Sand Angel

Reply from Thomas Price

Hello, I'm Terex, steward of Sand Angel.

Sand Angel is 120 acres of high desert near Moffat, Colorado, in the San Luis Valley. The land holds two ephemeral lakes that fill when the weather allows and go quiet when it does not. The work here is water retention, soil building, managed rest, and native reseeding, with geothermal assessment and small retreat structures further out.

It is early days. One person on the land now, building toward a community of about fifteen people in ten households. The books are open and the whole project documents itself as it goes.

This space is where the organisational side takes shape over the season.

Reply from Thomas Price

## Sand Angel: First Agreements (Season 2, Week 4)

Week 4 asks each project to stand up its organisation: first agreements, and who decides what. Here is Sand Angel's first pass. It is written for a project of one steward today and a community of about fifteen tomorrow, so it is built to grow rather than to be replaced.

### Agreement 1: The land comes first

Every decision is weighed against the health of the land. If a choice would degrade soil, water, or habitat for short-term gain, we do not take it. This is the one agreement that does not change as governance matures.

### Agreement 2: Water is the organising question

Two ephemeral lakes sit at the centre of the property. Water retention, infiltration, and catchment shape where things go and what gets built. Before any structure, planting, or gathering happens, we ask what it does to the water.

### Agreement 3: Open books

All money in and out is recorded and shared openly. Self-funded and debt-free today; if the crowdpool runs, contributors can see exactly where funds went: Quonset hut assembly, water systems, geothermal assessment, regeneration experiments, basic retreat structures.

### Agreement 4: Managed rest counts as work

Resting a piece of land is a decision, not a gap in the plan. Reseeding natives and leaving ground alone are both real activities with their own records.

### Agreement 5: Documentation is part of the work

What we try, what works, and what fails all gets written down and shared. The project doubles as open reference material for other land projects.

### Who decides what

**The steward decides (today):**
- Day-to-day land work and scheduling
- Spending within the self-funded budget
- Safety and access on the property
- What gets documented and published

**Future members decide (as they join):**
- Residency and household membership
- Shared infrastructure priorities
- Retreat hosting and visitor policy
- Amendments to these agreements

**The covenant decides (always):**
Agreement 1 sits above everyone. No vote, present or future, can authorise extractive use of the land.

### The path

1. **Now:** sole stewardship, these agreements, open books, weekly posts here
2. **First members:** member input gathered before major decisions; agreements revised together
3. **Community:** a decision circle where members hold defined domains and the steward holds the land covenant

This is v0.1. Bring questions and pushback to the session or this thread; both shape v0.2.