Portland Gift Community

Mission: A non-residential, committed and bonded community dedicated to sharing our gifts and lives with each other.

From www.ic.org/directory/portland-gift-community/:

We’re a local, non-residential, committed and bonded community of men and women centered in inner NE and SE Portland, Oregon dedicated to sharing our gifts and lives with each other. Local means we live in Portland. Non-residential means we live in our own residences rather than owning property collectively (though some of us may do so eventually). Committed means we choose each other and make clear agreements to stay together. Bonded means that after our families, our focus is each other.

Our community strives to maintain both diversity (particularly in age, sex, income and several other parameters) and unity via shared commitment to our intentions, values and goals.

Three intentions guide us:

(1) We seek to belong to something larger than our individual selves and nuclear families, like the tribal units that most human beings belonged to until the advent of civilization, and particularly the industrial revolution.

(2) We wish to share our lives and gifts (skills, time, resources) with each other (that’s what we mean by “gift community“).

(3) We desire to help each other live more resiliently and sustainably, and to inspire others to do the same.

The foundation of our community rests on the following premises and principles:

Throughout history, the basic human unit has been the tribe. We’ve lost touch with our tribal nature. It’s time to reconnect with it by intentionally choosing our own community-tribe in the place where we are now.

Our financial/monetary system is isolating and alienating, and seems bent on destroying itself and everything around it. It compels us to conceive of ourselves as primarily economic beings. We want to support each other in living more resiliently by stepping outside of mainstream financial/monetary frameworks when possible.

The immense stresses upon our political, economic and environmental systems oblige us to re-learn how to cooperate and share our gifts with each other. We’ll be well-served by establishing a mutual safety net.

Deep and lasting friendships are more satisfying than casual, superficial acquaintances.

As women and men we wish to feel safe with each other, practicing transparency and observing clear boundaries.

Staying in place is essential for lasting, authentic community. In the coming era of energy descent, there’s nothing more important than building local community.

Healthy and nourishing local community requires breadth, length and depth. We are committed to sharing many activities and facets of our lives (breadth), over a span of years (length), authentically and intimately (depth).

Our basic focus, after our families, is with each other.

Spirit – however each of us names or conceives of it – connects us.

We wish to inspire and lead others by our example.

For more info, please visit our website.

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