Daybreaker Network
Converting capacity into infrastructure for successful movements.
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Summary
Daybreaker Network is a learning community by and for local organizers and activists that converts capacity into infrastructure for coalitions, movements, and a strong civil society.
What we did
Research & insights
Strategy
Stakeholder engagement
Partner outreach
Expert outreach
Communications
Educational design
Workshop facilitation
Impact
One year after launching our pilot program, our processes have become more efficient, our program is more engaging, and the results are already surpassing expectations:
511 activists
from 65 organizations participate in the community
15+ initiatives
in collaboration with 33 local Thai experts
71
new work opportunities for people in the movement
Hundreds
of new connections for future collaborations
The activism space in Thailand is a microcosm of the activism space everywhere: thousands of small organizations and hundreds of thousands of activists working steadfastly to advance different aspects of democracy, human rights, equity, and justice. It is a mosaic of overlapping purpose.
And yet, in spite of how connected their larger purposes may be, activists remain siloed on their specific issues, consumed by the day-to-day work, overwhelmed by the size and complexity of the challenge, and a zero-sum competition for funding.
Organizations also struggle to attract talent and grow. People who choose to work in the activism and nonprofit space face stagnant career growth, with little correlation between tenure and salary progression. Activists often burn out and move into easier and more lucrative for-profit work.
We began by identifying key pain points in Thailand’s democracy movement, drawing on over five years of collaboration with local organizations and more than 30 interviews with Thai activists, academics, NGO leaders and employees.
Over months, we refined the vision with local organizations and experts, rallying support for a more collective approach to skill-building and shared challenges.
Together, we co-created four learning spaces as a pilot, focusing on critical skills and knowledge for the Thai movement. By integrating familiar tools, identifying gaps, and introducing new tools, we enhanced collaboration and learning opportunities. Each pilot tested multiple hypotheses—from participant recruitment strategies to teaching methods, scaling knowledge beyond Bangkok, and designing interactive assignments.
We hired trusted community organizers and content developers from within the movement and still work with them daily to grow Daybreaker Network on the ground. They help build relationships with partners, engage participants in our learning spaces, lead community-building activities, and create ongoing opportunities for activists and NGO employees to develop skills, apply them, build coalitions, and strengthen the movement.
Turning capacity building into movement infrastructure
This research and collaboration laid the groundwork for a locally-led, capacity-building program based on the actual needs of Thai activists, designed to support a movement instead of a single organization.
Daybreaker Network is a learning community where Thai organizers and activists can prepare for a successful career in activism and movement building, find common cause, and work together—more effectively—toward shared goals.
Here’s how it works:
1
Provides a space for activists to practice coalition building. Powerful coalitions create real change, but building them is a skill.
2
Locally-led, which encourages long-term engagement and guarantees relevance. Topics are chosen and taught by and for people in the network
3
Utilizes a Growth Cycle method—a process-driven approach to propose and select topics—to ensure that learning spaces are mutually supportive and enhance collective outcomes.
4
Focus on skills, and not issues, creates shared purpose and mitigates potential social or cultural debates.
5
Grassroots-led accountability and transparency elevates real value. Organizations must adopt and embrace this authentic, peer-evaluated approach. No superficial reporting or glossy photos, only genuine learning and growth.
6
Wide range of viewpoints contribute to the curriculum, producing better content and a more united community with a shared vision.
7
Decentralized knowledge base to ensure equitable access to rural and less affluent individuals and groups.
8
Opportunities for career growth for activists and organizers, both within our network and the larger movement.
There’s still a lot of ground to cover
We’re currently exploring opportunities to pilot Daybreaker Network in Mexico and other parts of the world, but we believe that this kind of movement infrastructure is critical for robust civil society and social movements everywhere. Do you agree?
Get in touch to learn more, get involved, and help Daybreaker Network grow.
