It’s time to start taking action.
Join a community of folks working to move from “what can I do?” to intentional, meaningful action.
This moment can feel overwhelming.
We’re watching fascism spread across the United States, impacting more and more people in abhorrently harmful ways.
News stories are relentlessly flooding our nervous systems, leading folks around us (and ourselves) to check out or burn out.
We want to take action and be part of making a difference – but how? Where? When? And how can we do it sustainably?
The Gentle Change Collective is a support system for those of us overwhelmed by what’s happening in our world and communities – and want to begin making intentional change now.
If you’ve been doomscrolling the news, wanting to do something, but feel stuck, frozen, or just numb, this is by design.
One of the Trump Administration’s main tactics – and this comes straight from the authoritarian playbook – is to “flood the zone.” This means to overwhelm us with executive orders, outrageous stories, and very real violence until we’re silent and scared.
But it’s not just that – if we’re honest, much of our society incentivizes this numbness:
Capitalism wants us to mindlessly consume.
Meritocracy demands we continuously produce.
Systems of oppression strip us of our autonomy and coerce us into “just going along to get along.”
It’s becoming clearer and clearer everyday that:
We can’t think, hope, or pray our way out of this.
We can’t read, meditate, or journal our way out of this.
We can’t “wait for the Democrats” to lead us into a better future.
To paraphrase (with a slight change) the poet Robert Frost, the only way out is through.
The invitation of the Gentle Change Collective is to come together as imperfect change-makers, to notice and name the tension (and beauty) of the moment, to hold ourselves and each other gently, and to take action.
This moment doesn’t require all of us to show up as experts or saviors, but as people with fierce commitments to making change and moving with postures of healing in our communities and contexts.
Each of us, with our own uniqueness, hesitations, excitements, and strengths, is needed.
“The GCC helps me to explore, tinker with, and deepen the practices that ground me so that I am better able to be present and take action during this challenging time in our country and the world.” –Gina A.
The Values We Move With
Gentle and Honest Action
In the Gentle Change Collective, we don’t have to figure it all out alone.
Rather than continuing to find ourselves caught up in the disorienting swirl of “there isn’t enough time,” “but what can I do?” and “it’s too big to change” narratives, we work together to find life-affirming and practical ways to move with healing in our communities.
This is a space where we center dignity over conformity and exploration over certainty.
We don’t overcommit ourselves and try to solve everything; instead, we find the something that makes a tangible shift in our lives and in our communities.
To borrow a phrase from poet James A. Pearson, in the Gentle Change Collective, we practice taking our “next halting steps.”
Embodied Listening
Too often, our bodies get treated (and mis-treated) as if they are just vehicles for our brains.
Not here. The Gentle Change Collective is a space to reconnect and listen to the needs of our bodies – including our well-conditioned tendencies toward control, comfort, and the status quo – and begin to take action.
No more feeling isolated from others and disconnected from ourselves.
As we work to make change in our lives and our communities, we ask questions like: “What does my body need more or less of?” And we go from there.
By learning to listen to our bodies, we become more skillful in how we navigate conflict and harm in our changework, as well as experience more textures of beauty and joy in our day-to-day lives.
If this connects with you…
Year-long membership in the Gentle Change Collective comes with:
3 five-week cohort programs during the year,
monthly workshops and special events,
monthly community “action studios,”
full access to our community chat...
…and a real nice moleskin story journal.
That said, again and again GCC members name something else as the reason they stay:
The people. Kind-hearted, soft and intentional, committed to being active participants in the world, and fiercely supportive – those are the types of folks you’ll meet inside.
If you’re interested, you can check out the payment options here 👇
Below is a more in-depth look at everything you can get by signing up:
Our Five-Week Cohorts
In addition to monthly programming, we host three cohorts each year: The Practice Cohort and the Solidarity Cohort (twice!) These are five-week, five-session experiences where we practice building our capacity for resilience and taking action in ways that feels sustainable and meaningful.
The Practice Cohort
One of the reasons many of us find it hard to take consistent action is that we haven’t practiced.
Not just practiced taking action, but practiced holding charge and tension in the midst of conflict, practiced being present to what’s occurring, practiced leaning in and not checking out.
Practiced being resilient:
Resilience: to experience the messiness of the world and maintain one’s tender connection, however fragile it may be, to our sense of perseverance, courage, and identity.
During these 30-or-so days, we each experiment with finding a set of practices that expand our capacity for resilience and presence so we can take action that is meaningful and sustainable in the long-run.
Live sessions include:
Week 1: Creating Daily Practices That Fit Us
Week 2: Tinkering and Embodying an Experimental Mindset
Week 3: Practices that Build Our Capacity for Resilience
Week 4: Noticing, Naming, and Relational Resilience
Week 5: A Celebration of Capacity and Change
Our next Practice Cohort will be in February 2026.
The Solidarity Cohort
In the face of communal harm and societal struggle, it can be hard to know what to do – and to actually do it.
The problems can seem too large, too immense, and too unstoppable for us to even make a dent. And even when the conflicts are within our intimate communities and families – our fight, freeze, fawn, and flee mechanisms can get in the way of the response we want to give.
This cohort is all about learning how to make relational change in the midst of conflict in our specific contexts and supporting each other – which includes holding each other accountable – in gently and confidently moving into action.
Live sessions include:
Week 1: Developing a Vision of Solidarity
Week 2: Taking Community-Centered Action
Week 3: Actions to Take in the Midst of Conflict
Week 4: Building a Shared Analysis of Power
Week 5: Wrapping Up and Moving Forward
Our next Solidarity Cohort will be in October 2025.
“Through the workshops and check-ins I came to learn there doesn't need to be any notion of rigidity or doing it "correctly;" my practice can look however it needs to on a given day. I'm so grateful for the space to learn and grow, and for the wisdom shared not only by the facilitators but also my fellow participants.” –Justin D.
Monthly Workshops
Between cohorts, we come together for monthly workshops offered by guest experts and facilitators. In 2025, these have included topics such as how we move with political grief, navigating the messy middle of change, and understanding the history and growth of Christian Nationalism in the United States.
We also run a few week-long “experiments” each year where members try something new (a new activist action, a practice for staying present, etc.) and report back on how it goes.
Community Action Studios
One of the biggest hurdles to making tangible, sustainable change is the illusion of isolation – the feeling that we’re all alone in our efforts.
To help us navigate this, members come together each month for “action studios",” where we identify the changes we’re working toward, engage in guided exercises to support us in making them, and share progress, feedback, and affirmation in real-time.
Online Community Space
We don’t have to figure it all out alone. Along with the connections you’ll make during live sessions, we also have an online community space where we can support and check-in with each other.
This serves as our digital home and primary space for sharing, connection, and communication between sessions. During cohorts, additional resources will also be shared here for you to explore in your own time and at your own pace.
Small by Design
The Gentle Change Collective is small by design – it’s not meant to grow too large or feel too big.
This is a space for us to work side-by-side on the intimate and deeply relational work of making change and getting off autopilot.
Is this a fit for you and your story?
When we take a moment and look around, the swirl of life can feel disorienting.
All over the globe are massive unfolding catastrophes and crises; fascism is spreading through our institutions and relationships; right here in the communities we navigate everyday, there are varying level of personal, institutional, and communal breakdowns.
Asking “what can I do?” can lead to feeling like nothing is enough.
At work, burnout feels ever-present with no clear alternative options.
And at home, parenting and caretaking feels beyond exhausting – how do we balance all of this?
If any of this resonates or connects with your experience, the Gentle Change Collective was designed with you in mind.
On the other hand, the Gentle Change Collective is not for you if…
you want to engage in intellectual conversation, debate, or heady dialogue. While the shape of your participation is entirely flexible, the central component we move with is active practice, not information gathering or consumption.
you are looking for teachings or practices rooted in a specific religion or tradition. The Gentle Change Collective is not religious, and while the facilitators of our live sessions mostly come from Christian-influenced backgrounds that inform our worldviews, whether or not we still practice those particular traditions, religion-specific teachings, language, and practices are not centered in this space.
you are looking for a space to process an extensive trauma history. Instead, please seek a therapist or other mental health professional.
“This cohort was put together with so much thought and intention. Whether people were sharing their ‘successes’ or challenges, the level of connection was inspiring and uplifting. It brings me joy knowing there are people all around the world connecting in this way. What a rich experience.” –Caryn B.
Choose What Works For You
First Step: Upcoming Cohort
$140 one-time payment
The Solidarity Cohort (October 2025)
Weekly exercises and activities during Solidarity Cohort
Community
Interactive, community-centered cohort sessions (5 live sessions)
Access to online community forum during five-week cohort
Coaching Not included
Sustain in Community
$650 per year w/payment plan options
3 five-week cohorts ($420 value)
Weekly prompts during all cohorts
Physical moleskin story journal
Community
Interactive, community-centered cohort sessions (all 3 cohorts)
Full Access to online community forum
Monthly Workshops ($150 value)
Monthly Community Action Studios
Coaching Not included
Guided Action
$900 per year w/payment plan options
All Cohorts ($420 value)
Weekly prompts during all cohorts
Physical moleskin story journal
Community
Interactive, community-centered cohort sessions (all 3 cohorts)
Full Access to online community forum
Monthly Workshops ($150 value)
Monthly Community Action Studios
Coaching
6 Coaching Sessions ($450 value)
Financial Accessibility
In order to provide financial accessibility and do what I can to counter the pressures of capitalism, membership in the Gentle Change Collective is offered well below so-called “market rate.” (Most 5-week cohort-based programs are priced at around $500 – and that’s just for one of them!)
Reduced Price: I offer “no questions asked” First Step membership spots in each cohort at a reduced price of $65, or $250 for the year-long Sustain in Community membership for those who cannot afford the full price at the current moment. Sign up here for one of these reduced price slots.
Payment Plans: If you’re looking to join the Gentle Change Collective at the Sustain in Community or Guided Action tiers, awesome! I’m excited to meet you and move alongside you for the year. I recognize both prices can be a lot to pay at once, so you can split it into monthly or quarterly payments during the checkout process in order to ensure it fits your budget.
What Alumni Have to Say
“Can this actually work for me?”
A few questions for you to reflect on:
Are you open to exploring and questioning the stories you’ve been living with and considering what you want to change moving forward?
Can you commit (gently) to weekly time for engaging with live sessions and reflection activities?
Do you desire to be more intentional in your life – both with yourself and your communities?
Are you feeling ready to take action on something (even if you don’t know what, how, or when), but just need some support.
So much of our culture wants us to keep doing what we’ve been doing – but each of us has the power to make a shift.
The Gentle Change Collective won’t provide you with a quick, one-size-fits-all solution. But it will provide you with a container – of guiding content, community, resources, prompts, and practices – in which to expand your capacity for choicefulness, confidence, and moving into action.
“What if I don’t have much time?”
I get it – with a family, a full-time job, and my own hobbies and passions, me neither!
The Gentle Change Collective isn’t about adding more and more to your probably-already-packed plate. Instead, we focus on taking action with what we have, where we are.
If you attend the live sessions (2x/month or weekly during cohorts), create a bit of space in your life for reflection + action, and engage with the online community chat when you can, you’ll likely get the most out of this experience.
But if all you have time for are the live sessions and the reflection you do during long work commutes and bathroom breaks, there will still be plenty of depth to work with – and it will set you up to take action when you can.
“What if I can’t attend the live sessions?”
While live attendance is definitely the best (so you can ask questions, engage with others, and have set-aside time for this work), life has a tendency to happen!
So if you can’t make it every time, don’t worry! Almost every live session will be recorded and uploaded to our online community space within 24 hours. (The only exception to this are our Community Action Studios, which aren’t recorded.)
An Ethical Refund Policy
There’s enough risk in the world without this adding to it.
If you engage with the Gentle Change Collective, attend a few live sessions, and find it’s just not for you, we’ll send a 100% refund your way. And if life happens – as it tends to do – and you realize you can’t participate in a meaningful way, just reach out and let us know. We can either issue a refund or hold you a spot in our next cohort as well: whatever feels right for you.