The Highland Communities Initiative's Shared Values

Our work is based on the following beliefs and values:

We believe that the open natural lands of the Highlands are the foundation for the region's distinctive culture, landscape, economy, and way of life. 

We recognize the tradition and value of working farms and forests, and support locally-produced food and forest products and responsible land-based enterprises.

We value the visual beauty and restorative nature of healthy land, and believe that it helps build personal connections to places and a respect for land. 

We believe that vibrant communities contain a diversity of ages and income-levels, and a range of housing options for both.

We value community dialogue, communication, and inter-town cooperation and support the common ground that can bring communities together. 

We value looking ahead and proactively planning our future.

We respect the volunteer leadership that serves the region's communities and recognize how important they are to the future of the region.

We believe that building widespread community awareness will result in increased civic involvement and action, and empower people to play a greater role in protecting land and acting as a steward of our natural resources.

We believe that people will make better decisions if they have information and support, and we respect people's choices made on informed decisions.