We are committed to the Wildwood Path being a school that can support participants, staff, land, and society over the long term. We honor all of the hard work that goes into this program from participants, elders, staff, and the more-than-human-world, and we want to celebrate one another for all of our contributions.
To cover program costs and continue to make sure The Wildwood Path exists and remains accessible to the folks who are called to join, we operate within a nuanced and evolving economic philosophy that seeks to transform the economic systems of our world while investing in abundance. We invite multiple forms of capital, reciprocity, and creativity into our designs for handling the costs and contributions of running this school. Please read about our philosophy here!
For our long term cohorts, we invite participants to contribute financially along a sliding scale, understanding that at times extenuating circumstances (such as having unusual sources of income like familial support or inheritances– or unusually draining expenses such as having many dependents) may influence individual cases. We trust that all participants want our circle to thrive financially as well as in other ways, and are are happy to discuss program costs with each participant to ensure a good match.
We calculate “break even” costs for our cohorts at three levels.
- One is the minimum out-of-pocket costs that Wildwood has to cover in order for this program to run, and that number assumes that all staff, mentors, and elders volunteer 100% of their time. This works out to about $150/participant/month or $1,350/year.
- The second level is the level at which we are able to pay some of our staff minimum wage for some of the time they spend teaching and mentoring. This still includes a large amount of volunteer time, but taking in this amount of financial capital enables the staff to continue in their roles for the moment, thanks to their generosity and flexibility. This works out to about $350/participant/month, or $3,150 per year.
- The third level is the level where we can actually pay our staff living wages that ensure they can devote themselves to this work and have some security in their lives. We honestly don’t even really know what this number would be, because we’ve never come close to reaching it and our staff are so generous that they haven’t asked us to. However, a ballpark estimate would be about $1600/participant/month or 14,400/year. (Still less than I’m paying for grad school, says Trevanna!). If you are a person with access to larger amounts of financial capital and you could contribute at this level or beyond, your financial contribution would help ensure the resilience of our school, the accessibility of our programs, and the security of our staff. We gratefully accept your contributions!
With mutual acceptance into their cohort(s), each member chats with a staff member and then reviews their unique circumstances before proposing a combination of financial and non-financial capital contributions that bring their total up to whichever break even point they have agreed they will meet (or somewhere in between). Each cohort member commits to paying the full cost for the year (either in a lump sum or in monthly installments) regardless of attendance at specific events or gatherings each month. When an agreement about contributions is reached that works for everyone, the staff and participant both sign the contract and we dive right in to teaching and learning together! In addition to attending to program costs, everyone also chips in by bringing potluck food, helping to take care of our spaces, and offering other forms of support to build authentic community and contribute authentically to co-creating a healthy culture!
We could use help with a variety of work/trade tasks throughout the year:
- Taking Photos
- Organizing Photos
- Hanging Flyers
- Video Editing and Production
- Web Updating
- Landscaping
- Building Projects (Sheds, Yurt, etc)
- Splitting and Stacking Wood
- Cleaning and Tending Program Spaces
- Gathering and Preparing Natural Materials
- Transcribing Video
- Trades for certain electronics, camping gear, building materials, office supplies, and food are often welcome!
The Wildwood Path also offers Indigenous Tuition Waivers and Reparations Awards. Get in touch if you are interested in one of these or if you would like to donate to support the fund!
Through sharing abundance among all of us in our community, we can come together to support each other and make this dream a reality for everyone.
Sliding Scale Contributions
| Total Household Income | Program Cost (month/year) |
|---|---|
| Under $15,000* | $200/$1800 |
| $15,000 - $20,000 | $250/$2025 |
| $20,000 - $25,000 | $275/$2250 |
| $25,000 - $30,000 | $300/$2700 |
| $30,000 - $35,000 | $325/$2925 |
| $35,000 - $50,000 | $350/$3150 |
| $50,000 - $75,000 | $400/$3600 |
| $75,000 - $100,000 | $450/$4050 |
| $100,000 - $150,000 | $500/$4950 |
| $150,00 - $200,000 | $550/$4950 |
| $200,00 - $250,000 | $600/$5400 |
| Above $250,000* | $650/$5850+ |
Thank you for your support for regenerative economy!
Trevanna has been a source of inspiration and direction for my primitive skills learning journey. Her events have brought members of the community together to work on those skills . She lives what she teaches and is a great role model.
Read MoreGabby - Canaan, ME
Trevanna is one of the most passionate, motivated, loving, and deeply rooted people I know. I am always incredibly inspired after spending time with her, and she has a way of reaching every person individually on some level. She mentors with profound grace and it is truly an art to witness!
Read MoreDarilynn - Boulder, CO
Trevanna’s daily work and teaching is infused with appropriate, healthy mega-doses of singing, movement arts, silent reflection and prayer. While working with her, one often feels like every step and word contributes to a deeper eco-cultural relationship and community- building, an evolving process of becoming part of a world beyond and greater than ourselves. Trevanna is a friend to birds, mushrooms, and children. She has a gift for making fascinating and deep nature lore, cultural artifacts and practical wilderness skills accessible and fun to people of all ages. She can communicate and successfully resolve the struggles of individual children as well as more complex social dynamics. Trevanna manages learning, teaching, and collaborating with students, colleagues and parents with immaculate tact and grace.
Read MoreMaria - Washington, Maine
I had the good fortune to work with Trevanna at Camp Forest last summer, where she was the Assistant Director. Trevanna harmonizes the essences of a true naturalist and a true teacher. She is knowledgeable about the natural world in general and the local, specific, raw natural world around us with its flora, fauna, and their properties, interrelationships and practical applications. Trevanna personifies the openness, curiosity, intimate receptiveness to and responsibility for the natural world which make for a genuine, not just academic, seeker of knowledge. And if that wasn’t enough, she shares her knowledge with such humility, compassion and enthusiasm that those around her are naturally inspired to want to learn, and participate.
Read More
Trevanna has a deep and true respect for the extensive diversity of learning styles that exist among students. She adds wit and humor to her teachings while upholding the integrity and significance of the skills.
Read MoreSable - Portland, Maine
My experience with the Wildwood Path community left an indelible impression on me– as a guest, I felt honored, respected, welcomed, and ultimately embraced by a group of inclusive souls whose eagerness to learn and connect to the land and each other felt deeply rooted. Meals were lovingly cooked and shared, songs were ample, and a general sense of common heart-centered intention infused the space. I left knowing that Trevanna, Kyla, and the various guest teachers’ combined earth wisdom is supporting each of the participants through their journey of deepening into ritual and earth based skills. I can’t wait to return!
Read MoreWendy - Boulder, CO
Mae - Boston, MA
Trevanna has a beautiful gift for mentoring Earth connection. Her gift for mentoring arises from her genuine and passion filled relationship to the Earth. She has this incredible ability, in which she is able to bring her community together and get them excited about being in relationship with the Earth; along with the practical/spiritual tools to help them deepen this relationship.
Read MoreJahan - Bridgton, ME
Trevanna is a powerful leader, in the most authentic meaning of the term. She holds holistic awareness for groups with love, compassion, curiosity, and passion. She leads by creating space for others, and expects and seeks wisdom in each group.
Read MoreRocky - Whitefield, ME