Disruptive Explorers

Rethinking power, money and change in Barking and Dagenham

Disruptive Explorers is a community of people exploring how power, money and decision-making could work differently in Barking and Dagenham. It asks big questions like:

• Who holds power? 
• Who gets a say? 
• What would happen if local people had more influence over the decisions that affect their lives?

After an extended period of development with a small group of BD Collective members, residents are now exploring how to build fairer, more inclusive ways of making decisions, sharing resources and shaping the future of the borough.

How it works

Facilitated by a BD Collective member, Barking & Dagenham Giving, Disruptive Explorers is bringing people from different backgrounds, experiences and sectors to learn, experiment and imagine new ways of funding what matters locally. The work focuses on three interconnected themes:

• Power: exploring who makes decisions and how power can be shared more fairly.
• Connection: creating spaces where different voices, perspectives and experiences can come together.
• Learning: building the confidence, skills and understanding needed to create change.

One of the largest gatherings so far, Feast for Our Future, brought people together to explore questions about power, money and decision-making through food, conversation and immersive activities.

Why it’s important

We can’t answer big questions about money, power and change in isolation.

Disruptive Explorers recognises that the people closest to problems have insight, experience and ideas. By creating space for residents and organisations to learn together, challenge assumptions and build relationships, Disruptive Explorers is exploring new forms of community leadership and participation.

As the borough has one of the smallest social sectors in London, with fewer organisations bringing people together, Disruptive Explorers is an opportunity for local people to influence decisions, test ideas and build the confidence that they can make change themselves.

What we’re learning

Disruptive Explorers is still evolving, but several important lessons have emerged:

• People want to be involved in decisions when they are invited into meaningful conversations rather than formal consultations.
• Different perspectives make ideas stronger and help challenge assumptions about how change happens.
• Building trust and relationships is a necessary foundation for sharing power, and it takes time.
• Facilitation and collaborative decision-making are important forms of local infrastructure that help communities tackle complex challenges together.
• Collective approaches often create more sustainable change than individual projects working in isolation.

What’s next?

Building on everything learned so far, the group – facilitated by A BD Collective member – are now developing and testing two ideas that disrupt traditional approaches to funding, power and decision-making.