Editor’s note: This article was previously published in OneEarth magazine Vol 7 Issue 5 Winter 1987
A Village Update by Alex Walker
“What I want to do is to integrate the business of doing things, together with being human beings while we do it. For me, we’re all working for the Angel of Findhorn – the energy that’s on this peninsula that I see time and time again helps me to work in a far better way than I would have done before. It’s not that I couldn’t do it sitting in London, but being here makes it work better. ”
Stefan Wik, Alternative Data Ltd.
For many years there has been a strong feeling that the future development of the spiritual centre at the Findhorn Foundation would involve the growth of independent businesses and other ventures which were distinct from the Foundation itself. Some of these ideas have been reflected in issues of One Earth over the last few years.
As the table shows, this vision has now become a reality, and a new social, economic and political structure is emerging in response.
1. Adults includes both employees and adult dependents.
2. A total of 12 independent businesses are included.
3. Some of the Foundation’s trading departments may soon become independent, hence the separation in the table.
4. The value of both Findhorn Caravan Park land, where many Foundation trading departments are situated, and the buildings which house those working in Foundation trading departments are included in the educational assets.
In July a novel meeting was held in the Universal Hall. Rather than a regular community gathering, organised by and for the Foundation, with ‘others’ in attendance, this occasion was billed as a forum for all those living in the area in response to the same spirit, but not employed by the Foundation, to meet and exchange views. Foundation members were also invited.
One of the first points to emerge was the extraordinary diversity of people present. Out of nearly 100 individuals only 30 or so were full-time Foundation members. Of the remainder, some were living as far away as Nairn – 15 miles distant – some in the caravan park itself. Some had been long-term Foundation members with 10 or more years before the mast, others had been in the area only a few weeks. Nevertheless, there was considerable unity of purpose as the following selection of quotes from this first meeting shows:
“I’m a member, but I’m working for the Moray Steiner School. I’m a real hybrid; a living example of a new connection with the Foundation.
What I think we can all sense tonight is that we are asking for a new sort of connection, and what has brought us here is a sense of belonging to something, or a longing for something. I would say that we are looking for a type of society where the Foundation members are just one part of it; a sort of society which we can all feel connected to, which we can all take part in and be members of. So it’s not exclusively for the Foundation members to be part of this spiritual stream that brought us here. We are forming and trying to define a new sort of society of which everyone is a part, our guests as well as the people living here. “
Peter Klingemann, Moray Steiner School.
”I became an independent member eight years ago and I was relieved to be at the periphery and stay in touch with the major milestones along the way, but not wanting to be involved in the process. What I realised a few months ago was that things are getting to the point now where it’s time to get involved again with what we’re doing here. That’s why I’m here this evening. There ‘s something bigger than just the Foundation happening and I feel I should be part of it, and I’m glad there are so many people here who feel the same way. ”
Lyle Schnadt,
Applied Energy Systems Ltd.
“My vision for this society is that it will be ‘drop-in friendly ‘, I find that people coming into the Apothecary as an independent business get a sense of what it is like to attune in the morning, a feeling of what our world is like. It’s open for people who don’t have time to do a Foundation course”
Rowan Duczek,
Findhorn Bay Apothecary.
From this gathering it seems clear that there is a need for a series of such open meetings, to explore the various issues confronting the larger collective. An informal association called the ‘Open Forum’ has now been set up to administer this, and to aid in communicating, envisioning and fostering the social and economic development of all those involved.
Since July two further, well-attended meetings have been held, and a monthly 12 page newsletter has started, largely as a result of the good graces of Bay Area Graphics, one of the new independent businesses.
Whilst the common bonds which are most evident within this association are a commitment to spirit, and a connection with the Foundation, there are a number of problems to be solved. One of these is terminology. It is clear that some of the categories used by the Foundation in the past are no longer appropriate because they define a relationship to the Foundation rather than to the greater collective. As one Foundation member put it, “The Foundation has seeded a lot of this activity, but now it’s trying to refine its own focus without everything and everybody being labelled-staff member, independent member, guest, departmental guest, guest living in community, friend, student member and so on.” However, reaching a new consensus has not proved to be easy. ‘Village’ is the term most used in the past to describe the emerging new identity for the whole, but this is felt by many to be undesirable – there is already one Findhorn Village just a mile up the road!
Another difficulty concerns the role of the Foundation itself. It is generally agreed that the Foundation seems to have reached the maximum size for its efficient operation. Yet there is a strong desire to foster a new culture with a more varied set of forms based on the spiritual consciousness that has inspired the Foundation. Having been virtually the sole carriers of the spiritual message since the formation of the ‘Findhorn Trust’ in 1968, the current membership find themselves faced with a responsibility to encourage and assist a new set of structures with different, and perhaps occasionally conflicting aims.
This being so, the Foundation has a unique role to play. Not only has it been in existence for far longer than any of the other organisations and therefore has access to a greater network of contacts, it is also the owner of the land at the centre of developments, Findhorn Bay Caravan Park. This is the land many of the new businesses operate from, and upon which many individuals will wish to build permanent dwellings. Thus, although the Foundation’s membership constitutes a falling percentage of those attracted to the spiritual ambience of the Findhorn peninsula, it is likely to be the organisation which, more than any other, will influence the shape of things to come for the foreseeable future.
There is an unmistakable sense of change in the air. We can feel it, but have yet to understand its full import. A new chapter in our history has commenced.
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