Your support makes this community possible.
If you'd like to support us, but aren't in a position to give a recurring donation, we completely understand. If you're able, support us with a one-time donation here. Either way, we appreciate knowing that you're here for us, as we try our hardest to be here for the community.
THE FOUNDING SUSTAINER PROGRAM
OpenNews exists to support the community that is pushing to create more inclusive, equitable, and purpose-driven journalism.
We launched this founding sustainer program in response to feedback from community members looking for more ways to be involved and help each other. By being a sustainer, you ensure that OpenNews is able to continue creating ways for community members to connect and support one another.
With this program, community members can contribute on a recurring basis (usually monthly, but the frequency is adjustable) to sustain this work.
OUR GOAL: REACH 250 FOUNDING SUSTAINERS
Progress: |█████████████████████████------------------------| 50% Complete
Having started this campaign in November 2019, our goal is to reach 250 founding sustainers by November 2020. We think this would make a real difference in helping us shift more of funding to be from the community we love and are here to support. Currently, we're reached 20% of our goal, with nearly 60 founding sustainers.
Updates!
- May 6 - We've reached 26% of our goal, with 66 founding sustainers!
- May 7 - We've reached 27% of our goal, with 68 founding sustainers!
- July 7 - We've reached 30% of our goal, with 74 founding sustainers!
- July 16 - We've reached 35% of our goal, with 87 founding sustainers!
- July 16 (again - We've reached 40% of our goal, with 102 founding sustainers!
- July 17 - We've reached 45% of our goal, with 112 founding sustainers!
- July 17 (again!) - We've reached 50% of our goal, with 126 founding sustainers!
Help us meet our goal by setting up a recurring donation, at any size and frequency that feels right for you. Whether it's a donation of $20 a month, a quarter, or annually, a recurring donation at any level will mean a lot to us, because that's money we can count on, and a vote of confidence from a founding sustainer we know really cares about our work.
Since we're a small organization, if on average, we reach our goal and all founding sustainers donated $17/month, community donations would become our second highest source of annual support. One day, we hope that our community contributions become our highest source of annual support, so that the heart of our fundraising is completely in line with the heart of our work.
WHAT THIS WILL ENABLE US TO DO
This community already supports each other in so many ways, from advice to job leads to code reviews. OpenNews has long played a role in helping knit together those connections. We're also developing new ways to strengthen that network, through programs like our COVID-19 community care package, which includes programs like peer data review, story recipes, and guides for journalists and managers during this stressful time. At this busy time of evolution, we're excited to share this sustainer program as a way to be able to:
- Take collective action together in a new way! Alongside all of our other programs, this is another strategy for banding together and supporting the people and the work we care about.
- Show it is possible to work with an ethic of abundance, not austerity. Collectively, we do have the resources we need and we can pool them together, share them with one another. Give what you can, when you can, and know that a community has your back if and when you need it.
- Fortify the long-term sustainability of OpenNews. Years of feedback and experience has shown us how important it is to provide spaces for connection and to invest in developing the capacity of individuals in this community to lead journalism forward. This program will ensure we can continue growing this network and its impact on the industry.
Thanks for helping us launch this program!
Photo: Ryan Pitts, from SRCCON:LEAD