We the undersigned believe that every community must explore and express what makes it special—its heart and soul elements—and with specificity describe those tangible and intangible elements that if lost would fundamentally change the character of their place. Once articulated and acknowledged, community heart and soul serves as the “Bill of Rights and Responsibilities” for citizens as they make decisions about the future.
We believe that when a community takes the time to get to know itself — its Heart & Soul elements— it will gain a sense of identity and purpose that will empower its citizens to make strong enduring decisions and take right action to protect and strengthen who they are.
We believe in direct democratic process. There is no place in this process for “inclusion as usual.” Traditional gestures toward inclusion are bankrupt; they engender neither trust nor common purpose. Only by going to, listening to, and learning from everyone—the influential and the forgotten, old timers and newcomers, young and old, rich and poor, business owners and workers, tradesmen and professionals, the noisy and the quiet, the caregivers and the gatekeepers — can shared purpose and identity live in and guide a community.
We believe in the strength of connection—for Heart & Soul communities to define their place in the world and benefit from and contribute to a broader region of ideas, people, economies and natural systems. This connectedness gives communities an evolving understanding of themselves to steer their futures in a world of change.
We believe in the necessity of repaying trust and participation with results—with actionable plans and visions for a future and that are grounded by the reality of each community’s circumstances.
We believe that community planning must be steered by heart and soul. This approach must tap into sources of creativity within communities. Decisions and actions relating to development, planning and policy must reflect and reinforce the community’s self-identity. This approach must guide planning, zoning, development, design, budgeting and management.
We believe that Heart & Soul must be monitored as closely as any economic indicator. Heart & Soul elements must be so deeply enmeshed in the community’s identity that making a decision without reference to it will be as unthinkable as making a decision without reference to its economic effects.
We believe in the importance of celebrating success, in measuring results as yardsticks for accountability, and in asking citizens how to be better. We care about sharing success and validating progress to influence the wider world.