion, Summertown Tennessee. The Farm is an ecological community in the hills of the Cumberland Highland Ridge in central Tennessee. Founded in 1971 by a caravan from San Fransisco, it started as a spiritual community that has served as a model for sustainable development and community living for over 35 years. The Farm now encompasses over 2,000 acres, houses many ecologically-based businesses (including the Ecovillage Training Center), and hosts bioregionally-related events of many kinds year-round.

The Farm is proud to be hosting the upcoming Congress and hopes to provide a loving and comfortable space for CBC X. While most people attending the event will camp, a variety of housing through the Farm Ecovillage Hostel and Farm homes will also be available. Food will be provided through local sources and providers. Health care and wellness services will be provided in cooperation with The Farm Midwives and community health practitioners.

Holding this event at a successful ecovillage allows us to experience life in a permaculture-designed village full of earth-friendly housing, cooperative forestry, and consensus-based decision-making.