Social Change Sanctuary

A refuge of healing, justice, and ecological renewal is taking root. Will you help it grow? In the heart of the Southern California Coastal Mountains—on one of the state’s most endangered water basins—a powerful effort to protect us all is coming together. Held by Chumash elder Ma’ye’wo , a dolphin clan wisdom-keeper and guardian of land and community, this interspiritual, intercultural land regeneration project is restoring sacred relationship to place. Amid climate collapse and extractive industry, the Cuyama Regenerative Land Project offers something radically different: ✨ A living school ✨ A ceremonial village ✨ A bioregional refuge rooted in ancestral wisdom and climate justice Since April 2025, a growing circle of spiritual activists, regenerative farmers, artists, and builders has gathered monthly with Ma’ye’wo to restore the land and co-create a educational center and sanctuary for healing and resilience. And we’re just getting started. Ma’ye’wo’s vision is bold and deeply rooted: To create a land-based sanctuary where people from all backgrounds can gather in ceremony, rebuild relationships, restore ecosystems, and prepare for a future grounded in reciprocity and care. 📍 Why Cuyama? This land is not just symbolic—it’s strategic. Cuyama Valley is the site of a high-stakes water struggle that will shape the future of groundwater rights across California. As corporations hoard water and soils turn to dust, this project offers a counter-story: 🦫 Beavers returning to restore the watershed 🌧 Rain dances and water blessings 🌾 Food grown with reverence 🔥 Fire tended as sacred ally Our Next Phase: A Living Sanctuary We are now raising funds for a multi-phase restoration plan that will: Ensure Ma’ye’wo can remain on the land in dignity Restore native habitat and water systems (including beaver reintroduction, rainwater catchment, and native planting) Host seasonal gatherings like trading festivals, rain dances, and interfaith ceremonies Establish a community land trust and intergenerational learning center rooted in Indigenous and earth-based traditions ✨ Will You Help Build This Sacred Refuge? Who We Are This sanctuary is being co-created by a growing circle of earth stewards, cultural workers, spiritual activists, regenerative farmers, and artists committed to land-based healing, justice, and renewal. At the heart of this work is Chumash elder Ma’ye’wo , a dolphin clan wisdom-keeper and long-time guardian of land, water, and community. Since spring 2025, Ma’ye’wo has opened his land and teachings to those ready to listen, tend, and build a living future grounded in reverence and reciprocity. This vision is stewarded by the Social Change Sanctuary , a collective devoted to cultivating sacred spaces for ceremony, grief tending, climate resilience, and collective transformation. We serve as a bridge between movements, generations, and spiritual traditions—supporting interspiritual, intercultural education rooted in right relationship with land and one another. This project would not be possible without the love, labor, and prayers of those who show up month after month to work, witness, and weave. With special thanks to: Alison Avigayil Ramer, Armadillo, Bex Michaelson, Cynthia, Debra Hopkins, Eden Forest Collective, Hannah Raye , Joaquin the Queen, Leora Karoll, Michael Kriegsman, Quail Springs, Sage Stoneman and the many others whose hands have planted, whose feet have walked, and whose hearts have opened to this land. Together, we are seeding a sanctuary of renewal—where land, culture, and ceremony converge to nourish the generations to come. 👉 Learn more: socialchangesanctuary.org

Support the emergence of the Social Change Sanctuary