Page 26 - C.A.L.L. #42 - Spring 2017

honest sharing and reflection on all issues which individuals or the community find themselves
confronting. Inside the forum, members of the community reflect and provide feedback with a loving
heart, which helps foster self-knowledge, self-acceptance, trust and empowerment by learning through
community what is difficult or impossible to learn on ones own.

Shared decision making

Tamera’s approach to decision-making offers an alternative to what would conventionally be considered
personal choices made alone (or in a nuclear family). For example, having and raising children is a
collective decision, though of course in deep and caring participation with the individuals (i.e. parents or
caregivers) involved. Raising children takes the support, energy and resources of the whole village, and
this is particularly true for Tamera, where raising children is literally shared by all in many different ways in
genuine and mutual support. Children in the community have a number of adults who they can consider
as their parents, and issues of children’s development and wellbeing are discussed and decided upon
collectively. Children also live together in a children’s village, supervised by a group of adults and most
are home schooled (together). The aim is to educate children so they can trust adults and find safety in
adults and others by being nurtured in mind, body and spirit to trust and feel safety. This approach
demands the adults’ self-development and commitment to live by the basic ethics of speaking your
truth, providing genuine mutual support and actively participating in the community and the world.

As mentioned above, personal and interpersonal issues are dealt with in the forum. For more formal
discussions on specific issues there are a number of carrier circles on specific topics (e.g. water,
children, etc.) with around 20 members. These carrier circles discuss topics in-depth until a consensus is
more or less reached, after which an issue
can be passed to the Plenary, where the
entire community can provide input before
a decision is made. In addition, there are
also councils (eg. womens’ council, finance
council, guests council, etc.) with 5 to 7
members each. These councils deal with
assigned topics in great detail in order to
come to a position on a topic.

One of the chief impressions that I got from
all the systems and structures used in
Tamera, is not only their overall complexity
but more so their great flexibility and
constant organic evolution. The structures
Forum - creating transparency and trust in community. are in constant flux to account for individual
circumstances and needs, community
needs and the ever-changing composition
and character of the community itself (including generational changes). Indeed, the only constant is
change. This is also reflected in the fact that approximately 30% of work (on average) is put into
community building, social relations, education.

Reaching out for global peace

Tamera also operates a research group as part of the International Global Peace Network (IGP –
currently with approximately 15 people working full-time on it from Tamera). It is based on the vision of a
strong outreach program developed in the community’s early days, initially with extensive involvement in
peace work in Israel-Palestine. Tamera sees itself as a living laboratory of alternative and peaceful,
cooperative existence of humans irrespective of cultural background, religion, sex, color or creed.

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