Person standing by a pond in a lush green forest setting.

The Wisdom Retreat Center

  • Communities

About the Communities

  • Forming
  • Ecological
  • Rural

Founding year

  • 2015

What we do

We are a 200-acre developing earth sanctuary and retreat center in the mountains of northern California, close to the majestic Yuba River. We have had many people live with us for varying periods of time helping to build structures and maintain the land, and we are always open to visitors and potential new community members who resonate with our vision.
We would like to mention as we are a eco-preserve community in development and construction that we require both visitors and members to participate in the various works projects. The hours we request from participants varies anywhere from 10 to 25 hours per week depending on whether we are supplying them with places to live like one of our cabins or a place in our lodge. We also have meetings two to three times a week to discuss the progress and the psycho spiritual relationships developing between us as a group and with the land. We asked participation from people and when they do not show up for work and when they do not show up for our meetings which happened two to three times a week typically we give them a grace period and then we meet as a group and decide whether to let them stay longer or ask them to leave. We’ve had a number of people come up after providing extraordinary resumes which one either honest or transparent. We ask people to be conscious participants in our endeavor here and make a sincere and honest effort to help with the development and construction of this Center. If people do not participate and just want to place to live or to Camp that does not suffice with the group membership and vision and thus they will be asked to leave. After discussion as individually I’m with the group written assignments and agreements will take place in the company of group members. If we receive request from visitors we asked that they temporarily rent one of our five cabins to see if they like it here and that we can engage in discussion etc.
Every aspect of what we want to create is intended to support the personal growth of everyone participating, and the growth of humanity as a whole. Toward this goal, we are seeking people who are willing to participate in community building and living, and who are committed to a path of personal growth. Living in community will inevitably bring up things within us to the surface that need to be addressed for us to be able to live with others in a good way. Our members commit to doing any transformational work that is necessary to be able to live well in community, and the community commits to supporting members in this as best it can.
Another vision of our community is hosting workshops and retreats, teaching a variety of practical, emotional, spiritual, and nature-based skills to help people learn to live in harmony with the earth, and ground and deepen their own spiritual and healing practices. We endeavor to provide a philosophical and practical framework for students to fully express the New Story in their personal visions and lives, and to be the best humans we can be to meet the unique challenges of our time.

Our Mission

Our vision is to create a space for groups and individuals to immerse themselves in the restorative powers of the forest and return to their lives in greater harmony with the rhythms of nature. We are building a place to live, heal, and learn, so we can all step into our full potential of who we came here on earth to be, and discover how to live in a new way on this earth that truly serves the web of life.

  • Purpose
  • Ecological
  • Community type
  • Ecovillage
  • Spiritual Retreat Centers
  • Activities
  • Education
  • Experiences
  • Networking
  • Others

Commemorative dates

  • January 1, 2015
  • Started planning
  • January 1, 2015
  • Started living together
  • 2 Total members
  • Open to new members
  • Open to visitors
Total
8

How to join

The membership process for our eco-preserve community is dependent on a number of mundane and spiritual components. We would like to get to know people and see if they fit in and see if they’re willing to live in a rural wilderness setting in the higher mountains of Northern California. We’d have visitors come and propose all sorts of projects that could be accomplished but really did they supply insight or funding. But they were great and making suggestions but really showed up for work. We want people willing to participate feed on the ground hands on the tools hands in the garden etc. We are not yet set up for people who have handicaps and who are not capable of helping with the work schedules. If people do not have the ability to help we ask them to contribute money so we could let them stay in a cabin or a room in the lodge. But we can’t just let people stay anywhere they want without any contribution. It’s a very beautiful environment here and quite spectacular but we do ask people to contribute if they’re not going to work and pay for rent another incidentals. Membership entails to see how we all get along with the community. How they feel living in a rule environment,
Right now the best way would be to join our facebook group, the Wisdom Retreat Center, and also referred to as the wisdom sanctuary.
All Facebook link is;
https://www.facebook.com/groups/315433455195597/?ref=share&mibextid=KtfwRi
With this Facebook link we keep in touch with interested members from around the world with news and events most actively through Facebook.

Basic expectations or agreements for members

To visit the community, contact Adam by clicking the button to send a message, or by emailing directly at ge**********@*ol.com. Right now we are in the building phase, and are in the process of building the main structure. There is a large developed camp ground (with water, outhouses, and outdoor shower but no electric) available for RV’s, trailers, or tents, and we have 5 cabins of various sizes (fully plumbed and furnished with electric and propane) available for rent or work trade. Please be advised that we are located a couple miles down a well-maintained but hilly dirt road, and we do get snow occasionally in the winter.
And people would like to visit we recommend and appreciate if they would rent one of our cabins and we have five which they can choose from. These cabinets are named as follows, a Shambala cabin, Trinity cabin, Serenity cabin, Radiance cabin, and Geronimo cabin. Links for rentals can be viewed on either airbnb, vrbo, hip camp, or glamping. Thank you for your support as when a visitor rents a cabin a supply funds so we can continue to build more for the community members.

Primary decision-making authority

  • Single Leader or Founding Couple

One person or partnership has ultimate authority.

Decision-making process

  • Leadership Decides

A single person, couple, or small group makes most major decisions.

Governance structure

  • Founder/Leader-led

Primary authority rests with the community’s founder(s) or designated leader(s).

Conflict resolution approach

We believe in the principles of cooperative leadership, and decision-making being shared equally by everyone in the community.
This mainly refers to members as we have many visitors and we do not allow visitors who may have been there a day or a week to make important decisions that will govern the entire community of people who oversee this 200 acres.

Economic model

  • Partial Income-Sharing

Members contribute a percentage of income to community funds.

Economic scenarios for this community

  • Members need to pay fees, dues, or similar to live there on a per month or per year basis
  • There is a labor obligation

Additional economic information

Regular fees: Yes
Labor: Yes

Shared resources and amenities that are accessible to everyone in the community

Library, Outbuilding(s), Swimming pond or pool, Tractor & Farm Equipment, Fire pit, Internet

Frequency of communal meals

  • 2-5 times per week

Significant food acquisition practices

  • Locally sourced

Community activities and engagement

  • Transition Town (post-petroleum and off-grid communities.)
  • School, Educational Institute or Experience
  • Volunteer, Internship, or Apprenticeship, or WWOOF’ing
  • Organization, Resource, or Network
  • Festivals, Conferences, Events

Substance use culture

  • Substance use occurs primarily at celebrations or ceremonies

Age demographics

  • Mixed adults (few or no children)

Property status

  • Privately owned

Property owner

  • By a single individual, couple, or Family Trust

Setting

  • Rural

Countryside locations with significant distance from urban centers.

Community type

  • Ecovillage

    Integrated communities designed around ecological principles with sustainable living practices.

  • Spiritual Retreat Centers

    Residential communities focused on providing space for meditation, spiritual practice, and personal growth retreats.

Self-produced energy

  • Over 66%

Energy sources used

  • Photovoltaic Solar

Self-produced food

  • Up to 33%

Local, organic, or fair trade food

  • Over 66%
  • Land area size
    200 acres

Guest Book

Written reviews are available for plus members. Click here to upgrade.

Location

  • California, United States

The Wisdom Retreat Center

Needs and Offers

Connecting people and communities through an intentional online marketplace

Need
  • Forming Communities
2 weeks ago

A call for pioneers, trade-builders, and the four Elemental Elders to construct our first cooperative village prototype.

Intake Open: Flagship WE Network Village in Clubb, MO Call for pioneers, trade-builders, and 4 Elemental Elders to construct our first cooperative village prototype. WE Network is opening ground zero in Clubb, Missouri—our living model to build trade shops and train leadership teams for nationwide village rollout. We are building a self-sustaining, salvaged homestead ecosystem operating as a parallel society alongside existing systems. Bring your own living setup (tents, micro-campers, trucks, schoolies, tiny homes) to secure your lot within the co-op village. The 3×3 Exchange: Mental, Physical, & Spiritual Maintain your lot via our 3×3 exchange (3 hours/day, 3 days/week = 9 hours total): Mental: Classroom teaching, strategy, skill-sharing, and village instruction. Physical: Hands-on labor building active land and shop projects. Spiritual: Participation in our weekly Friday Fellowship Fire Circle. Trade Shops & Lot Placement Every member contributes directly to our local micro-economy: Trade Holders: Set up your specific service shop for the co-op. Transitioning Members: Assigned a trade lot to focus on constructing the physical shop structure. Weekend Operations: Retail open Saturdays and Sundays. Mid-week is reserved for building and life. Priority Intake: The Four Elemental Elders We are recruiting four foundational Elders: Earth Elder: Land, soil, livestock, permaculture, and natural materials. Air Elder: Building structures and Eco Junk waste-to-material upcycling. Fire Elder: Spiritual health, Natural Law, body healing, and Fire Circles. Water Elder: Resource flow, food storage, bookkeeping, and services. How to Apply 👉 Visit fffc.wtf to submit your intake request today.
Need
  • Forming Communities
2 weeks ago

Looking for: people building relational capacity, with a view to community

What’s here now: An intention, a framework developed over five years, and a programme running in central Victoria to find people to build with. No land, no group, no timeline. The question this is organised around: What makes a community of people living together sustainable over decades – where people enjoy being there, conflict is low, and the conflict that does arise gets handled in ways people value. The distinctive premise is capacity before formation. Most communities form first and build relational skill afterwards, usually under pressure. This one proposes doing it the other way round: people build the capacities first, and the group forms from people who have them. That includes a working idea about collective capacity – that a group has a ratio, and below some threshold it can’t metabolise its own conflict and starts consuming itself. Roughly: in a group of twenty, perhaps three or four with high capacity, most in the middle, and very few without. Untested, and something this project exists to find out. Governance: Sociocracy, with the intention of testing it meaningfully at scale rather than adopting it nominally. What’s actually happening: A three-week residency at a property near Castlemaine, and a practice group running before it. The medium-term aim is twenty to forty people at a rented facility. The long-term aim is a support hub sharing the framework more widely. What I’m looking for: People who want to build this capacity seriously, and who might eventually want to build something together. Not necessarily people who want to live here – the current property probably isn’t the long-term site. Happy to hear from anyone this resonates with, including people already in community who’d rather share what they’ve learned than join anything.
Offer
  • Real Estate For Sale
3 weeks ago

Unit C-2, Woodard Lane Cohousing — Olympia, WA

Join Olympia’s first and longest-running cohousing community, in a quiet West Side neighborhood 1.6 miles from downtown, backing onto a forested ravine along Schneider Creek. Unit C-2 offers 1,904 SF. Two stories, 4 bedrooms, 2 full bathrooms, and a bonus loft room on the main level. It can be lived in as one spacious family home — or split into two independent living spaces, each with its own kitchen, entrance, and effective soundproofing. Great for multigenerational households, live/work arrangements, or an owner-occupied half with a rented or shared half. Upper level: bedroom, full bath, bonus room with built-in loft bed, and an open kitchen-dining-living area with a deck facing the forest. Lower level: 3 bedrooms, full bath with dual sinks, second full kitchen, laundry room, and a second patio. Features: 2 full kitchens, radiant floor heat, stained concrete floors (bamboo upstairs), double-pane windows, bolted keyed entries at both levels, dedicated laundry, concrete patios facing the ravine, shared parking with 18 EV charging stations.   Ownership includes a Common House with a guest room, full kitchen, gathering space, and kids’ play area; a shared vegetable garden; a wood shop and bike storage; and wooded grounds with a stream path and central Green. Monthly dues are $799, covering all utilities except internet. Established in 2010, Woodard Lane is home to ~40 residents across 18 homes, with shared meals, work parties, and genuine neighborliness. Learn more about Woodard Lane Cohousing  We’re looking for a buyer who wants to participate fully in community life. $630,000. Contact Kate Greene: yo******@***il.com or text: 360-789-7587.
Need

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