Connecting people to build a world where everyone thrives
More than 300 movements are shifting the world to wellbeing economies. We work together to share these stories with the world, connect people to first first practical steps, and take coordinated action.
Becoming the change you want to see
(no, really!)
The world is created by the actions we collectively take every day, and those actions are determined by our beliefs and our systems.
When we share the stories of people creating a world based on wellbeing (which are not showing up on the media, social or otherwise by the way!) and coordinate our actions to make small moves together connecting to community and organisations founding this change, we shift rapidly into the world we all dream of while levelling up our own lives at the same time.Connection Engine is here to help you take first practical steps, whether that's joining an existing project or community -- or building your own and getting it to launch. Having the right supports in place to help you get off the ground is why we're creating this space.
"This whole project has the potential to be the one of the most impactful tools modern humans will have."
- Linds
How does this work?
First, we come together around just three core principles.
1.
Wellbeing > Survival
There are only two types of systems in the world: those that prioritise our wellbeing, or those that put us in survival mode. We support and grow systems that prioritise wellbeing over GDP and regeneration over extraction.
2.
Alignment > Agreement
Focusing on alignment instead of agreement means diverse movements can work together toward a shared goal, rather than spending energy debating ideology.
3.
Transformation > Resistance
Instead of focusing on what we don't want, we cast our attention on what we do want. We engage in a process of taking practical steps toward our shared vision, creating new systems and connections as we go.
Then, we connect, share stories, and take actions through a flywheel unifying those movements into 8 categories of change.
This is how we help each other grow and get the whole world working in the same direction at the same time.
Here's what that looks like:
The Flywheel
Through our hubs, we connect you to 8 categories of change, each containing success stories of how people are changing their own lives while changing the world -- with practical steps for you to get there too, as well as other like-minded folks. Maybe even some in your neighbourhood -- there are maps!Learn more about the categories of change and how they create a flywheel effect when connected and coordinated.
Action Cycles
Every week we go through cycles together, using a 5 minute, 15 minute, and 1 hour action framework, along with support to start and launch your project from people on the same path.
Connect
Build authentic relationships that form the foundation of real change. Connection creates the trust networks essential for collaboration.
Share
Exchange resources, stories, and insights with generosity and authenticity. Sharing extends our impact and invites others into the change process.
Act
Transform ideas into reality through purposeful implementation. Action creates momentum, generates tangible results, and reveals new insights.
Grow
Develop the skills, knowledge, and mindsets needed to create change. Growth expands what's possible both individually and collectively.
"Whether you're wanting to join an existing project or start your own, whether your ambitions are getting a few neighbours together or starting a social enterprise, our goal is to get you from where you are to well on the way to being a part of our Stories."
Our Stories
Here are the stories of recent projects already gaining traction, and there are thousands more like them as illustrated by J. Friday, Antidote and How to Citizen. Will your story be next?
Drivers Cooperative Colorado
A driver-owned alternative to ride-sharing giants, providing fair wages and democratic ownership to drivers while offering reliable, community-centered transportation services to Colorado residents. Learn More
Cooperation Hull
A community-driven movement transforming Hull through People's Assemblies, local democracy, and solidarity economics. By bringing residents together to make collective decisions about their future, Cooperation Hull is building strong communities and creating an economy that works for everyone through meaningful participation and shared power. Learn More
NeighborhoodShare
NeighborhoodShare creates resource-sharing networks that strengthen community bonds while reducing waste and consumption. Through an innovative AI-powered platform, neighbors can easily catalog and share tools, kitchen equipment, and other occasionally-used items, building resilience and connection at the local level. This practical solution addresses both environmental sustainability and social isolation by transforming how communities access resources through mutual support rather than individual ownership. Learn More
TAO Social
The first people-first social media platform governed by its users, where all profits are reinvested into the community. TAO Social coordinates positive change at scale through human connection. Learn More
Regenerative Economic Zones
Community-driven economic systems designed to keep wealth circulating locally while regenerating social and ecological resources. These zones connect farmers, small businesses, and community leaders through bioregional trade networks that build resilience - as demonstrated by the pioneering model in Greenville, SC created by Michael J. Muyot. Learn More
We're not waiting for change. We're building it for ourselves.
Get Started
About Connection Engine
It's all about US. Moving from ME to WE while imagining and creating our collective future.
Here's who's behind CE, what people are saying, technical stuff, and some FAQs.
What people are saying
"This whole project has the potential to be the one of the most impactful tools modern humans will have 💜"
Linds, via Tiktok
"Everything indicates that in five years from now, maximum ten, we will be living in an entirely different economy based on wellbeing, community, care."
Lazaros Giannas, via Substack
"Now I know. Something shifted in my being when I read this."
Dr. Mary Harrell, in response to a post about wellbeing economies
"Your content is giving me hope and I am sharing these ideas whenever I can."
Reilly Walker, via Tiktok
"Yesssss wellbeing at the center duh 🙃"
Nicolette Empowerment Guide, via Substack
"Could we be looking at the start of a post capitalism world economy? If so, I can't even put into words how exciting that would be."
Willow (Sarah), via Substack
Help us make it happen
We are currently looking for people who want to be a part of and help make this project happen on a volunteer or deferred compensation basis. Please use the Contact form to inquire or reach out to J. Friday.We are also seeking funding to get this flywheel up to momentum and cover basic overhead and needs. You can make a one-time or recurring contribution through our Open Collective.Thank you for the help!
Thank you for your help!
Data and theory
Let's get technical for a minute. What's gone into this? How did we arrive at this process?
OUR THEORY OF CHANGE
The Connection Engine addresses a critical gap in the movements for a better world: while numerous solutions exist, they lack visibility, and people need clear pathways to implement them.
Our theory of change is built on three core premises:1. Solutions to our biggest challenges already exist but lack visibility
2. People need clear pathways to find, implement, and share these solutions
3. Strategic networking and amplification can create rapid, non-linear changeRather than building another organization or directly solving problems, we create conditions for transformation through four interconnected strategies:✔️ Strategic Storytelling
✔️ Network Amplification
✔️ Voice Elevation
✔️ Practical PathwaysThis creates a self-reinforcing flywheel: compelling stories attract network connections, elevated voices amplify those stories, and accessible actions convert awareness into implementation, generating new success stories.
Key Foundational WORKS
The Connection Engine integrates cutting-edge theories from multiple disciplines to create a powerful framework for wellbeing economy transformation.
Network Science: Complex contagion theory (Centola), showing how behaviors and beliefs spread through networks, and spontaneous synchronization, demonstrating how independent elements naturally align.
Culture Science: Memetics and cultural evolution frameworks explaining how ideas spread, adapt, and evolve across populations to create new social patterns.
Systems Thinking: Leverage points (Meadows) for high-impact system intervention and trim tab theory (Fuller), where small actions create disproportionate change.
Cognitive Psychology: Frequency illusion and exposure effects that shape perception and trust, creating coherent narratives that gain momentum.
Organizational Theory: The flywheel effect (Collins) creating self-reinforcing momentum and the focus effect demonstrating how concentrated efforts build critical mass.
Consciousness Evolution: How communication shapes collective awareness (Dewart), enabling emergence of new possibilities through connection.
Whitepaper detailing how practical implementation of these theories creates transformative change (coming soon).
Also coming soon: a dashboard to track global reach. Data will be posted here as it is collected.
Who are we?
Connection Engine is co-founded by J. Friday, J. Thomas Dunn, Claire Hartnell, and Eli White with contributions from collaborators across various disciplines, bringing together our experience and knowledge in systems change, network building, and strategic storytelling.We operate as a sociocratic organization with governance distributed through mission-focused circles. We have formed an LLC temporarily, with intention to move towards the formation of a DAO. We are actively seeking more cofounders and partnerships.
Contributors
Allies, Partners & Supported Orgs
News & Updates
Please follow Connection Engine on Substack for latest updates and news. We have also formed a collective on Open Collective, and updates on our development are posted there as well.
Contact us
Sign up and get started
Connect, find or grow your community, change your life and the world.
It starts here.
Get Connected
When you sign up for our email list below, you'll get an invite to join our Main Hub and Community Flywheel on Hylo.You can join in any time or simply choose to receive regular email updates with all the story and action highlights, including practical steps you can take.
Thank you
We will be in touch soon.
TAO Social
For more on this story and how to get involved, visit Clearlight Studios.
Regenerative Economic Zones
For more on this story and how to grab your guide to building regnerative economic zones in your region, visit Michael Muyot's site.
Cooperation Hull
For more on this story, visit Antidote Live's page on them.
Driver's Cooperative Colorado
For more on this story, visit J. Friday's comprehensive write-up.
NeighborhoodShare
For more on this story and to keep up with the beta launch, follow Mike Jones' Substack, Resilient Tomorrow.
The Flywheel Explained
The 8 Categories of Change
Transforming our current systems into wellbeing economies requires different types of work happening simultaneously. The Connection Engine organizes these efforts into eight essential categories that, when connected, create a powerful flywheel effect—accelerating change far beyond what any single approach could achieve.
These categories reflect the natural dynamics of how change happens:
Cultivating What Already Exists
- Wellness Cultivators nurture our inner capacity for thriving
- Commons Cultivators develop shared resources and practices and build community
- Ecological Cultivators regenerate our relationship with the living world
Innovators Help New Possibilities Emerge
- Economic Innovators create regenerative business and financial models
- Technology Innovators develop ethical and decentralised tools to accelerate change
- Systems Innovators redesign governance and policy frameworks
Supporting and Accelerating the Transition
- Strategic Resistance creates space for alternatives by challenging extractive systems
- Cultural Catalysts shift narratives and make new possibilities visible to a critical mass of people in months not years by working together in this flywheel to make all these movements mainstream.
The Flywheel Effect
These categories create a self-reinforcing system that's fundamentally non-linear and emergent. Rather than following a fixed sequence, change ripples across categories in multiple directions:- Cultural Catalysts make alternatives visible, bringing more people into the movement
- Wellness Cultivators build the inner capacity needed for sustained change
- Commons and Ecological Cultivators create regenerative foundations
- Economic and Technology Innovators develop alternatives and create accessibility for all
- Systems Innovators adapt governance structures to support these new models
- Strategic Resistance holds back extractive systems, creating room for alternatives
- New connections between categories allow for unexpected solutions to emerge
- Coordinated rhythms of action amplify impact across the entire systemAs people enter through any category, they naturally connect to others, creating new possibilities that couldn't be predicted in advance. This emergent quality means the whole becomes greater than the sum of its parts.
With each new story that emerges, Cultural Catalysts continue reshaping the narrative, bringing more people into the movement and catalyzing further change.The ripple effects expand as more people coordinate their actions while respecting each other's autonomy and unique contributions, and no matter where you are in this, your contribution helps build a world based on wellbeing for all.
Finding Your Place
You don't need to be active in all categories—finding your specific place in this ecosystem allows you to contribute where you'll have the greatest impact while connecting with others doing complementary work and getting help with your own.
Ready to be part of this?
By joining the Connection Engine, you'll discover which categories align with your strengths, connect with others in those areas, and find practical first steps to get involved in building a world where everyone thrives.
Is Hylo Right for Your Group?
Hiya!Thanks for reaching out about the community and prosocial group building platform we are using for Connection Engine and that you can use for your community too!Please review the video and agreements below to see if Hylo is a good fit for your group. The platform is built on trust, so it's important to make sure it's a good fit first.
Hylo is ideal for a diverse array of for-purpose and pro-social groups and communities.
It is not a good fit if you intend to market services or monetise the group. Dues to keep the group running and contribute back to Hylo are okay, and different to monetisation, which is extractive.Some examples of good fits:
Purpose-driven groups. Hylo is great for groups with a shared identity and purpose who aim to create positive change in the world and mutual support for each other.
Non-profit or For-purpose and cooperative organizations. All kinds of non-profits use Hylo to communicate internally as well as with their wider network of members. Hylo is a powerful way to activate your supporters.
Networked groups. Hylo works for groups of any size and excels at collaboration by making it possible to link groups together to form larger networks.
Place-based groups. Hylo is especially useful for local or bioregional groups that are grounded in place, or composed of members who are connected to the landscape.
Peer-to-peer groups. Hylo is designed for decentralized, bottom-up coordination that is needed at this time to address our biggest challenges.
Educational groups and learning cohorts. Groups like Prosocial.World and the Buckminster Fuller Institute have successfully run courses on Hylo. We will expand the capacity for groups to run courses by building a learning management system into Hylo (Coming Soon 2025).
Watch this video on creating Mutual Support Groups on Hylo
Watch this brief introduction to what the group space looks like on the platform to see if it would be a good fit for your group. This is not a comprehensive overview of features and some of the most exciting features -- like the global map -- are not mentioned.Hylo acts as a commons and prosocial coordination tool. So not only can we cultivate and steward healthy community, but we can coordinate communities across the globe.
One example might be (and I give this because I'm autistic!) is a neurodivergent group getting started up in globally, but coordinating with other neurodivergent groups with shared values on other continents, sharing support and knowledge, while creating place-based and in-person chapters.You could also start a local or regional chapter and then invite and discover other aligned groups globally.
And Read This to Make Sure Your Group is a Good Fit for the Platform
Please read this page before joining to make sure your group aligns with the values of the platform before setting up space. It's important to the integrity of the platform that we're all on the same page values-wise.
All sounds like it's right for you?
Go here if you're savvy and ready to dive right into to setting up your group on Hylo.Read up on howl to set up your community for success here.Please also feel free to join in at Connection Engine for support in getting started if you're a little lost.And once you're more familiar with Hylo, I recommend the Hylo Community Organisers group.
Here are some more resources for getting started:
Good luck, have fun!xoxoFriday
Connection Engine Introduction Script
[Visuals: J. and J. are walking separately through the park, crossing paths and then uttering the final line together.]
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J. Friday: Hi, I'm J. Friday.
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J. Thomas Dunn: And I'm J. Thomas Dunn. We helped create the Connection Engine because we saw something incredible happening across the world.
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J. Friday: More than 300 movements are actively building wellbeing economies right now. What's a wellbeing economy? Simply put, it's a system that prioritizes supporting all life, the opposite of the extraction and survival systems that dominate now.
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J. Thomas Dunn: The problem is, you probably haven't heard about most of these movements. These stories aren't showing up in your social media feeds or news cycles. And even when you do hear about them, it's not always clear how to get involved or what your first step should be.
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J. Friday: That's why we helped build Connection Engine. We're not creating another organization or community you need to join. Instead, we're connecting existing movements and making it easy for you to find your place within them, connect with others, and build the life you want at the same time.
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J. Thomas Dunn: Think of us as a hub that amplifies what's already working. We share success stories about real projects making a difference right now – like driver-owned alternatives to Uber paying drivers fair wages, community land trusts providing affordable housing, and apps that help us keep wealth local and create community.
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J. Friday: But we don't just tell inspirational stories. We break down how these projects work and provide resources, support, and clear, practical steps for how you can either join them or start something similar where you live.
J. Thomas Dunn: And we meet you exactly where you are. Whether you have 5 minutes a week or are ready to launch a full project, we have pathways designed for your situation.
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J. Friday: Here's how we get so many people working in the same direction: We organize everything around three simple principles. First, we prioritize wellbeing over survival – moving from extractive systems to regenerative ones that work for everyone.
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J. Thomas Dunn: Second, we focus on alignment over agreement. You don't need to agree with everyone on everything to move in the same direction. This allows diverse movements to work together without getting stuck in ideological debates.
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J. Friday: And third, we emphasize transformation over resistance. Instead of fighting what we don't want, we build what we do want – creating new systems that make the old ones obsolete.
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J. Thomas Dunn: Our action cycle is designed to help you connect, share, act, and grow. We use a simple framework of 5-minute, 15-minute, and 1-hour actions that gradually build your capacity and confidence.
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J. Friday: We've organized these movements into eight categories of change – from economic innovators to systems changers to ecological cultivators – all interconnected through our Hylo hubs where you can find people working on similar projects, maybe even in your neighborhood.
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J. Thomas Dunn: When we coordinate our small actions, they create massive change.
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J. Friday: The key to making this work is genuine human connection. When we connect with others who share our vision but bring different skills and perspectives, we create something much more powerful than any of us could alone. These connections become the foundation for both personal growth and systemic change.
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J. Thomas Dunn: And the best part? Your life gets better along the way. You build meaningful relationships, develop new skills, and find purpose in being part of something larger than yourself.
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J. Friday: Whether you want to join an existing project like Drivers Cooperative Colorado or Cooperation Hull, or NeighborhoodShare, or start something completely new, we're here to connect you with the resources, people, and pathways to make it happen.
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J. Thomas Dunn: The change we're seeking isn't something we need to wait for. It's already happening, and you can be part of it starting today.
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J. Friday: We invite you to explore our website, check out our success stories, and take that first small step – whether it's a 5-minute action to share a story, a 15-minute connection with someone in your area, or a deeper dive into starting your own project.
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J. Thomas Dunn: The world we all want to live in is being built right now, one small action at a time. We're not waiting for change. We're building it ourselves.
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J. Friday: Ready to become the change you want to see?
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Together: Let’s connect.