In 2020, as the Covid-19 crisis was ravaging our communities and demands for racial justice continued to grow, a group of grassroots organizers came together to imagine and create an economy that invests in community well being and resilience. The first thing we did was look to the past and learn from the long history of innovation that Black and Indigenous communities have led in response to disinvestment and disenfranchisement. We then looked to the present to see and learn from the wealth of activity that is already going on in Virginia and around the US. Now we are looking to the future by developing relationships with those that share this vision and organizing the infrastructure to realize an economy that truly supports everyone in Virginia .

We seek to live the following values as a platform for developing a solidarity economy in Virginia. We see ourselves as one piece of a much broader, global solidarity economy in which these values are considered and practiced holistically. While we believe they are inextricably linked to one another.
– Social and Economic Democracy : Economies and societies are made of of people and communities who have control over the decisions that affect their lives
– Cooperation and Shared Power : Power comes from working with mutual respect and accountability
– Equity and Justice : Everyone has access to the same rights and resources. Together we are responsible for guaranteeing those rights and resources.
– Democratic Participation : People have the right, ability, and responsibility to participate in building and protecting their communities.
– Sustainability : Systems and processes that support the needs of the people and the planet have the ability to keep going.
– Many Paths : There are lots of ways to reach collective liberation. Respecting people’s response to their own unique situation is paramount.
– Protecting and Growing Spirit, Culture, and Art : People and communities have the power to express themselves and have the right to culture, preserving their own traditional cultures while participating in creating culture.
– Ending Extraction : Our solutions have to actively work to end exploitation of resources, people, and labor- and the harm it does to communities- to work and create new cycles.
– Celebrating Life : Celebrating one another as holistic beings and celebrating our connection to all other life is at the center of our efforts to build a better world.
– Expanding the Commons : Solutions increase the shared control of resources like land, housing, healthcare, and human knowledge. Solutions also protect access, rights, and responsibilities to use and take care of these resources.