FAIR SHARE

Shared Ground Collective

A space for racialised and gender-marginalised practitioners

Join the collective
Logo for the FAIR SHARE project Shared Ground Collective: the words ‘shared ground collective’ in dark green, set in lowercase on a light, organic brush-stroke shape against a black background, with a small abstract symbol beneath the text.

Not an isolated case. Not an individual problem.

Across civil society, many organisations speak the language of justice, while the people most impacted by racism and gender-based oppression are left to carry the cost inside their own workplaces.
Shared Ground Collective exists to change that starting point.
It is a cross-organisational collective for racialised and gender-marginalised civil society practitioners, creating protected spaces to connect, reflect, and build collective clarity about structural harm, beyond individual organisations.
Join the collective
Logo for the FAIR SHARE project Shared Ground Collective: the words ‘shared ground collective’ in dark green, set in lowercase on a light, organic brush-stroke shape against a black background, with a small abstract symbol beneath the text.

Why this collective

In many organisations, experiences of racism and gender-based harm are treated as:
  • individual issues,
  • interpersonal conflict,
  • or isolated incidents.
This framing obscures structural patterns and places responsibility on those most affected.
Shared Ground Collective responds by creating cross-organisational infrastructure where experiences can be held collectively, patterns can be named, and responsibility can be reframed as organisational, not individual.

How the collective works

Shared Ground Collective is built around two complementary spaces, each serving a distinct purpose.

Sharing spaces

Collective processing and care

Small, protected monthly online gatherings (max. 15 participants), facilitated by a trauma-informed somatic practitioner experienced in navigating racialised and gender-based power dynamics in civil society.

These sessions centre:

– collective processing of lived realities
– somatic and body-based grounding practices
– reducing isolation through shared presence

Sharing Spaces are confidential, care-centred, and non-extractive.
They are not designed to produce outputs, but to sustain practitioners.

Strategic Meetings

Learning and organisational clarity

Quarterly 1.5-hour topic-based sessions focused on workplace dynamics in civil society through an anti-racism and gender justice lens.

Each session includes:

– input from an external speaker or experienced practitioner
– facilitated collective discussion on organisational practices
– reflection on what structural shifts are possible within our institutions

Strategic Sessions benefit from continuity, and members are encouraged to participate where possible.

What comes out of this

Shared Ground Collective is built around two complementary spaces, each serving a distinct purpose.

Public resources

Collective learning for organisational accountability

Anonymised resources developed by FAIR SHARE following the Strategic Meetings.

 

These resources:

– draw on expert input and practice-based examples

– synthesise recurring organisational patterns and challenges – centre responsibility on organisations, not individuals

– aim to reduce the burden on racialised and gender-diverse practitioners to repeatedly explain harm

 

*Content from the Sharing Spaces is never used. Participants are not named or identifiable.

Who is behind Shared Ground

Shared Ground Collective emerged from a closed session held at the FAIR SHARE Festival in May 2024 for civil society practitioners navigating racialised and gender-based oppression.
The session was co-conceptualised and co-facilitated by Ama Afrifa-Tchie, Global DEI Specialist Adviser & Strategic Lead at the Norwegian Refugee Council, and Ariane Alam, member of the FAIR SHARE team. It made visible a clear and shared need: a dedicated space outside organisations where practitioners could connect, reflect, and support one another across contexts.
In the year that followed, interested civil society practitioners met several times to share their experiences, feedback, and needs. Their input was instrumental in shaping the design, structure, and priorities of what is now Shared Ground Collective.
We extend our sincere thanks to Ama for co-conceptualising and co-facilitating the initial space alongside the FAIR SHARE team, and to all the practitioners who contributed their time, insight, and care during those early conversations.

Shared Ground Collective is supported by the German Postcode Lottery.

We are deeply grateful for their trust in this work and for making this pilot year possible.

Get in touch

If you have questions feel free to contact us via this form or via shared-ground@fairsharewl.org

10 + 4 =

Logo for the FAIR SHARE project Shared Ground Collective: the words ‘shared ground collective’ in dark green, set in lowercase on a light, organic brush-stroke shape against a black background, with a small abstract symbol beneath the text.