The Ten Key Values

Ten values were set forth in 1984 by the Green Committees of Correspondence, which formed the Green Party in the United States. These ten key values have been adopted by the national Green Party and most state green parties. Although the values are the same, there are slight variations in the articulation of the ten key values by different Green organizations.

The Ten Key Values of Green Party of United States

The Ten Key Values ratified at the Green Party Convention in Denver, CO, June 2000 are at http://www.gp.org/tenkey.html

Other Formulations of the Ten Key Values

A smorgasbord of Ten Key Values adopted by other state and national parties can be found at http://www.greens.org/values/

The Ten Key Values adopted by the New York Greens Assembly in 1996

A global society of hope and true prosperity must today be founded on the four Green principles of ecology, social justice, democracy and nonviolence. We come from and make common cause with all of those involved in the grassroots movements for the protection of the environment and all species, peace, safe energy, sustainable communities, international solidarity and democracy, and rights for all peoples and groups: workers, women, people of all sexual orientations, people with disabilities, people of color, indigenous peoples, and all minorities, regardless of spiritual belief.

We support the full array of nonviolent means to establish a just society including rallies, demonstration, boycotts, citizen initiatives, civil disobedience, building alternative institutions, and electoral politics. We will, in pursuit of our goals, seek the support of all the people. Our shared purpose is to find the path to an evolving and sustainable society.

ECOLOGICAL RESPONSIBILITY - We are committed to ending the destruction of the environment by taking positive action in our lives and in our communities: by encouraging waste reduction, by recycling, by responsible land use, by sustainable agriculture, by renewable energy, and through planning our resource usage and population growth. Our relationship to the environment mirrors our relationship to one another.

NONVIOLENCE - The world's military machines must be dismantled and a new respect for people and their cultures must arise so that they can control their own lives. World peace demands a fairer allocation of economic and social resources. We must transform the obsession with military domination, excessive material consumption, and the exploitation of the environment into a genuine commitment to education, health and preservation of the environment.

GRASSROOTS DEMOCRACY - We seek to encourage informed and active participation of all people in decisions that affect their lives. This must include political, social, economic, and environmental issues.

SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC JUSTICE - Greens believe that all people have a genuine contribution to make to society. We want greater sharing of wealth and resources and less concentration of riches. We are committed to economic alternatives that meet the financial and social needs of all people. We will work for greater self-sufficiency through economic initiatives, relying on local resources, local people, and appropriate technology.

DECENTRALIZATION - Power and responsibility must be restored to local communities within an overall framework of ecologically sound and socially just values.

COMMUNITY ECONOMICS - We seek a new economics based upon the natural limits of the Earth which meets the basic needs of everyone on the planet, under democratic, decentralized control.

FEMINISM - The Green movement is profoundly influenced by feminism. The ethics of cooperation and understanding must replace the values of domination and control.

RESPECT FOR DIVERSITY - Greens honor the biological diversity of the Earth and the cultural, sexual, and spiritual diversity of Earth's people.

PERSONAL AND GLOBAL RESPONSIBILITY - Greens express commitment to global sustainability and international justice through political solidarity and in personal lifestyles based on sufficiency and living lightly.

FUTURE FOCUS - Like the Iroquois Indians, Greens seek a society where the interests of the seventh generation are considered equal to the interests of the present. We must reclaim the future for ourselves and our children.