Section 2
Requirements

2.1 Community Conscience Advocacy: CCA, CCPA

In the following two sections we describe two levels of Community Conscience Advocacy: the "Administrator" and the "Advocate". Under the customary hierarchy of governmental authority, you might suppose that the Community Conscience Program Administrator (CCPA) would oversee the people who work in the Community Conscience Advocate (CCA) position; that the latter would report to the former. This will likely be the case when the program is initiated, but ideally, in accord with a true bottom-up paradigm, it would be the Advocates who were the real program leaders – that is to say, within their own communities. The Program Administrator would serve as a coordinator of sorts, and perhaps as an intermediary to public officials. In the long term the Administrator's job might well be eliminated, because individual communities would have established the expertise to continue the program on their own. They would have developed material and spiritual self-sufficiency. (Spiritual in this context means expertise in handling consciousness.) The community as a whole would maintain skills, resources and knowledge that could be passed on to subsequent generations of community members. New CCAs would come from within their own ranks, from the younger generations.

Listed below are the minimum qualifications for the CCPA and CCA positions. They are followed by a set of minimums for the community itself, the socio-geographic environs where a CCA would live and work. Community minimums are needed because the program is designed to be preventive rather than reactive. If there doesn't already exist some degree of community conscience in the place where the CCA takes up residence, or good potential for developing it there, then the job will not be much different from other purely reactive outreach programs – chasing intractable problems rather than cultivating and expanding on something that is already fairly livable, positive and good. Because of the fluctuating demographics of modern suburbia – the non-permanence of some populations, the closed isolation of others – and because of the prevailing philosophy of the current generation of urban planners, there are many residential enclaves (actually most) that are not suited to the CCA program. The manner in which they've been developed and populated has created conditions that are not consistent with CCA requirements. Various examples of unsuitable communities are described in Section 4. We're not abandoning those areas, but we must begin with a solid platform.

2.2 Community Conscience Program Administrator Qualifications

1.  Spiritually evolved; well developed consciousness; some familiarity with the philosophy and techniques
     of spiritual development.
2.  Practices a recognized program of self-development or mind-body integration such as meditation
     (see Sections 3.2, 3.6-4), or possesses an innate integration of spirit and activity.
3.  Managerial instinct; good people skills; tactful; previous experience or training desirable.
4.  Some degree of intuitive perception.
5.  Strong intellect.
6.  Strong desire for public service.
7.  Strong desire to educate.
8.  College degree desirable but not mandatory.
9.  Strong writing skills; can produce promotional material.
10.  Strong speaking skills for presentations desirable.
11.  Knowledge of sources for program funding helpful.
12.  Some knowledge of preventive approach to health, environment and crime desirable.
13.  Prior experience or training in gardening, agriculture, knowledge of native plants and animals or
       indigenous knowledge helpful.

2.3 Community Conscience Advocate Qualifications

1.  Spiritually evolved; well developed consciousness. Recommended by spiritual assessment board (see
     below).
2.  Practices a recognized self-development or mind-body integration routine such as meditation, or possesses
     an innate integration of spirit and activity.
3.  Committed to permanent, lifetime residency in the community he/she will serve.
4.  Prior demonstration of responsible community outreach desirable; such as social work, coaching, teaching,
     civic group participation, volunteering, church service (including clergy) or legal work.
5.  Managerial instinct.
6.  Outgoing, friendly, sociable.
7.  Courteous, discrete, dignified.
8.  Leadership skills:  forthright, bold; tolerant but principled.
9.  Well-developed character; compassionate.
10.  Some degree of intuitive perception.
11.  Strong intellect, keen discrimination.
12.  Strong ability to discern character traits in others desirable.
13.  Strong desire for public service.
14.  Strong desire to educate.
15.  College degree desirable but not mandatory.
16.  Some knowledge of preventive approach to health, environment and crime desirable.
17.  Prior experience or training in gardening, agriculture, knowledge of native plants and animals or indigenous
       knowledge helpful.

2.4 Spiritual Assessment Board

Initially the recommendation of CCA candidates to communities should be handled by a spiritual assessment board. The board itself would consist of other CCAs and CCPAs, perhaps augmented by respected clergymen, recognized spiritual leaders and teachers from outside the program. Ideally, after a community has had an Advocate in place, and has become cohesive and spiritually evolved in a collective sense, the elders of the community, working with their CCA, could determine the qualifications of additional candidates, should they desire to have more than one, or should they wish to train young people to become future CCAs. Note, however, that it may take a generation or even longer before there is sufficient spiritual development in the community for this to be possible.

2.5 Minimum Community Requirements

1.  Community size should be roughly in the range of 100 to 500 households. The area of the community
     would vary depending on geography. As a rule of thumb, no home should be more than 1 mile from any
     other home.
2.  Detached single or multifamily (2, 3, or 4 family) dwellings preferred. Trailers okay. Large apartment buildings
     and large town house or "garden apartment" developments generally not desirable. (See the example in
     Section 5.9.)
3.  CCPA residence – distance to office less than 4 miles – walkable or bikeable. The CCPA could reside outside
     of the communities that he/she serves.
4.  CCA residence – works out of home if possible, otherwise able to walk/bike 1 mile or less to his office. The
     CCA resides within the community he/she serves.
5.  Availability of public transportation desirable for trips outside the community. Local taxi service is acceptable.
6.  Space for community gardening mandatory (minimum of 1/2 acre). It's desirable that the use of the land be free
     for residents who grow vegetables, herbs or cut flowers for local distribution. It's also desirable that the land
     be suitable for organic cultivation.
7.  Residences should have easy walking access (less than 1/2 mile) to connected green space. (See Section 4.)
8.  Community landscape should have a generally open feel. It's desirable that there not be extensive chain link, or
     other security fencing around or between dwellings and properties. The perimeter of the community itself should
     be open and not fenced.
9.  Natural landscaping around dwellings is desirable: not barren, but not office park artificial either. It's desirable
     that the community be fairly well integrated with the local ecology, including a distribution of mature trees and
     native shrubs, nesting spots for birds, wildlife friendly habitat, nearby water source, not overrun with invasive or
     nonnative species.
10.  Environmentally comfortable; not afflicted with recurring plagues of insect pests, diseases, vermin, long
      droughts.
11.  Good availability of clean water. Municipal water is acceptable.
12.  Reasonably quiet daytime. Very quiet nighttime. No major highways nearby. No obvious traffic or airplane
       roar. No obvious industrial noise. (See Section 4.4)
13.  Low light pollution desirable. Should be able to see nighttime stars.
14.  No extremes of poverty or wealth. Average household is moderately well-off relative to the region. Material
       elements for maintaining quality of life (food, water, energy) are reasonably available to all residents. At least
       some of the residents should have excess disposable income or other discretionary resources for funding of
       special projects.
15.  Nearby industry, factories, offices, markets, transportation hubs okay so long as they don't create a noise or
       pollution problem.
16.  Stable, non-transient population desirable. There should be some potential for establishing a permanent,
       multigenerational community of people.
17.  Well behaved population desirable: generally friendly, courteous, respectful. (See Section 4.5)
18.  Not a high crime district. Passes the "Open Window Test". (See Section 4.5.1)
19.  Not a gambling district. Passes the "Lottery Outlet Density Test". (See Section 4.5.2)

Continue .....