SWARM 1.0 is a 30-day experiment. The goal is to kickstart 2017 with a strong, dynamic group of people and having one live campaign by the end of January and three in the pipeline. The strategy is divided into four main phases, each spanning a week.

Each week we will meet up online and discuss how it went and plan what to do next. This is the first time we try this so no matter the outcome, we can learn a lot from the results. And most importantly, we will gain experience working as a decentralized collective!

WEEK 1: Research and investigation,

FIREFUND is still a new organization, so we need to seek out potential campaigns. In Week 1 we will get an overview of interesting and progressive projects and political campaigns. What movements are out there? Who have potential? What part of the world is lit? Who would you be interested in working with?

Research a movement, a place or a group you think is relevant and try to get as much information as possible. Are they well organized? How many followers do they have? Who are they're supporters? Are they connected to other groups or movements? What are their objectives? Do they need funding at all - do they know if they need funding?

WEEK 2: Planning and trouble shooting,

In Week 2 we start drawing the outlines of potential campaigns. The plan is to figure out how a campaign could look with the group or movement you have been investingating. There are no one-size-fits-all, so get creative!

Consider how a great campaign could take shape. Be as concrete as possible. What would be a realistic and easy-to-understand project to campaign for? Who is their target group? What type of communcation should be used? Is the campaign mostly relevant on Facebook, Twitter, the streets or some other arena? What could go wrong? What should you be prepared for?

Running a campaign is a lot of work and time spent planning ahead is time well spent. So give the logistic aspects some thoughts too and be realistic about it. How much do you think they can do themselves, how much should you do? What groups could be used as a support network? What would be the primary source of funding? What kind of ressources do you need (graphic designers, video editors, translators, etc.)?

WEEK 3: Contact and preparation,

Running a campaign is a lot of work and time spent planning ahead is time well spent. So give the logistic aspects some thoughts too and be realistic about it. How much do you think they can do themselves, how much should you do? What groups could be used as a support network? What would be the primary source of funding? What kind of ressources do you need (graphic designers, video editors, translators, etc.)?

Good communication cannot be overestimated and most of our work relies on trust. So consider how to best approach the group, and how to stay in touch with them. Be as clear and concrete as possible to avoid misunderstandings and remember that we're not offering to do a campaign for them, but to help them running one themselves.

WEEK 4: Evaluation and execution

In Week 4 we look at the outcome of the experiment and decide how to proceed. Some of the contacts may have went well, some of them less so. If you had success getting a an agreement to crowdfund, it's time to start planning, excecuting, contacting, producing, etc. If they weren't interested, consider why. Could something have been done differently? Didn't they have the ressources or time? This can teach us a lot about how to proceed in the future.

WEEK 5 AND BEYOND:

As stated above, we haven't tried this before, and we're quite excited about what comes out of it. If all go as planned, we should be about ready to launch the first campaign of 2017 and be working on a couple behind the scenes. In the future, we hope to have several simultaneous live campaigns, so we will continue to refine the process depending on our experiences.

15 new potential activists will visit our platform - and obviously, the best outcome is that everyone stays, joins the platform on a longer term, supports the sub-projects and campaigns. But if 30 days of interaction shows you as a campaigner, that this isn't the place for you to be active right now - then there's absolutely no hard feelings, whatsoever.