Declaration of Intent
This is what we'll ask of you, and why it matters.
This isn't an audit, and it's not a test. It's a handshake. An honest look at where you are today and where you intend to go, shared with a community that's committed to doing business differently.
When you apply, you'll share your purpose, your areas of impact, and the specific commitments you're making this year. Here's what that looks like.
Your Purpose
What drives your work? What do you exist to do beyond the bottom line? This doesn't need to be polished. It needs to be real.
Certifications & Verifications
If you hold third-party certifications or verifications (B Corp, 1% for the Planet, People & Planet First, Fair Trade, ESOP/Worker-Owned, Living Wage Employer, Benefit Corporation (PBC), or others), you'll have the opportunity to share them. These are optional, but they're recognized by On Purpose Oregon as meaningful signals of commitment.
Your Areas of Focus (for those without verifications)
Purpose-driven work shows up in many ways. You'll identify where you're actively making progress and what that looks like in practice.
Leadership & Accountability
How you lead, how you share power, and who you hold yourself accountable to beyond profit. Think: employee voice, transparent decision-making, mission-protecting structures.
Equity in Practice
Actively working to dismantle barriers. Who you hire, who you promote, who you buy from, and whether the culture you've built is one where people can actually thrive.
Good Work
Paying wages people can live on, offering benefits that treat people like humans, maintaining safe and dignified conditions, and respecting that employees have lives outside of work.
Business Without Harm
Knowing where your stuff comes from, refusing to benefit from exploitation, and treating every person your business touches with basic dignity, across your supply chain, vendors, and community.
Planet & Practice
How your business interacts with the planet, honestly. Reducing waste, rethinking consumption, cutting emissions, and moving toward models where nothing is just thrown away. The goal isn't perfection; it's direction.
The Collective
Using your voice as a business owner or leader to advocate for policies that reflect your values, showing up in your community, and recognizing that individual action only goes so far. Change at scale requires us to move together.
The Declaration
At the end of your application, you'll sign a declaration. Here's what you're agreeing to:
What you've shared is honest and given in good faith.
You're committed to real progress on what you've named.
Membership includes an annual check-in. This declaration is a starting point, not a finish line.
You're joining a community, not just a list.
This is your starting line. When you're ready, we'll walk it with you.