With each other. With the land. And across generations.
These practices exist.
They are working.
Most of the world has never heard of them.
Beginning in 2026, ELI Earthwalk becomes a three-year journey across twelve countries to find them, participate in them, document them, and share them with the world.
Not as observers.
As participants.
As a bridge between what is working and the people who need it.
3 years. 12 countries. 100+ practices. 1 Living Library.
Walking ancient paths.
Sitting in fireside circles.
Sharing meals with strangers who become teachers.
Learning from elders.
Practicing movement at sunrise.
Joining stewardship work.
Listening to traditional song.
Entering silence.
The journey unfolds slowly, by design. Depth over breadth. Relationship before documentation.
Ireland · Scotland · Portugal · Greece
Listening before building. Learning before teaching.
Costa Rica · Peru · Japan · Nepal / India
Living what has been remembered.
Israel · Hawaiʻi · Egypt · Bali
Putting wisdom into motion.
The Earthwalk is the vehicle. The Living Library is what endures.
Across cultures, across centuries — the same conditions appear wherever people are living well.
The experience of being known, seen, and genuinely in relationship with others.
A sense that what we do and who we are matters — beyond ourselves.
The feeling of being part of something — a place, a people, a story larger than our own.
The practice of giving and receiving in balance — with people, with community, with the living world.
The responsibility to care for what sustains us — land, culture, knowledge, and each other.
The ability to fully engage with the life we are actually living.
The capacity to move through difficulty without losing what matters most.
These are not ideals. They are practices. And they are alive right now, in communities around the world.
Not just what we find.
But what it changes.
In the communities we visit. And in the people who hear their stories.
Over three years, ELI Earthwalk will travel across twelve countries — spending weeks, not days, in each community. The journey is slow by design. Depth over breadth. Relationship before documentation.
The journey unfolds across three thematic arcs:
Listening before building. Learning before teaching.
Living the practice of connection, stewardship, and shared humanity.
Exploring enduring systems, relationships, and legacies for future generations.
The Earthwalk is the vehicle. The Living Library is what endures.
The walk is not a research project. It is not a documentary series.
Go where flourishing is already happening. Enter with humility. Earn trust before asking questions.
Don't observe from a distance. Live it. Work alongside communities. Learn by doing.
Capture what we find — through film, story, interview, and immersive media. Preserve it with care.
Share what we've documented with the world — through media, education, and global distribution.
Communities gather. Practices spread. Stewardship happens. Flourishing increases. The work takes on a life of its own.
"An elder in rural Scotland had never been recorded. We spent three days earning her trust. On the fourth day, she sang."
Every community we visit.
Every practice we document.
Every story we preserve.
Becomes part of something that outlasts the walk.
Stories Worth Carrying Forward. For anyone who needs them.
The walk gathers it. The library preserves it. The world benefits from it.
Some people will walk beside us for a season.
Some will quietly follow from home.
Some will introduce remarkable people and communities.
Some will simply carry the stories forward.
Every journey is made richer by those who choose to walk together.
There is no membership.
No expectation.
No right way to participate.
Only an open invitation.
Receive field notes.
Stories from the road.
Unexpected moments.
Quiet reflections.
Occasional invitations.
Nothing more.
Your first name
Your email address
Share as much or as little as you'd like.
Thank you for walking with us.
The road is always better together.
Choose the path that feels right. There is no wrong answer.
Receive field notes. Stories from the road. Quiet reflections. Unexpected moments. Occasional invitations. Simply a way to walk alongside the journey.
Stories. Photography. Films. Journal entries. Community discoveries. Experience the Earthwalk as it happens — from wherever you are.
Sometimes watching someone else's journey reminds us that our own is waiting. ELI Compass is a deeply personal experience designed to help you create the life you are capable of living.
Some journeys are better walked together.
Media partners. Foundation partners. Educational partners. Community partners.
If this feels like your kind of walk, we would love to hear from you.
ELI Earthwalk is a living pilgrimage — a three-year journey to find, participate in, document, and share the practices that help people and communities thrive.
We believe the conditions for a good life — connection, belonging, stewardship, purpose, and resilience — are not lost. They exist, right now, in communities around the world.
The walk is how we find them. The Living Library is how we share them.
"We are not a media company. We are not a travel brand. We are a mission — in motion."
Founded 2025 · Walk begins 2026
I did not set out to create a nonprofit. I set out to heal.
After a season of profound health challenges, loss, and transition, I began asking a different question:
Where are people still living well?
And what can we learn from them?
That question became ELI Earthwalk.
This is not about one person walking the world. It is about what the walk can find, preserve, and share for future generations.
With gratitude,
Eli Richards
I did not plan this.
I was not looking for a mission. I was looking for a way through.
After a season of loss, illness, and profound uncertainty, I found myself asking a question I could not stop asking:
"Where are people still living well — and what do they know that the rest of us have forgotten?"
That question became a walk.
Not a research project. Not a documentary. A pilgrimage.
A decision to go slowly, to listen deeply, and to trust that the answers already exist — in communities around the world who have been living them for generations.
I am not an expert. I am a walker.
And I believe that what we find together will matter.
— Eli Richards, Founder, ELI Earthwalk
Three paths. One open invitation. Choose the one that feels right.
hello@eliearthwalk.org · eliearthwalk.com
The Invitation Is Open Now.
What if the wisdom humanity needs already exists?
What if we can preserve it together?
If that question speaks to you, there is a path waiting.
Interested in walking alongside, partnering, or simply learning more?
Scan the QR code or click below to receive field notes, founder updates, and invitations to private conversations.
We will only use your information to share ELI Earthwalk updates and related opportunities.
Preserving, documenting, and sharing the practices that help people and communities thrive — across twelve countries, three years, and one Living Library.
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© 2025 ELI Earthwalk · hello@eliearthwalk.org · eliearthwalk.com
ELI Earthwalk
A Living Pilgrimage