6 Core Commitments

Creating a Community Space That Is Drug and Alcohol-Free, Embracing, and Healing

Preserve a 24-hour drug and alcohol free environment.
Establish a culture of safety for everyone in the community, especially the traditionally marginalized.
Maintain a physical space that conveys beauty, dignity, and respect.
Employ an inclusive definition of recovery that is person-centered and broadly embraces both chemical dependency and mental health challenges.
Create a culture of reconciliation and healthy leave-taking that honors good-byes
- Maintain an open door policy that actively engages in a plan for repair.
- Acknowledge the tensions that arise between the needs of the individual and the community as a whole, and commit to addressing these conflicts with balanced compassion.
- Honestly acknowledge when an individual’s needs will be best met elsewhere.

Establish accountability to Recovery Circle attendance as central to Membership.
Clearly define peer support as:
- An opportunity to know and be known by others in recovery.
- An opportunity to practice accountability.
- The sharing of experience, resources, and feedback when appropriate.
Establish Recovery Circles as a place for peer support that is distinct from 12-step meetings or treatment.
Respect the privacy of Members, but acknowledge that facilitators may share concerns with staff.
Provide the necessary leadership, facilitator training, and space requirements for Recovery Circles.
Prepare for naturally occurring conflict by modelling a commitment to conflict resolution.
Create an atmosphere of shared learning that values both the one who speaks and the one who listens.

Create a culture of shared, appropriate responsibility for:
- an atmosphere of safety.
- The well-being of others and the community as a whole
- Daily operations and life-together.
Create a culture in which everyone is a teacher and everyone is a student.
Create a culture of on-going growth and emphasize the safety to view mistakes as opportunities for learning.
Honor self-determination, respect all gifts brought to the community, and provide opportunities for individuals to dream about how they would like to contribute.
Provide training supports for those seeking to participate more actively in the community.

Invest actively in the personal growth and development of everyone in the community
- Members, Staff, Community Volunteers.
- Supporting everyone’s investment in the vision of the community.
Seek opportunities to publicly affirm both small and large acts of kindness, service, leadership, and growth.
Provide regular training and on-going support for Member leaders.
Create pathways for growth and increasing leadership responsibility.
Actively seek to remove barriers to growth and leadership.

Honor the Donor Bill of Rights, established by the Association of Fundraising. Professionals( https://www.aps.org/about/support/upload/bill-rights.pdf )
Adhere to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. ( www.accountingfoundation.org )
Maintain appropriate levels of insurance.
Establish a donor giving policy that is in line with Recovery Café Network’s mission.
Follow Equal Employment Opportunity laws. ( www.eeoc.gov/employers )
Establish program monitoring and evaluation structures to measure outcomes; promote accountability within your organization and RCN and to funders; and provide feedback for improvement.
Commit to providing prompt, clear, and respectful internal and external communications.
Build relationships to further support cooperation and healing in the larger community context.
Communicate clearly the intent, scope, and limitations of your vision to Stand in the gap
- Especially regarding your relationship to treatment programs.

Offer opportunities for diversity, equity and inclusion training to Member Leaders, Volunteers, Staff and Board Members.
Acknowledge holidays of all beliefs and backgrounds represented in the community.
- Provide listening and learning opportunities for members of all beliefs and backgrounds to understand personal, historical, and contemporary importance of each holiday.
Include anti-racism in all orientations and trainings for Members, volunteers, staff and board.
Develop programs and resources with primary languages other than English, that reflect the communities around the cafe.
- Evaluate programming and resources to identify potential barriers to and opportunities for access.
- Invest in staff, volunteers, and partnerships to create meaningful access to recovery support and opportunity for authentic connection with every member.
Seek to use BIPOC-owned businesses, vendors, consultants, financial institutions when possible.
Commit to maintaining a board and staff that represents the Recovery Cafe and broader community.