June 18

There are two principles which the House of Justice feels are fundamental to the generality of such projects of social and economic development, although, of course, there will be exceptions. The first is that they should be built on a substructure of existing, sufficiently strong local Bahá'í communities. The second is that the long-term conduct of the project should aim at self-sufficiency and not be dependent upon continuing financial support from outside. (8 May 1984, written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to a National Spiritual Assembly; compilation ‘Agriculture and Rural Life’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice)