Welcome to the very first official REWIRE Democracy newsletter! This month, we’re talking all about the power of hope as an actual tool that civil society leaders and changemakers can use to make their work more effective. Don’t believe us? You’re in for a treat!!
In this newsletter, you’ll find the following sections:
📝 The Learning Curve: personal reflections and lessons learned from our community of changemakers.
💡 Inspiration in Action: a spotlight on real-world examples of innovation, hope, and civil society success.
🔗 Resource Round-Up: a curated list of additional resources, tools, and ideas so you can continue the learning journey.
The REWIRE Democracy newsletter is published on a monthly, covering a new angle each time. In between our newsletters, we’ll also be sending out Community Challenges: discussion posts with activities designed to spark creativity and collaboration, so the learning never ends!
Ready to dive in? ⬇️
What does it mean to be hope-based?
When we talk about hope-based approaches in the democracy space, we mean using a forward-thinking approach that empowers civil society to focus on creating the world we want to see, rather than merely reacting to challenges or countering opposing narratives.
Research shows that people are more likely to engage with positive, solution-oriented narratives that evoke hope and optimism while fear-based messaging often triggers defensiveness or apathy.
By amplifying success stories, fostering resilience among civil society actors, and modeling the change we want to see, civil society can genuinely motivate action and spark real change. Hope is about showing what’s possible—and making it happen.
📝 The Learning Curve: Reflections on radical transparency and experimentation in civil society
Contributor: Elliott Goat, Co-founder of Unhack Democracy
It’s been proven that as activists feel the world around them grow darker, they often lose the ability to think differently or innovate.
We recently ran a study called the Activist Hope Survey, developed by Unhack Democracy, Hope-based Communications, and neuroscience non-profit Mindbridge Centre. The data showed us a strong link between worldview declinism (the belief that the world is getting worse) and a diminished ability to innovate.
And without innovation, we risk losing the excitement and energy needed to tackle pressing societal challenges. Let’s face it, we can’t afford that right now.
What can we do to fix that? Well, we’re testing a solution, and learning a whole lot along the way.
Unhack Democracy partnered with Hope-based Communications to launch the REWIRE Incubator in 2023. Through the REWIRE Incubator, we’ve seen hope-based training not only help participants feel more empowered but also lead them to create innovative solutions for their organizations and communities.
Now in Phase II, the incubator brings together civil society leaders from Hungary, Poland, Bulgaria, and Ukraine with the aim that they will become more hopeful leaders, able and willing to take more risks and come up with radical solutions to the problems in their organizations and in society.
Here’s what we’ve learned from the program so far.
Lesson 1: Don’t be afraid to experiment
The REWIRE Incubator (yes, also the inspiration behind this newsletter name!) is an experiment in both means and ends: how can we use neuroscience-backed techniques, creativity-sparking activities, and inspiration from changemakers around the world in order to shift mindsets and inspire innovation?
So far, we’ve hosted trainings on topics like foresight, engaged in activities that challenge participants to think differently, and exposed the group to a range of inspiring, real-world examples. The goal: cultivate creativity and hope to tackle societal problems more effectively.
Though we don’t know the final outcomes of our great experiment just yet, the real lessons have come from the journey. Experimentation is something that I’d love to see more of in the civil society space.
Lesson 2: Hope is a muscle that you need to train
Hope doesn’t come naturally to everyone. Some participants struggled to embrace a fully hope-based mindset, and we’ve learned that one workshop—or even two—won’t cut it. Hope is a muscle that needs regular training, but the seeds we’re planting are growing.
Lesson 3: Posting on social media authentically and effectively is hard
Documenting journeys online is another challenge for many changemakers, though it’s vital in our sector. Research shows that humans are highly influenced by social proof—when people see others taking positive action, they are more likely to feel inspired and capable of doing the same.
Over time, we’ve seen participants embrace this challenge by posting online, sharing their own lessons learned with their communities, and then seeing the ripple effects of their actions.
Lesson 4: Changemakers can become more creative, innovative, and inspired
What we’ve seen so far is that changemakers thrive when they’re part of a supportive community, have inspiring role models, receive feedback, and unite around shared goals. And these elements fuel motivation, creativity, and effectiveness.
As we move forward in the incubator, participants will be channelling these lessons into prototypes—ideas, tools, and campaigns designed to grow hope into action. Because hope isn’t just an emotion; it’s a strategy for creativity, innovation, and, ultimately, real change. We look forward to sharing more of the journey with you!
💡 Inspiration in Action: How Taiwan rewired democracy?
Contributor: Zsofia Banuta, Co-founder of Unhack Democracy
Did you know that story of the transformation of the Taiwanese government in the past 10 years was influenced by a hacker movement that revolutionised decision making?
Jon Alexander, Co-founder of New Citizen Project and Author of CITIZENS explains how:
Those who occupied the parliament in 2014 opened up the conversation for half a million people who were on the streets. Organisers of the g0v (gov 0) movement moved from protesting to demonstrating how legislation can be crowdsourced, using public places and online tools.
They created a method that helped people see their common ground and shared feelings.
One of the leaders of the g0v (gov 0) movement, Audrey Tang became the world’s first Digital Minister and helped improve public trust in politicians by 60%. Under her leadership, digital tools like citizen assemblies and the annual Presidential Hackathon have been institutionalized, enabling grassroots ideas to shape national policy.
Taiwan’s story reminds us that when people are given the tools and trust to co-create solutions, democracy thrives.
If you want to find out more on Taiwan’s amazing transformation. Listen to this interview with Audrey Tang: Leading (Podcast): Audrey Tang - How to strengthen democracy
🔗 Resource Round-Up
Here are a few external resources for you to browse, gain inspiration from, and share further to continue diving into the hope-based approach:
The Top 10 Takeaways from the Newest Solutions Journalism Research (via Solutions Journalism Network on Medium): A 2021 study found that solutions journalism—stories focused on responses to problems—leads to higher audience engagement. They found that viewers were more likely to take action after viewing solution-oriented stories.
Building Resilient Organizations: Toward Joy and Durable Power in a Time of Crisis (Nonprofit Quarterly): How can joy help civil society? This essay describes the problems and underlying causes that movements for justice face and proposes some concrete solutions to reset the course.
Russia Underground – a podcast mini-series on civil society in Russia (EUobserver): The goal of this narrative podcast Russia Underground is to shed light on the artists, journalists, activists, and others involved in the country’s secret resistance. It involves both high-tech innovation, and the return of Soviet-era practices.
🗓️ Join a free webinar on ‘Foresight for Social Change 101’ on 5 December! Join Krizna Gomez on December 5th for an engaging one-hour webinar on ‘future thinking’ (or ‘foresight’)—a powerful approach to navigating uncertainty and imagining new possibilities. This session is free and open to everyone.
Don’t forget to subscribe to the Hope-based communication newsletter on Substack for more insights on how to incorporate a hope-based approach in your social impact work!
Ready to turn hope into action?
Hope—as both a mindset and a strategy—can fuel creativity and innovation in the civil society space. Thanks for being part of this journey, let’s keep growing hope into action together!
📬 Our first Community Challenge is coming in two weeks right to your inbox! Here’s a hint if you want to be prepared: keep your eyes open for activities, innovations, or ideas that give you hope for the future! 👀
💬 We’d love to hear from you: How will you incorporate hope-based thinking into your work? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Share this post