Colorado 2022 Rainbow Gathering

Those who gather talk about consensus a lot. There are a number of different understandings about how consensus takes place within the community of those who participate in Rainbow Gatherings.  In my humble opinion, too many people only involve themselves in the circle/council/counsel process for vision council when we decide were to go.  I think that leaves us as a family lacking in practice for how to discuss and reach things in a positive and loving manner.   That being said, there are different ways that consensus can happen. In a more formal council/counsel/circle is one way, but truly the number of people who participate in these are a fraction of those who attend gatherings, do the work at gatherings, and believe that gatherings are the practice for a new world order of peace, love, and cooperation. So how else does consensus happen? One way is what I call "consensus by foot."  This is when people use their feet to take them where they want to or don't want to be.

In my humble opinion, the gathering needs more kitchens like it needs more dogs, but for some  reason, everyone wants to focalize a kitchen. That being said, being part of the kitchen provides an amazing growing, learning experience on working collectively and provide safe and healthy food in the woods. However..... The reality of focalizing a kitchen goes something like this. Main Supply won't provide all the food for cooking if you're feeding the gathering at large - either off-the-rails or at dinner circle. This means you provide much of the free food in the woods. While some kitchens have a donation can on the counter for after people have been fed, in reality most of the cost of food is born by those running the kitchen. Bring 500 to 1,000 pounds of food to get started. You'll need to provide pots and pans for cooking, 5-gallon water buckets for dish washing, filtered drinking water for you and your crew and hopefully for all gatherers. You'll need to chop wood,

A message primarily for my family at the Rainbow Gathering who do not have a penis. If you're drinking enough water to stay hydrated, you're probably peeing a lot. Now when you pee, hopefully you'll be peeing behind a tree or a bush or somewhere in the woods (Not the shitter). If you're like me, you like to wipe after you pee. But then you have some slightly used toilet paper to dispose of - and NOT by burying it under two inches of duff. Some one will have to pick up that tissue - let that someone be you. I've taken to bringing extra wash clothes or bandanda to the gathering. I keep one in my day pack at all times. Then when I need to pee, I wipe with a washcloth. I put it in a plastic bag in my pack. The next day I grab a new one. The old one gets rinsed out and left to dry for a day or two. 4 or 5 wash clothes or bandanas will last me 3 weeks using this method. The other option is to carry all that used TP to the nearest shitter and toss it in. Or burn it in a fi

The Mini Manual has been around for decades and has seen some updates from time to time, but it contains all the basic info. This is a great document to make copies of to bring to the gathering. Everyone needs this information and accessing the Internet at a gathering is a tough thing to do. Find the Mini Manual 2014 edition online .

Circle on July 4 Copied from Steven Hager's Blog The silent prayer/meditation for world peace is the culmination of our attempts to create a peaceful and harmonious gathering. Starting as the sun rises on the morning of July 4 th , the gathering will become silent. As people wake up and get ready for their day, most people respect the silence. As people are so inclined they head to main meadow to pray for world peace, do yoga for world peace, meditate for world peace and all sorts of other mellow and silent manifestations of creating the energy of world peace and the healing of the planet. . We hold this peace in preparation for the arrival of our children. The children's parade (meet at Kid Village or Dirty Kid Village a few hours before noon if you have kids and want them in the parade ) will come into the center of the circle. Please hold the silence until all the children (even the ones at the end of the parade) have made it into the center of the circle. Our

For people with special needs, ask for Handicamp - a space for people with mobility and other related disabilities with lots of folks willing to help you make the most of your gathering experience. However, keep in mind that not all people who need close in parking at Handicamp will be able to get it as the lots do fill up.  Sometimes our ability to maintain Handicamp parking is constrained by the United States Forest Service. But the situation varies year to year and even day to day. Providing access for those who need it is one of the hardest things to manage at the gathering. We often work something out, then have to change it for a variety of reasons.  My best recommendation is arrive earlier as the later you come, the more challenging the parking situation tends to become. The gathering proper can be 1/2 to 2 miles away from vehicle access and may involve hills. There is usually a drop-off point where people and gear can stage at the trail head even if parking is further out. Wh

One of the many questions that come in regards to gathering, is how to I handling menstruating at the gathering. The question really becomes what products do I use to capture my menstrual flow that does is easy to manage. The first key is that there is no trash service at the gathering. If you bring something to the gathering, then you are responsible to take it home with you.  That means planning ahead is key. Many sanitary napkins are made with petroleum based plastic products and therefore are not biodegradable.  Non-biodegradable items need to be hauled out of the gathering. And who wants petroleum products on one of the most sensitive areas of their body?  Not me! To learn more about how to select products that are biodegradable, click here .  Make sure not to buy tampons with plastic applicators. Cardboard is OK. If you purchase plant-only based biodegradable sanitary napkins, panty liners, and tampons, you can put them in the shitter where they will decompose over the next year

Check out this video made by Connect Culture.