The commons model
The rhythm of rebuilding a post-conflict community
There’s no shortage of aspiring leaders here, just limitations on how they can to move forward. That’s why we built the Commons: a base where local leaders get what they actually need - a place to work, resources to grow, and people who show up for them. The result? Bold, homegrown solutions to urgent problems, built by neighbors, not outsiders.
01
RENEWING COMMUNITY through Space
We don’t just build a campus - the Commons is a clean slate where leaders build their own culture: one of service, dignity, and shared life. Inside these walls, people experience what healthy community can actually look like - many for the first time. No corruption. No survival mindset. Just togethering. And the people who experience it don’t leave it at the gate. They carry it into their homes, businesses, churches, and neighborhoods. Space doesn’t just host community - it reshapes it.
02
REclaiming identity through purpose
One of the quietest wounds left by war and aid dependency is the mindset of helplessness - where people only see themselves as recipients instead of contributors. This doesn’t just stall progress, it strips away identity. When people stop believing they have something to offer, purpose fades, dignity crumbles, and the community loses its capacity to rebuild itself. We restore that by backing the bravest community trailblazers so they can prove (first to themselves, then to their communities) just how much they’re capable of. Purpose isn’t a byproduct of development, it’s the driving force behind it. Once people rediscover their calling, they don’t wait for change, they create it.
03
RELIEVING NEEDS through local leaders
This is where transformation becomes tangible. We back our partners—local leaders who are solving urgent problems with cultural clarity and conviction. They have real solutions across sectors like clean water, education, trauma healing, and job creation. Our four pillars of support - infrastructure, knowledge, network, and capital - give them what they need to grow fast and go far. They don’t need saving, they just need backing.
NORTHERN UGANDA
the challenges in
49%
of Uganda’s active workforce earns less than $40 USD per month.
4X less than a basic living wage
of employed Ugandans work in the informal economy,
90%
with no job security, contracts or benefits.
>1%
of Ugandans earn more than 1M ugx per month (approx. $350 USD)
Only 1.4x more than a basic living wage.
$190
in foreign aid since 1960.
billion
Uganda is one of the top 20 aid recipients globally, yet consistently ranks near the bottom worldwide according quality of life metrics.
157th
Human Development Index (HDI)
142nd
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
169th
World Bank ease of doing business index
Aid dollars ≠ guaranteed progress
RIPPLE
the commons
effect
build a sanctuary
Create a safe place where people can breathe again—somewhere untouched by the noise of war, corruption, or survival.
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A peaceful, protected space that feels different the moment you walk in
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A reset point for people who’ve spent years enduring crisis, chaos, or exploitation
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A home for hope, where imagination opens up and people remember what’s possible
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The foundation where a new community culture can grow strong
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This is the soil everything else depends on.
the local leadership multiplication effect
imported solutions
grassroots leaders
Trust stays low because the leadership isn’t rooted in the community
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Solutions often fit the plan, but not the real context
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When funding shifts, the work leaves with it
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People don’t feel ownership — it never fully becomes “theirs”
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The community stays dependent because leadership wasn’t grown from within
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Once the outside leader or project moves on, the impact fades
Leadership is trusted because it comes from someone who belongs
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Solutions make sense — they’re shaped by real cultural and community knowledge
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Leaders stay long-term because this is home, not an assignment
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Purpose is restored as people see themselves as contributors, not recipients
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New leaders rise because they see leadership they can relate to
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Impact grows over time — like a tree becoming a forest
Temporary. Fragile. Easy to pull up and carry away.
Plants deep. Grows wide. Changes everything around it.
calling, purpose, and dignity
​One of the quietest wounds left by war and aid dependency is the mindset of helplessness. Years of aid trained communities to see themselves as recipients instead of contributors. That mindset doesn’t just stall progress — it strips away identity. When people stop believing they have something to offer, purpose fades, dignity crumbles, and the community loses its capacity to rebuild itself.
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At The Commons, we help leaders shake that lie. We believe purpose is the turning point. Without restored purpose, space has no culture and solutions have no staying power.
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Purpose returns when someone remembers their calling — when they realize they’re needed, gifted, and capable of shaping the community they love. When that happens for one person, it sets off a whole chain reaction.
Identity
People claim their identity as builders, not beneficiaries.
Hope
The future shifts from something they endure to something they shape.
initiative
They act first instead of waiting for outsiders.
Influence
Others are inspired by their example to discover their calling too.
resilience
Setbacks don't stop them because their work matters.
Transformation
The whole community benefits when everyone shows up.
Purpose isn’t a byproduct of development, it’s the driving force behind it.
Once people rediscover their calling, they don’t wait for change — they create it.
incubation steamroller
The
Effect
Clear the barriers. Accelerate the work.
Most leaders don’t lack vision—they lack support.
The Commons fills the gaps that slow local leadership down, giving them the tools and traction they need to move fast and build well.
A physical base with a blank slate where leaders can create the world they imagine. The Commons is open to the public and designed for action - part office, part gathering place, part sanctuary. It’s where local leaders meet, work, host, and build together, set apart from corruption, war, or poverty.
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Coworking offices and meeting rooms (free for our partners)
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Event space for trainings, celebrations, and performances.
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Public spaces like a library, cafe, chapel and volleyball court.
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Our own income generation projects to fund our work.