About VEI

Vermont Earth Institute (VEI) is a statewide non-profit that educates and supports Vermonters to reduce consumption and adopt environmentally sustainable practices in their homes, workplaces and communities.

VEI's discussion courses and educational programs bring people together, raise their ecological awareness and facilitate profound change in values, habits and actions in caring for the environment.

VEI believes that grassroots activism can shift American attitudes and behaviors, helping people to live lighter, leading to an improved quality of life and a more just, ecologically-based economic system.

Founded in 1994, VEI has six part-time staff (in Fairlee, Hartland, Montpelier, Burlington, and Brattleboro) and a cadre of 45 volunteers.  Our affiliation with pre-eminent national sustainable living programs, the National Earth Institute Network and the Center For a New American Dream, enables us to offer Vermonters proven, successful programs.

VEI Program areas

VEI's discussion courses and educational programs bring people together, raise their ecological awareness and facilitate profound change in values, habits and actions in caring for the environment.

DISCUSSION COURSES
The courses consist of self-facilitated, small group meetings, based on anthologies of the best writings on seven thought-provoking topics: Voluntary Simplicity, Choices for Sustainable Living, Deep Ecology, Globalization, Discovering A Sense Of Place, Healthy Children – Healthy Planet, and Global Warming. The courses build community, increase understanding and motivate participants to take action to preserve the integrity of their communities and the natural environment. VEI has launched over 425 discussion groups in 70 communities in the past seven years.

SUSTAINABLE LIVING NETWORKS 
These community forums in Randolph, Montpelier, Brattleboro, Charlotte, Rutland, Burlington, and the Upper Valley are locally organized and offer education, support, and action for discussion course graduates and others.

HOME ECO-PARTIES & WORKPLACE CARBON LITE WORKSHOPS
Adapted for home or workplace use, these gatherings are a means to share strategies to reduce energy use, toxics, and waste. They are based on a checklist of items that is tailored to fit the workplace or participant’s concerns.

SIMPLE LIVING LENDING LIBRARY
The lending library is a collection of books and videos on the subjects of simple and sustainable living. The collection has been in residence at eighty public libraries in Vermont and the Upper Valley since 2000.

OUTREACH
Annual Sustainable Living Celebration: One-day event with workshops, presentations and activities.
Speakers on the environment and sustainability: Nationally known speakers and VEI staff.
Communication:  Quarterly newsletter and e-news bulletins and web site www.vtearthinstitute.org

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VEI HISTORY

VEI was founded in 1994 as Vermont Citizens for Sustainable Population to promote a better understanding of how population growth and resource consumption affect the environment and the quality of human life. Early activities included teacher workshops and school curriculum development on population and consumption issues. Our search for effective programs to motivate people to reduce their natural resource consumption led us to the Northwest Earth Institute’s (NWEI) community discussion courses.

In 2000 we became a “sister” institute to NWEI and changed our name to Vermont Earth Institute. As a leader among the twenty sister earth institutes, VEI and NWEI organized a three-day retreat in 2002 for 80 East Coast volunteers including 13 Vermonters.

Following NWEI’s model of organizing the Oregon Natural Step Network, VEI organized and collaborated on several sustainable business practices workshops in 2000-2003. Today, our workplace outreach is through our discussion courses. VEI has six part-time staff and forty-five volunteers. VEI has organized 425 discussion course groups in the last seven years.