Holding Earth and Grief
Campaign to Build Grief to Action
What is Grief to Action?
Grief to Action is a land-based sanctuary in the Mojave Desert of Southern California. It offers space and access for People of the Global Majority to be close with each other , while at the same time centering our relationship with Earth.
Grief to Action (G2A) centers and supports People of the Global Majority (non-white people) to be tender, touch their grief, and be fully human through the support of song, carnage-informed holders, and the earth. Grief to Action’s infrastructure and building practice is the creation and maintenance of earth domes.
Black-led, the project centers African-heritage folks and all People of the Global Majority, to hold space for the deep grief and rage needed to make way for creative solutions that resist oppressive systems. The vision for G2A is a place for African-heritage people to physically come rest, lay down, and be close to community and nature. Space holders and guests invite nature into their grief practices, ceremony, and life design, supported by the earth to interrupt “chronically undertouched” trauma stories and cultural narratives that sever our connection to nature.
Grief to Action brings together the profound strength, power, dynamic expression to tender grief with tender healing. We are inviting you to support and think about what it means for us to build ceremony that offers access and support. So few People of the Global Majority, men of African heritage in particular, have had access to collective grief ceremonies, to learn grief songs and practice showing up for each other in tender mutual support.
Since 2017, the Grief to Action team has grown through intergenerational mentorship, offering guidance and hands-on learning for local young people of color through building with earth.
"Listening is the first hug”
…is a common approach within the project, recalling the practice of slowly building trust while working together — sharing space and catching grief and trauma stories.
“I want to create a home for grief practices that help people who don't have a lot of resource, that are working multiple jobs, that have children and family and elders to take care of.
I want to build community with folks who say, I want to see you have space to grieve.”
— Aaron Johnson, Founder
What We Do
Earth Song events are camping events with song, action, learning natural building skills, gathering in cuddle domes, and community in solidarity with the build. In connection with the beautiful tradition of song gatherings, the events combine song circles (singing and teaching songs, traditional and new), learning to collaboratively build earth domes, and strengthening our relationships with the land. Earth Song’s goal is not just a deep community song gathering, but a collaboration for a model of lasting and sustainable infrastructure — merging song and community with action and building.
The earth buildings on site are affectionately known as cuddle domes, spaces for thoughtful platonic touch and healing modalities not often accessible for People of the Global Majority — especially Black men carrying a history of carnage and the weight of harmful stereotyping such as the Black Brute archetype. To learn more about this, watch Dark and Tender: A Film by The Chronically UnderTouched (CUT) Project.
Grief to Action founder Aaron Johnson was inspired by SuperAdobe earth bag architecture developed by architect Nader Khalili, founder of CalEarth Institute (near by the G2A site in the Mojave Desert).
Using long sandbags, barbed wire, on-site earth and few tools, this revolutionary and fire-resistance building technology integrates traditional earth architecture with contemporary global safety requirements including severe earthquake code tests in California.
Lead builder and Grief to Action founder Aaron Johnson, says of one of the domes on site, “I could feel the building being alive. I could feel it breathing. There is a profound interruption of not participating in mainstream architecture and plastic and wood. The building held so many energetic memories of the community helping me build the space; I could tell where my friends put their hands on the wall. The acoustics and the way my voice bounced around and the space had such an impact on me, energetically.”
In these times of climate change, it’s more relevant than ever to create long lasting fire- and earthquake-resistant structures from locally attainable resources. SuperAdobe’s thick earthen walls help regulate temperature through hot summer days and cold windy winter nights and with maintenance, these domes may last over 100 years.
How To Contribute
We aim to raise $100K in 2025 to continue to build out Grief to Action.
Will you join the build?
Grief to Action is a fiscally sponsored project of Color of Sound, a 501(c)3 nonprofit, transforming the lives of people of color in the PNW and beyond. EIN: 93-3363400. For tax deductible donations, reach out to Ben Wilson at ben@colorofsound.org.
Thank you to our Partners & Sponsors
The Clearwater School, East Point Peace Academy, The Work That Reconnects, Weaving Earth, Church of God and Evening Light Saints