Fruit Haven

Passed · 2026-05-28

Transitional Membership Pathway for Current Owners

Grants all eligible current property owners 'Active Member' status upon adoption, with a 1-year transition period to fulfill ongoing membership requirements.

Decision type
operational
Layers affected
L1
Vote
No objections received within 14-day review period
  • Status: Passed
  • Submitted: 2026-05-14
  • Submitted by: Boris (on behalf of Stefan, Nik, and Rob)
  • Decision type: Operational
  • Authorized decision path: 14-day email review period per current decision-making approach

Summary

To resolve existing ambiguity between ownership and membership, and to acknowledge prior participation in community life, current property owners are granted a transitional pathway. This ensures clarity going forward while offering a fair continuation for those already engaged.

Affected Layers and Artifacts

Change Type

  • Time-bounded experiment

Rationale

Few (if any) new members have formally completed the standard membership process over the 7+ years since the bylaws passed in 2019, despite many active trustees. This proposal provides a fair bridge that clearly separates ownership from membership while giving current owners a defined pathway to formalize their membership status. It is a temporary measure — not a replacement of the bylaws.

Additionally, recent Ecuadorian border-zone land restrictions (since 2025) prevent new foreign ownership, making a functional membership pathway important for people who are not property owners to still meaningfully participate in and contribute to Fruit Haven’s governance and development.

Proposal Text

All current property owners shall, effective upon adoption of this proposal, be granted the status of “Active Member.”

Exceptions apply to owners who have previously been voted out due to serious violations of the current bylaws.

Each eligible owner will have a period of one (1) year (365 days) to fulfill the requirements necessary to maintain “Active Member” status. If any of these requirements are not met by the end of this period, the membership status will automatically transition to “Exited Member / External,” without further process. (Ownership status remains unchanged and obligated to contribute to the budgets and maintain their private lots.)

Requirements to maintain Active Member status:

  • Completing/reviewing the 101 consensus training video and passing the consensus quiz
  • Completing/reviewing a Non-Violent Communication (NVC) video and passing the NVC quiz
  • Completing/reviewing a Sociocracy video and passing the sociocracy quiz
  • Maintenance of the lot: minimum of 5 days (40 hours) of work or $125 per year for farm maintenance, including weed whacking, chop-and-drop, clearing around roads and ditches on the lot, and checking private water systems for failures and fixing them at their expense
  • Paying for the community budgets for the last 3 years and for the year within the specified timeframe (can pay for previous years if wanting to correct it)
  • Participating in community governance actions, as defined below
  • Adhering to the current bylaws

Definition of Participation in Community Governance

Participation in community governance is defined as the combination of Responsiveness, Contribution, Attendance, and Accountability:

  • Responsiveness: Active Members must respond to at least 50% of formal proposals within the defined timeframe via approved communication channels (meetings, email, or Telegram).

  • Contribution: Active Members must contribute to at least two (2) substantive discussions during the defined timeframe, by expressing perspectives, questions, agreements, or objections with reasoning.

  • Attendance: Active Members must either:

    • attend at least two (2) weekly community governance meetings within the defined timeframe, or
    • actively participate in one or more community governance work groups with comparable frequency and engagement.

    Attendance in either format must be in the context of community governance and documented through approved channels.

  • Accountability: In cases of disagreement, Active Members are expected to actively engage in follow-up dialogue (via email or meetings, online or in person) to support the process of reaching consensus. Additionally, no Active Member may remain inactive (no responses or engagement) for a continuous period exceeding 60 days.

Voting alone does not constitute sufficient participation. Participation requires active engagement in the deliberation and consensus-building process as defined above.

Risks and Mitigations

Risk: Some owners granted transitional Active Member status may not complete requirements within the 1-year window.

Mitigation: The proposal provides a clear automatic transition to “Exited Member / External” status at the end of the period without further process, preserving ownership rights and financial obligations.

Effective Date

2026-05-28

Review Date

2027-05-28 (1-year transition period expires)

Decision Record

← All passed proposals