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  • "One of the best things that you can do as an individual in the climate change movement is to stop acting like an individual."

    Bill McKibben

  • We support individuals to harness the power of their communities to be part of a bigger movement for positive change

    We are living through climate breakdown.

    With each day bringing new evidence of the crisis, it’s hard not to feel a sense of helplessness.

    As awareness and understanding of the climate crisis have grown, we are continually bombarded with advice on cutting our own personal carbon footprint. You may have reconsidered your diet and the way you travel and shop, maybe you’ve made your home more energy-efficient or installed solar panels. While reducing our own impact is important and can have positive ripple effects, the focus on the individual has left many of us feeling insignificant and powerless to create the bigger changes needed to create a positive future. Talking about the climate crisis and individual actions with those around us can feel uncomfortable and create feelings of shame and division. So much has been focused on our power as consumers, that we have forgotten about our power as citizens and as communities. Our mission is to help individuals to rediscover that power and to use it to bring about positive change in their communities.

    We help individuals build and strengthen their micro-community with simple but effective initiatives.

    At our core is the belief that the intertwined issues of climate and social breakdown offer an enormous opportunity for a revolution in the way that we live our lives and the role of humans as part of nature. To make this change happen, we need people to demand it and, where possible, to take matters into their own hands. However, in societies where we are encouraged to act and think like individual consumers, this is a huge task. That’s why we are focusing on the idea of small and well-defined, closed micro-communities. We believe that this is essential to help us build the muscle of acting as citizens and as community members. By strengthening these communities, we are helping individuals to feel less isolated and to feel more empathy - critical tools for building a better future. By tapping into the power of our communities, we aim to empower individuals to take a more active role in our democracy and in shaping the world in which we live. As we grow and develop, we plan to nurture a community of communities and, in time, see the huge potential in this for creating more widespread and ambitious change.

  • How It Works

    1

    Define Your Micro-Community

     

    You tell us about your micro-community. We believe that trust and familiarity are key to building community, that’s why we ask you to keep your community small and well-defined. For example, it could be the street or building where you live, families at your child’s school or nursery, or employees at your workplace.

    2

    Set Up a Project

    We seek out amazing and pioneering small-scale community initiatives and we help you to replicate them and adapt them for your own micro-community. We focus on simple projects which are easy to launch and to run. This could be a small one-off project such as a play street or a parklet, or a longer-term one such as a neighbourhood car sharing scheme or library of things. We recognise that the issues of climate justice and social justice can feel divisive and make for awkward conversation topics. At the heart of what we do, we believe that solving these problems is hugely exciting and has the potential to create a better and fairer society for all. That’s why we focus on projects that embody this optimism. While they are all encouraging behaviours and ways of being which are aligned with positive change, they all have other benefits - whether that’s saving time, money or space, or contributing to our collective and individual wellbeing.

    3

    Become a Part of Something Bigger

    We recognise that it takes courage to start something, no matter how small. That's why you'll go through the process in a small group together with like-minded individuals. As we develop, you'll also be a part of a wider eco-system of other micro-community champions in order to share ideas and knowledge and become part of a movement creating and demanding a radically better future for our planet and all its inhabitants.

  • We Need You!

    We’re looking for an initial cohort of 10 changemakers to join us for our pilot programme starting in March 2023. You’ll support and encourage each other as you start creating positive change in your micro-community.

     

    We are looking for individuals who want to do more to help solve the climate crisis. You don't need to have any prior experience of community projects, just a willingness to learn and to get stuck in. While setting up a project does require some time and effort, we will help you to choose one which suits your availability, your skills and your community. There is no financial cost to take part, we just ask for your time and energy.

     

    As this is our pilot programme, you'll have a chance to help shape the experience and let us know what support you need to take action. While it is possible for the programme to take place entirely online, we are big believers in the special magic that happens when people are in a room together and we plan to arrange some in-person events in London as part of the programme. However, we would still love you to join us if you are not London-based.

     

    If you're interested in being a part of this pilot, please click below and complete a short form. If you are not London-based but would still be interested in taking part, please do complete the form or get in touch below and we'll work hard to bring the programme to your area.

     

     

    We can't wait to hear from you!

  • Who We Are

     

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    Cecily

    Founder

    Since becoming aware of the scale of the unfolding climate crisis almost 10 years ago, Cecily has been on a journey of learning and of finding her role in building a better future. Her experiences in building and working in sustainable business and running events around sustainability have led her to understand the vital role communities must play and to founding InCommon.

  • Questions?

    Get In Touch

  • The Blog

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