February Trustees update — Rooting down, Sprouting up: New Programmes, Inner Listening and Money
As we are slowly awakening from our winter slumbers, a lot has been happening in the quiet time of hibernation. Just like the mystic Rumi says: ‘And don’t think the garden loses its ecstasy in winter. It’s quiet, but the roots are down there riotous.’ And so we would like to let our riotous roots’ first shoots unfurl into the world with our short update about what we have been working on over the past months.
In this update we would like to share with you how we:
envision our new workshops, retreats and other experiences
aim to hold our organisation in the Spirit of the Core Impulse of our Community
aspire to work together with other community organisations and individuals
plan to finance our new endeavours
And in unison with the opening of the first springflowers all of this is currently unfolding beautifully here at Ecovillage Findhorn. We are looking forward to opening our doors to the world once more!
Snowdrops blossoming in the Original Garden
Workshops, retreats and experiences from April 2026
At the moment we are moving from the first ideas and designs to a clearer picture of what our future programmes will look like. A small team is actively shaping our first offerings, which are branching out in new directions from the ancestral roots of workshops and retreats offered by Findhorn Foundation. We are planning to hold our first Signature Programmes in April 2026, building on our long lineage of experimenting and learning in this transformational field.
To facilitate our programmes we are working together with other community based organisations and individuals at Ecovillage Findhorn and beyond. Together we are exploring how we can make best use of all our community’s riches: beautiful venues, cosy accommodation, skilled facilitators, well working logistics, inspiring communications and more… We are also making plans on how all the wonderful programmes and initiatives that share our ecosystem of ‘Many Gateways, One Garden’ here at Ecovillage Findhorn.
Representatives of various organisations working together at Ecovillage Findhorn. From left to right: Christine Lines, Sarah Mason, Dorota Owen, Jonathan Caddy, Marilyn Hamilton, Mari Hollander, Judy McAllister, Annie Crawford, Dell Horler.
While we are creating our new programmes, we will continue to hold our free global offerings, such as our daily online meditations, Weekly Inspiration Emails and inspiring posts on Social Media. We are deeply grateful that online technologies make it possible for all of us to regularly come together within our global Network of Light.
Inner Listening and Deep Alignment
The inner chamber of the Light of Findhorn Sanctuary, picture by Graham Meltzer
As we are preparing to open the gates to our new programmes, we have been spending time together to intentionally listen to our still, small voice within and to align with the core impulse of this place. Every Friday we gather for a meditation in the Light of Findhorn Sanctuary to attune to the Field of the Educational Impulse. Likewise before we start our meetings we attune to one another, our focus and the greater Field that holds what we gather to explore, discuss and consider the options for responding to the circumstances and needs of our times.
On a practical level this has inspired us to launch a combination of in‑person focus groups and guided online surveys to help sense‑check assumptions, strengthen the emerging business plan, and ensure that plans are grounded in the lived realities, capacities, and aspirations of partner organisations across Ecovillage Findhorn. The intention is to support coherence, reduce fragmentation, and build trust as activity unfolds.
Mathijs Mulder-Barge and Sara Trevelyan looking happy after a community working session.
Finance and donations
As you might know we set up an ‘Educational Support Fund’ to sponsor individuals to participate in our programmes. While we plan to continue this in the future, we have also asked our regular donors to give us permission to redirect their monthly donations towards the ‘Curriculum Development Fund’. This will enable us to create new programmes as well as supporting people to attend them. Many of our donors have been very encouraging and agreed to put their donations towards the creation of our new offerings. This is a great help for us during the development phase, which we envision will lead us into a financially sustainable future.
We have been invited to connect with the spirit and form of the beautiful Park Building as a possible base camp for our educational endeavors sometime in the autumn of 2026. This possibility brings back great memories of the early days when the Findhorn Foundation’s first workshops were held here.
Park Building, the place where our community’s first educational programmes were held.
Summary
This current phase of the re-emergence of FF SCIO can be understood as a root‑building stage — aligning education design, governance evolution, financial stewardship, and inter‑organisational relationships while we continue to do due diligence around both opportunities and constraints. The intention is to strengthen trust, clarity, and collaboration across Park Ecovillage Findhorn and beyond, so that what grows next is resilient, complementary and collaborative.
With Love and Gratitude,
the Findhorn Foundation SCIO Trustees: Angus Marland, Judy McAllister, Liza Hollingshead, Marilyn Hamilton, and Sara Tevelyan 🌍✨
