screenshot of the home page of the website titled 'Activist Resource Hub'. https://activists-resource-hub.com/

UK Activists Resource Hub

Introduction

The Activists Resource Hub, is a website to help activists find the brilliant resources available for them quickly and easily.

We have scoured the online world to bring the best of what is available to you in one small, manageable, easy-to-navigate place. While these resources are predominantly aimed at UK activists, many of the insights they provide are applicable to other countries and contexts.

The hub is especially useful for people who are new to campaigning and activism.

It has practical help for everything from how to write a great press release to finding a fiscal host to manage your money. It also has inspirational stories to help you learn about other people’s strategies, tactics, setbacks and successes. 

The Activists Resource Hub was put together by Social Change Lab and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, both organisations who are passionate about supporting grassroots activists.

Practical Tools

The Practical Tools section provides practical advice on things all campaigners and activists are likely to need to do, namely:

Movement Building

Getting other people to care about your cause and get involved. This includes resources on:

  • Training
    Including NEON’s training programme, training courses UK Movement Ecology, and resources from the Ayni Institute 
  • Culture and care
    The Activist Wellbeing Handbook covers topics including group wellbeing and self -care and some specifics like tactics for de-escalation to make sure protests remain non-violent.
  • Internal communication
    Resources to help you communicate effectively with everyone in your organisation. The Activist Handbook has a very thorough guide to the various digital tools and apps for every need, from social media to file storage systems.
  • Collaboration
    Resources to help you build effective coalitions, including the Commons Library’s brilliant guide to building coalitions.

Strategy and Tactics

Decide what your goals are and your strategy for achieving them. This includes resources on:

Operations

Keeping people, including yourself, organised, motivated, cared for and sustained. This includes resources on:

  • Human resources
    Rad HR share policies and processes on all the ‘nuts and bolts’ issues for UK organisations , while The Resource Centre has compiled a set of policies and procedures on topics ranging from financial management to safeguarding.
  • Governance
    resources to help you  create and maintain the organisational structure that’s right for you, including The Resource Centre’s guide to getting a group started and My Community’s guide to governance
  • Legal
    If your work might include protest, Liberty provides a useful guide to your rights to protest. For legal support, Law Works offers pro bono support to individuals and not-for-profit organisations.
  • Finance
    Money can be a tricky and sensitive topic but it has to be faced! hapter 6 of the NEON toolkit explains key financial terms and has plenty of practical tools. Civicus has a collection of toolkits about financing, including on budgeting and developing a financial strategy.
  • Fundraising
    The Civicus guide to writing a funding proposal is a comprehensive walkthrough of everything you should consider when applying for a grant and the Resource Centre’s guide to raising money is also full of practical tips.
  • Fiscal hosting 
    Fiscal hosts hold money on behalf of social movement organisations they don’t want to or cant register formally. A range of organisations provide fiscal hosting services including Open Collective and Social Change Nest.

Communication

Telling people about your cause. This includes resources on:

Inspiration

The second main section of the website provides inspiration to help get you feeling inspired and energised, including sections on:

  • How social change works: 
    • The thinkingdoingchanging.com blog is a good place to start with short, readable blogs for activists by a self-proclaimed ‘social change geek’.
    • Sheila McKechnie Foundation has a Changemakers’ Toolkit, which has great graphics outlining all the ways social change can happen. Find your place in it!
    • Beautiful Trouble has pithy guides to some of the main theories and themes of social change.
  • Theories of change:
  • Podcasts:
    • The ChangeMakers podcast has been telling stories about people working for social change since 2017. 
    • The New Economics Foundation’s podcast takes a broader look at different ways to bring about social change, including policy-focused work as well as campaigning and activism.
    • The Social Change Agency podcast features interviews with a range of change-makers in the UK.
  • Videos:
    • Mobilizing Ideas has a collection of short videos in which academic experts answer some of activists’ most pressing questions. Their Youtube channel features longer interviews. 
    • The Commons Library has put together a bank of inspiring TED talks of interest to anyone interested in social change and activism. 

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Activists Resource Hub

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      • Author:
      • Organisation: Social Change Lab
      • Location: UK
      • Release Date: 2024

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