About Us
Mission, history, about us, background, mission statement, founders
The Northwest Earth Institute is recognized as a national leader in developing innovative programs that empower individuals and organizations to protect Earth. These programs emphasize individual responsibility, the importance of a supportive community, and the dual need to walk lightly on and to take action for the earth. By reaching out to people in their workplace, home, faith center, neighborhood, and community, NWEI provides easy access to tools for individual and cultural change.
To underscore the powerful effect of personal change, NWEI holds the following mission:
Inspiring people to take responsibility for Earth.
NWEI has spent the past 16 years motivating individuals to:
• examine and transform personal values and habits,
• accept responsibility for Earth, and
• act on that commitment.
A Process That Fosters Change
NWEI develops innovative programs in Portland, transports them to Northwest communities where they are offered through our chapters or local volunteer groups, and replicates them in other regions through autonomous groups.
NWEI courses have been offered by local organizers in all 50 states and Canada. Total enrollment in the discussion courses exceeds 100,000 known participants, with thousands others taking the course with recycled course books. These courses have been offered in hundreds of businesses and organizations. NWEI’s work has been featured in two PBS documentaries, Affluenza and Escape from Affluenza, as well as a National Public Radio series, Deep Ecology for the 21st Century.
Several years ago, employees at a Portland architectural firm took a number of NWEI courses during noontime meetings. Shortly thereafter, a grassroots sustainability committee formed among the employees. Later, sustainability became a part of the firm’s business plan, with a commitment to fund both education and research and development. One principal of the firm, who has also served as CFO for 16 years, says, "We are really moving ahead. I can’t say enough about the positive momentum created by NWEI’s discussion courses. They were a major catalyst for us.”
-Carsten Henningsen Portfolio 21
