Self-organising, place-based groups and networks putting Doughnut Economics into practice in their locality
Introducing open groups and networks
In December 2019, a group of pioneering change-makers in Amsterdam came together to form Amsterdam Donut Coalitie - an open network of people enthusiastic about Doughnut Economics who wanted to work together to put the ideas into practice.
Their aim was to make all Doughnut related projects, initiatives and interested people from the region in and around Amsterdam visible to each other, and foster connection so that they could start to collaborate on the deeper systemic shifts that need to happen.
Network diagram adapted an original created by Ruurd Priester of Amsterdam Donut Coalitie
Amsterdam Donut Coalitie now has over 1000 members, and since its launch, over 30 other groups and networks have formed elsewhere around the world, acting to connect and convene the people of their place around the ideas and tools of Doughnut Economics. And you now find them here on this new dedicate space on the DEAL Community Platform.
Profile pages of some of the open groups and networks
Some of the activities these groups and networks have been undertaking include:
Connecting those already interested in Doughnut Economics and inviting individuals and organisations in their locality to be part of the transformation of their place.
Raising awareness of Doughnut Economics ideas and tools to new audiences in their locality.
Introducing the ideas, tools and guidelines of Doughnut Economics and examples in practice to organisations and institutions in their place.
Advocating publicly for Doughnut Economics and asking ‘are we doing enough and are we moving fast enough?’
Facilitating peer-to-peer learning on the core ideas of Doughnut Economics.
Connecting with similar networks locally and globally in the wider movement of change.
Convening spaces for group or network members and others to connect, share and celebrate.
Hosting events and workshops to explore some of the tools of Doughnut Economics, such as the Doughnut Unrolled and Powers to Act.
Exploring how new and existing projects and initiatives could become more regenerative and distributive.
If you'd like to start a group or network of your own, or if you'd like a profile page for a group or network that you've already, simply contact Rob by emailing rob@doughnuteconomics.org.
Introducing the guidelines
When we launched the DEAL Community Platform back in September 2020 we didn’t anticipate the level of interest there would be in forming these groups and networks. So, over the past 18 months we've been learning about the direction these groups and networks wanted to take, and in collaboration with the groups and networks we've now launched some guidelines - based on the Doughnut Principles of Practice - to guide this emerging form of practice. You can read them all here (or see the image below).
Guidelines for open groups and networks
We offer these guidelines for:
any group or network that chooses to use Doughnut/Donut or Doughnut Economics in its name (e.g. Amsterdam Donut Coalitie)
any group or network that wishes to have a profile on DEAL’s Community Platform (whether it has Doughnut/Donut or Doughnut Economics in its name or not)
In addition to this, we recognise the ideas of Doughnut Economics are part of a wider movement of change, and we welcome any group or network affiliated with other organisations to use the ideas and tools of Doughnut Economics. In such cases we only ask that you follow DEAL’s Principles and Guidelines that apply to anyone engaging with the ideas and tools.
Introducing the gatherings
As it is still early days for open groups and networks, there are many questions that have emerged that remain unanswered, such as how to fund this work (when it demands more time than volunteers can healthily give) and how to engage with the many and varied people and organisations of your place, from residents to businesses to political leaders.
So to help work through these questions and challenges we're starting a series of gatherings for all open groups and networks to come together, share and discuss the different questions, challenges and approaches people are trying - what's working and what's not yet working - so that we can collectively learn and evolve this form of practice to have ever greater systemic impact.
If you would like to join one of these gatherings, simply click on the links below to go through to the event page (times shown are UK timings), where you can register:
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