OIKA FAQs

We know, it can be confusing. But continuity is slippery by nature! The truth of it is, Oika is used interchangeably among all three, except we tend to avoid the word "organization" (we like "organism" better). Put simply, Oika is the term we use to refer to the Creative Life-Force itself, the principles and practices of engagement with the Creative Life-Force, and the loosely organized group of Cultural Creatives that perpetuate the Creative Life-Force through their efforts. It's all relational: the Creative Life-Force (Oika) flows through Oika practices into Oika people creating Oika realities. 

Yes, Oika is for everyone! 

It is often the case that a particular kind of sensitive person is attracted to Oika. This is frequently creative types including deep thinkers and systems innovators...and we love that! However, this apparent "filtering" is more a reflection of systems which have stifled the creative life-force than any discernment on our part. To counter this, we are working hard to build entry points from multiple perspectives and at multiple levels. So find your entry point and come on in! Or let us know how we can help.

Oika is a direct response to the volatile times we are in. Similarly, Oika Cultural Creatives find each other not despite these crises but because of their refusal to live without the creative life-force amidst these crises. When this happens - when the creative life-force is engaged during such volatility - otherwise unimaginable pathways of potential begin to reveal themselves. 

Oika is the courage to be just the right amount of optimistic in the face of darkness. With a deep-time lens, Oika maintains a grounded understanding that the only way for humankind to get out of this mess is to enlist the creative life-force itself. So if we are serious about the responsibility that has been handed to us (and we are), our only option is to bring on the light.

There are so many good ones, right?!* Oika honors ancient, indigenous, and/or contemporary wisdom practices that have fearlessly maintained right-relationship over time and throughout many corners of the world. Sharing in this responsibility to steward our  planet, Oika zooms out beyond delineated boundaries, dives into the depths of cosmic science, acknowledges contemporary circumstances, and embraces possibilities of the future. Oika works along this entangled continuum, stretching across and within the arts, sciences, technology, economics, and spirituality to enact real, on-the-ground change. More than an idea or practice, Oika escorts us into into a beautiful, abundant reality by inviting us all to become it. 

*There are so many good ones, but there are also some that remain at surface level. Oika is simple and accessible to all but it is also a life-long journey. After all, we have 13.8 billion years of ecological intelligence to catch up on!

Not at all! Oika wants everyone to be comfortable (which is not to diminish the value of healthy discomfort). But the fact that this is not the case is why we have work to do. Inspiration and wisdom from nature does not necessitate that you give up modern, creature comforts. However, as in all noteworthy circumstances, there is a paradox at play: the more one lives into Oika, the more one feels fulfilled. And the more one feels fulfilled, the less meaningless accoutrements one wants. 

The reality is, it's all nature, we have just become disconnected from that awareness. Oika is about re-tethering us to our primary nature and the intelligence it provides...and then applying that intelligence to our present-day lives. 

"When you are in right-relation, what is good for you is good for the world." --RB.

Thanks for asking! A great first step is to follow Rich on YouTube - this is where a lot of Oika principles and practices will be accessible publicly. You can also check out our introductory Oika 101 podcasts and/or join a live-streamed New Moon call; link at bottom of Home page. 

If you have an idea for an Oika Project, please reach out! And anyone at any time can join us in sharing their own Earth Stories with the world; tag us on social media so we can join in!