> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://circles.logos.co/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://circles.logos.co/readme/for-circle-stewards/section-1-organising-circles-around-local-action/circles-civil-society-issue-buckets-pilot.md).

# Circles Civil Society Issue Buckets (Pilot)

### Building a Parallel Society

To build a resilient parallel society, Circles need to think about how they can develop these foundational pillars: Economy, Security, Healthcare, Housing, Welfare, Infrastructure, and Institutions.

Start small by solving small local problems, document wins to recruit more activists, and gradually connect with other Circles to tackle bigger issues. Over time, we build a network of inter-connected local communities - the Parallel Society.

### **Action-First Organising**

To kick-start a local Circle, a steward should begin with one visible win on an issue they care deeply about (the **First Action**). This draws people in and creates early momentum. The first Circle then forms and collectively chooses additional winnable issues to work on.

When picking a First Action, think about:

* What is a problem that people recognise in my community?
* What is a small micro-collective action that we can achieve in the next week, to make an impact towards the problem?
* Who can work with me to take this action?

### Growth Mode

As you grow your local Circle community and work on solving more issues together, fundraising and group decision-making become more important.

#### **Fundraising**

As your Circle approaches solving bigger problems, the ability to fundraise or pool money becomes more important. This is a key skill your Circle should develop as you grow - starting with small fundraisers and advancing to savings pools and other forms of funding.

#### **Governance**

As your Circle grows and chooses more winnable issues to tackle, how you make decisions together becomes more important. How you make decisions is up to you, but make sure you have a process.

***

## Issue Buckets

#### ECO — Economy & Cost of Living

**Long-term vision:** Make essentials community-owned via co-ops, credit unions/SACCOs, food co-ops/CSAs, CLTs, energy co-ops, time banks, local currencies.

**Beginner**

* Bulk-buy co-ops for staples (20 families splitting wholesale).
* Repair cafés (bikes, clothes, electronics).
* Community pantry or free fridge.
* Buy-local days with window stickers and stamp trails.
* Pop-up retail or one-day storefront activations.

**Advanced**

* Scale into proper co-ops and businesses (food co-ops, tool libraries, skill-exchange platforms).
* Time banks and local currencies.
* Blended finance and revenue-generating community enterprises.

**Success looks like**: Lower cost of living for participants; members earning income from Circle activity; visible local economic tools.

***

#### HOU — Housing

**Long-term vision**: Permanently affordable homes outside speculative markets via ADUs/tiny homes, faith-land (YIGBY), CLTs, housing co-ops; land acquisition, blended finance, permanent-affordability mechanisms.

**Beginner**

* Know-your-rights tenant workshops.
* Land scans: map vacant lots and faith-owned land.
* Clean up and reclaim one derelict lot or building.
* Housing-conditions survey or zoning-barrier audit.

**Advanced**

* Support or form housing co-ops and CLTs.
* Land acquisition strategies and permanent affordability models.

**Success looks like**: More affordable housing options created or protected; documented wins that other Circles can replicate.

> **Real-World Example:** The Lisbon Circle worked with a community in Quinto de Mocho to advocate that the local government establish a community center. They ended up successfully getting a community center where they now organize a community festival with local partners. People came together for food, games, and other cultural activities.

***

#### HLT — Healthcare

**Long-term vision**: Community-run primary care via community health workers, direct primary care, telemedicine as force-multiplier, healthcare co-ops; hybrid models with public systems.

**Beginner**

* Free screening days (blood pressure, glucose) with volunteer nurses.
* CPR / first-aid training afternoons.
* Ride rosters for elderly to medical appointments.
* Essentials drives tied to health (e.g., winter coats, hygiene kits).

**Advanced**

* Community health worker programs.
* Healthcare co-ops and mutual aid health funding pools.
* Telemedicine initiatives and hybrid care models.

**Success looks like**: Improved community health outcomes; reduced dependency on strained systems.

***

#### WEL — Welfare & Social Protection

**Long-term vision**: Member-run safety nets based on self-reliance via mutual aid, time banks, rotating savings (stokvels), faith-based welfare, worker co-op safety nets.

**Beginner**

* Door-to-door base building (names, concerns, skills).
* Essentials drives (food, coats, toys).
* Fundraisers for urgent need (medical emergency).
* Launch a mutual-aid board and make first matches.
* Small savings groups (regular contributions into shared fund).

**Advanced**

* Rotating savings & credit associations (stokvels).
* Comprehensive mutual aid systems and worker co-op safety nets.
* Time banks integrated with other buckets.

**Success looks like**: Stronger safety nets run by the community; members helping members without state dependency.<br>

> **Real-World Example**: The Benin City Circle organized a fundraiser to help pay for the urgent healthcare costs of a Circle member’s parent’s.

***

#### SEC — Security & Crime

**Long-term vision**: Community-led safety that reduces violence and supports reintegration via violence interruption (Cure Violence model), holistic reentry programs (Homeboy-style), community policing, citizen safety data, and long-term state partnership where needed.

**Beginner**

* Safety walks: map dangerous spots day/night and fix what the Circle can (lighting, sightlines, clearing corners).
* Stand up one safe corner/haven space.
* Welcome-home packs and first coffee for recently released individuals.
* Digital-security baseline for organizers (encrypted messaging, password managers, 2FA).

**Advanced**

* Violence interruption and conflict mediation programs.
* Holistic reentry support.
* Community policing alternatives and citizen safety data projects.

**Success looks like**: Measurable reduction in local crime or fear; safer public spaces; stronger community bonds.

***

#### INF — Infrastructure

**Long-term vision**: Community-owned physical and digital backbone via co-ops, community shares, concessions, sweat equity, adaptive tech (broadband, roads, ports, utilities).

**Beginner**

* Launch a tool library with first lending day.
* Free public wifi node on a shared building.
* Connectivity scan: map who has/doesn’t have internet.
* Infrastructure gap mapping (lighting, drainage, waste, water).
* Trash cleanup or recycling drive tied to local infrastructure.

**Advanced**

* Community-owned broadband or mesh networks.
* Larger infrastructure co-ops (energy, water, waste).
* Sweat equity projects for shared facilities.

**Success looks like**: Tangible improvements in local infrastructure owned or stewarded by the community.

> **Real-World Example**: The Liberland Pop-Up Circle organized a trash cleanup where activists spent an afternoon collecting 30+ bags of garbage.<br>

> **Real-World Example:** The Benin City Circle organized to build a crypto fundraising platform FundBrave to help themselves and other local communities fund local initiatives. They’re now growing it as a startup.

***

#### INS — Rule of Law & Institutions

**Long-term vision**: Power held accountable and disputes resolved without capture via private arbitration/mediation, pro bono legal networks, investigative journalism/OSINT, court & election monitoring, civic tech, citizens’ assemblies, democracy data, defender-protection networks (includes anti-corruption).

**Beginner**

* Community mediation tables for small disputes.
* Legal-rights clinics with pro-bono lawyers.
* Short local investigations using public data (misspent funds, unsafe buildings).
* Municipal budget analysis and per-capita gap mapping.
* Map local power structures (who controls permits, zoning, spending).

**Advanced**

* Private arbitration and mediation systems.
* Ongoing investigative journalism / OSINT and monitoring networks.
* Civic tech tools and citizens’ assemblies.

**Success looks like**: Greater local accountability; disputes resolved peacefully outside broken systems; empowered communities.

***

#### EDU: Education & learning&#x20;

**Long-term vision:** Community-run access to knowledge, skills, and technology through peer-learning, skills academies, apprenticeships, and alternative credential pathways.

**Beginner**

* Run a one-day intro workshop on tech basics (computing, blockchain, AI), with separate beginner and developer tracks.
* Organize peer-to-peer tutoring or homework clubs.
* Hold a back-to-school donation drive: collect textbooks, exercise books, stationery and second-hand backpacks for one under-resourced school and get them distributed.
* Map the gap: survey which schools or learners in the area lack materials, tech or access, written up in a day.
* Raise a small fixed target for one school's equipment (computers, tools) and hand it over
* Host career/CV/digital literacy workshops.
* Invite local professionals to mentor students.

**Advanced**

* Build recurring community academies or weekend schools.
* Apprenticeship and mentorship programs.
* Microschools and homeschooling co-ops.
* Community-issued certificates and learning pathways.
* Open-source educational tools via hackathons.
* Long-term fundraising for school infrastructure and technology labs.

**Success looks like:** More people gaining practical skills, local experts regularly teaching others, and communities creating their own trusted pathways for learning.


---

# Agent Instructions
This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com.

## Querying This Documentation
If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter, and the optional `goal` query parameter:

```
GET https://circles.logos.co/readme/for-circle-stewards/section-1-organising-circles-around-local-action/circles-civil-society-issue-buckets-pilot.md?ask=<question>&goal=<endgoal>
```

`ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
`goal` is optional and describes the broader end goal you are ultimately trying to accomplish on behalf of the user. GitBook uses it to tailor the answer towards what is most useful for that goal.

The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.