Oxygen Consortium

The consortium, established in 2023, responds to the needs of the activist community in Central and Eastern Europe and aims to protect human rights defenders and activists supporting civil society. The discussion on how to build support networks for leaders and activists began on a meeting in Warsaw where the Batory Foundation, the Open Society Foundation, and the International Renaissance Foundation gathered more than 80 activists from Central and Eastern Europe, as well as from other regions.

Magda Adamowicz (Araminta) initiated the consortium and the Culture Shock Foundation coordinates its operations.

Our mission is to foster leadership, promote a culture of care, and implement safety mechanisms that protect leaders and activists against burnout, financial crises, and physical harm.

We share best practices and look for solutions to challenges and leadership difficulties. We build solidarity networks and offer psychological, mentoring, and organizational support. Our work is targeted at achieving a systemic change that will make civil society more sustainable and resilient.

Donors are also invited to join the Oxygen Consortium – it is an opportunity for them to learn about the types and scale of support activists need for their work to be meaningful and for safe working conditions to be secured. Getting to know donors’ perspective, in turn, is a chance for us to design and implement systemic changes.

During regular online meetings:

• we build a support network for activists of organizations working for human rights and civil society in the region;
• we support leaders of organizations in fostering a healthy work culture;
• we promote practices of regeneration, conflict solving, and self-care;
• we learn from each other;
• we create recommendations and tools to support mental, physical, and financial safety;
• we build the Expert Support Network – join the list.