An invitation to begin
Living
Land
A Central California Homestead Collective
A more rooted way of living, created together.
We are beginning not with land, but with people.
Evening light over the Kern River valley, Central California
A community shaped carefully, through relationship and shared work.
Living Land is an emerging community of people within approximately 100 miles of Bakersfield, California, gathering around a shared desire to live closer to the land and in more meaningful relationship with one another.
We are exploring the long-term possibility of collectively purchasing and stewarding land where people and families can create individual homes, cultivate food, share knowledge and resources, and build a more connected and resilient way of life.
Living Land is currently in its community-forming stage. No land has been selected or purchased.
Why we are gathering
The Vision
Many of us are feeling a longing for a different way of living, one that is more connected, more grounded and less isolated. We may want to know the people around us more deeply. We may want our children to grow up with land to explore and a wider circle of caring adults around them. We may want to become more capable of growing food, tending animals, making and repairing what we can, responding to emergencies, and participating more directly in the conditions that sustain our lives.
Living Land grows from a simple question: What might become possible if a group of people chose to care for a place and for one another with intention?
The long-term vision is a collectively stewarded homestead community in Central California. People and families would retain meaningful privacy, autonomy and their own rhythms of life while participating in selected shared responsibilities, spaces, resources and forms of mutual support.
This is not an attempt to withdraw from the world. It is an invitation to participate more deeply in life: to know where more of our food comes from, to become responsible for the land beneath us, to develop practical skills, and to create relationships capable of holding both ordinary life and difficult seasons.
The exact form of the community has not been predetermined. It should be shaped by the people who develop the trust, shared values and capacity to build it together.
A beginning, not a constitution
Our Emerging Guiding Principles
These principles are a beginning, not a finished constitution. They express the spirit in which Living Land is being initiated. The people who become its founding members will be responsible for thoughtfully refining and formally adopting the community's shared commitments.
- 01
Personal Autonomy and Shared Responsibility
We do not believe community should require people to surrender their privacy, individuality, family relationships or freedom of thought. We seek a thoughtful balance between personal autonomy and dependable participation in what we choose to hold together.
- 02
Mutual Care Without Coercion
We want to create relationships in which people offer meaningful help, communicate honestly and respect one another's boundaries. Care should never become control, entitlement, manipulation or an unspoken form of debt.
- 03
Collective Stewardship
Living Land is not intended to belong to one founder, personality or personal brand. Its identity, governance and eventual assets should be shaped and held collectively through transparent agreements that protect both the community and its individual members.
- 04
Slow and Earned Trust
Shared ideals are meaningful, but they are not a substitute for trust. Trust develops through honesty, consistency, accountability and shared experience over time. We believe in moving carefully before sharing money, property, authority or significant responsibility.
- 05
Meaningful Contribution
A thriving community requires participation. People may contribute in different ways according to their abilities, knowledge, resources, circumstances and seasons of life. The goal is not sameness, but a shared willingness to participate responsibly and honor clear agreements.
- 06
Safety, Dignity and Accountability
Every person deserves to be treated with dignity. Harassment, discrimination, intimidation, exploitation, abuse, violent extremism and attempts to dominate through fear, money, knowledge or authority have no place in this community. Concerns should be taken seriously and addressed through fair, transparent and safety-conscious processes.
- 07
Care for Children and Vulnerable Members
The physical and emotional safety of children, elders and vulnerable members must be intentionally protected. Community should expand the circle of responsible care around them without undermining the rights and roles of parents, caregivers or individuals.
- 08
Preparedness in Service of Life
We believe in becoming more prepared for emergencies, disruptions and changing conditions. This includes cultivating practical skills, reliable communication, first-aid knowledge and greater food, water and energy resilience. Preparation should help us live with greater steadiness and generosity, not suspicion or hostility.
- 09
Respect for the Living World
Animals, soil, water and surrounding ecosystems are not merely resources to be used. We seek to approach them with responsibility, humility and an awareness that human wellbeing is inseparable from the health of the wider living world.
- 10
Learning and Adaptation
We expect to learn from existing communities, experienced professionals, one another and the land itself. Our agreements should provide genuine stability while remaining capable of thoughtful growth and change.
Our current stage
Where We Are
Living Land is at the very beginning. No land has been selected or purchased, and no residential, financial, ownership or governance structure has been established. What exists today is an invitation and a growing circle of conversation within approximately 100 miles of Bakersfield, California.
Our present work is relational: meeting one another, clarifying shared principles, learning together, and honestly exploring what may be realistically possible. Any future step involving money, property or legal membership would come later, slowly, and with careful professional guidance.
Now
Finding one another, listening, and building trust through honest conversation.
Next
Shared learning, gatherings and refining our principles together as a group.
Later
Careful, well-advised exploration of land and of the agreements that could hold it collectively.
Homes and orchards among the hills, Central California
What matters most at this stage is not having every skill. It is the willingness to participate with honesty, humility, respect and consistency.
Clear answers
Common Questions
No. No property has been selected or purchased. Living Land is currently focused on forming relationships, clarifying shared principles and exploring what may be realistically possible.
No. Living Land is not currently offering housing, land, ownership interests or investment opportunities. Completing the contact form, joining Discord or attending a gathering does not create any legal or financial rights.
No predetermined residential, financial or ownership structure has been selected. We envision a meaningful balance between private lives and shared responsibilities, but the specific model must be developed collectively and with appropriate legal guidance.
No. Living Land is being initiated as an independent, member-shaped community. It is not part of its initiator's businesses or professional brands. Its identity, governance and eventual assets are intended to be held collectively rather than owned by an individual founder.
It means cultivating the relationships, skills and systems that allow people to respond responsibly when someone needs help or when difficult circumstances arise. This may include emergency communication, first-aid knowledge, food and water preparation, coordinated evacuation, child and elder safeguards, conflict de-escalation and lawful personal safety. It does not mean vigilantism, militia activity, intimidation or violent-extremist organizing.
The initial community is forming within approximately 100 miles of Bakersfield, California. The eventual location would depend on the people involved and careful evaluation of water, climate, zoning, safety, affordability, access and the land itself.
No. The form begins a conversation. Because we want the Discord community to remain thoughtful, safe and relational, invitations will be shared intentionally as the group develops.
Relationship to the Land
Living Land is not only about finding a place to live. It is about learning how to belong to a place and care for it well.
Before making plans for homes, gardens, or animals, we want to understand the land itself: its water, soil, plants, wildlife, fire patterns, seasons, and history. We want to build slowly and thoughtfully, use resources carefully, grow food, protect habitat, and restore what we can.
We also want to know whose ancestral and continuing homeland we are entering. Once a location is chosen, we will learn from and seek respectful relationship with the Native people connected to that place. We want acknowledgment to lead toward real listening, reciprocity, and care.
Kern River at Keysville, below Lake Isabella · photograph by the Bureau of Land Management
While We Search
Living Land is currently being imagined in Central California, within the ancestral and continuing homelands of many Indigenous peoples.
Because we have not yet chosen the land where the community may take root, we do not want to name a single people before we know the place. As we explore possible locations, learning the history and living relationships connected to each place will be part of how we evaluate the land.
Begin a conversation
Connect With Us
If something here resonates with you, we would be glad to hear from you. You do not need to know exactly what role you might play or whether you would ever want to live on shared land. At this stage, we are simply beginning to find one another.
Tell us a little about yourself, what draws you to Living Land and what you hope might become possible.
Safeguards and Disclaimer
Living Land is an emerging community-building initiative. No land has been selected or purchased, and no residential, financial, ownership or governance structure has been established. The information on this website is provided solely to introduce the vision and invite conversation.
Nothing on this website constitutes an offer of housing, land, membership, investment, employment, emergency services or any other legal or financial opportunity.
Submitting a contact form, joining the Discord community, attending a gathering or participating in an early conversation does not create membership, ownership, residency rights, a financial relationship or any guarantee of future participation.
Any future arrangements involving money, property, housing or legal membership would require a separate process, appropriate professional guidance, careful due diligence and formal written agreements.
Living Land does not provide legal, financial, medical or emergency advice or services. Participants remain responsible for their own decisions, safety and professional consultation.
Living Land is committed to lawful, life-serving forms of mutual care and preparedness. It does not support vigilantism, militia activity, intimidation, threats, violent extremism or coercive organizing.
Please do not submit sensitive medical, financial, legal, security or family information through this website. Information provided through the contact form will be used only to respond to your interest and support Living Land’s initial community-forming process. It will not be sold or added to a marketing list.
You must be at least 18 years old to submit the contact form.