How much does Rural Vermont membership cost?
Rural Vermont offers several types of membership:
Basic household Members pay dues starting at $35 per year. All are welcome to support us at a higher level; smaller donations are also welcome, but do not confer membership status.
Sustaining Members make a budget-friendly recurring monthly or annual contribution via our website or a direct deposit through their bank (more info about automated giving is here).
Working Members pay their membership dues in time, rather than money, by "working" for three hours per year. (For more info and to sign up, email Shelby.)
Partner Members are businesses and organizations that make an annual gift valued at a minimum of $1,000, and in return, Rural Vermont offers a number of visibility perks among our broad and statewide network. (Learn more here, and to sign up, email Shelby.)
If you want to join Rural Vermont but prefer not to pay your dues online, you can call the office (802-223-7222) with a credit card or mail a check to:
Rural Vermont
46 East State St
Montpelier, VT 05602
What Does Membership to Rural Vermont Mean?
Membership to Rural Vermont is a vote for an equitable local food system that benefits all Vermonters, along with a vibrant working landscape that supports generations to come. It is a vote for our efforts to advocate on behalf of Vermont farmers and the consumers who depend on them, and for our work to build resilient coalitions of related organizations and engaged individuals. But perhaps more than anything, membership to Rural Vermont means that you are one of the many who believe that this state is stronger and more vibrant when we all have equal opportunity to live in deep connection to one another and to the land that nourishes us all.
What Are the Benefits to Rural Vermont Membership?
Voting rights at annual meeting
Free or discounted admission to many events and social gatherings
Stipends for attendance to many events and State House opportunities
Direct access to all resources at our disposal
A voice in our decision-making process around specific campaigns
Our enduring gratitude ❤
Why Does Rural Vermont Need You as a Member?
Like all member-based organizations, Rural Vermont’s influence and capacity to carry out our work correlates directly to the strength of our membership. Part of this strength comes from membership dues, which comprise a significant portion of our modest annual budget. But equally, this strength derives from the simple fact that your membership means that your voice is added to the chorus of people across Vermont and beyond calling for the on-going resurgence of community-scale agriculture, for living soils and healthy humans, and for a vibrant working landscape that delivers vitality to all. Your membership and support enables us to do the work to make our communities a better place to live, to farm, to work, and to co-create the future we need.
“I want the food we eat in Vermont to care for our land, farmers, farmworkers, and communities, which is why I spend my school’s summer vacations farming and winter vacations doing phone calls for Rural Vermont. As a college student, being a Working Member has given me the flexibility to stay involved and support Rural Vermont, even if I don’t have the resources to donate.”