Governance & Decision-making

All three camps are run by the Sun Camp Leadership Group (SCLG), a body of experienced volunteer staff (almost all of whom are, themselves, former campers) who commit to making sure that camps happen every summer in France, Nova Scotia, and Colorado. The SCLG makes decisions by consensus. We strive for a gender balance and inclusiveness both on the SCLG and in the makeup of each camp staff. The group is lead by a chair who holds the responsibility to convene the annual group retreat, facilitate regular calls and support the group’s mandate to consensus decision-making. Each group member commits to being at at least one camp every year, to working on operational projects to maintain and improve camps, to participate actively in group discussions online and to provide a reference point and support for families in their region. The group maintains a series of topical discussions online with each other throughout the year.

Camp Leadership

The major staff positions at each camp are held for two year rotations so that we can cultivate the passing of knowledge and at the same time offer fresh perspectives as staff rotate. The Camp Commander is the person in charge at each camp and reports directly to the SCLG. An Elder and Chief of Staff, along with the Desung (physical and mental health officer), work with the Camp Commander to foster health and well-being for campers and staff, alike. The Desung is specifically accessible to the campers as someone they can come to with any concerns or worries. All staff are trained to hear the concerns of the campers and to support a joyful and safe camp for all participants. Sun Camp governance is structured this way both because we are committed to cultivating leadership among our group of trained and dedicated staff and because we feel that rotating leadership is the healthiest model for any organization or group.

Incidents & Concerns

Each year the Camp Commander and other senior staff positions write a report about their experience at camp, which is debriefed during the SCLG’s autumn retreat. Issues that come up at camp are evaluated with the entire group present. In the interim, if any concerns are raised by participants or parents, they are forwarded onto the whole group for both reflection and action steps. Over the years, we have developed and refined policies related to how we respond to medical incidents, safety and security in the wilderness, and campers’ experiences based on parents and participants’ feedback and our own evaluation process.

 

Boundaries, Consent & Sexual Harm

The SCLG has been actively cultivating knowledge and understanding of boundaries, consent, and sexual harm. While we have always worked with these topics in different forms at Sun Camp, the current cultural climate has made it clear that specific focus needs to be brought to these issues and we’re finding ways to explore them together at camp. Our policies and practices are aimed at creating a safe space for everyone and are informed by the leadership trainings we have engaged to educate ourselves about the systemic dynamics that contribute to sexual harm, recognizing and working against those dynamics, and supporting healthy communication and healing. We understand Sun Camp to be a training ground for future leaders, and see that having an engaged understanding of social and emotional safety to be integral to that training.

 

Inclusivity

It is of utmost importance that campers feel safe and included at camp. The SCLG and each camp’s staff help the participants create a camp that is free from bullying, welcomes non-gender conforming participants, and works cooperatively to recognize and address other issues of discrimination or exclusion if they arise. We talk about this with the participants in the context of our understanding of basic goodness. The social environment at camp is cultivated based on this understanding of basic goodness and on the prioritization of the bodily, relational, and emotional safety of all persons in camp.

 

Camper drug / alcohol use and sexual activity

We have a zero tolerance policy at camp in regards to the use of drugs / alcohol or engaging in sexual activity during camp. Participants who violate this regulation face expulsion from camp. We make this explicit in a discussion with all participants 13-years-old and older in our “Sex, Drugs & Rock n Roll” which also provides space to explore the ways we distract ourselves from the present moment and issues around consent and personal interaction. The discussion outlines that this is a clear-cut safety and legal issue, rather than a moral guideline. We emphasize that camp is a time for participants to be together and with themselves without a lot of the pressures and distractions that they face in their “regular” lives. Space is made for participants to explore their experience of this in the discussion.

 

Discipline

The Sun Camp approach to discipline is neither religious, moral, nor philosophical, but practical. The purpose of Sun Camp is to create a container in which basic goodness can be experienced and appreciated. Providing discipline is often a matter of safety; the well being of one child cannot wait for the mindfulness of the next. Even so, these reminders must be based upon a personal understanding of the inherent basic goodness in everyone and that gentleness is one of our most powerful tools in diffusing difficult situations. Campers are given the benefit of the doubt as much as possible and are not prejudged upon past incidents; the truth of the situation may not be immediately apparent. Great effort is made to make expectations of appropriate conduct clear, and then applied uniformly and as fairly as possible. Staff are trained to understand that this means that the boundaries of conduct must be clear in our own minds. Sun Camp participants are the leaders and citizens of the future, and, as such, we take the time to realize that the training and discipline they receive at Sun Camp may inform that leadership to the degree that it is genuinely applied.