GROUNDWORK is the infrastructure for creating and supporting internet-native initiatives with transparent governance, visible ownership, and accountable power.
A reader-owned local newsroom replacing the paper a private equity firm shut down last spring. Governance is public; the structure was reviewed before any money was asked for.
Goal $500K
Power is distributed. Rules are transparent.
We believe the internet deserves better institutions. GROUNDWORK provides the tools, transparency, and safeguards to help communities build and govern with clarity.
Understand who has power, how decisions are made, and how rules can change.
Build trust through transparent processes, verification, and community oversight.
Structures that prioritize mission over extraction and short-term gain.
Built-in safeguards against capture, abuse, and governance drift.
Track decisions, rule changes, and evolution over time.
New here?
Browse every initiative in the public register. Each one shows where it is in its institutional life.
Browse initiatives →Read the five legitimacy layers and how an initiative moves from idea to eligible for fundraising.
How it works →Calm by design, anti-virality, anti-opacity. The rules the platform holds itself to.
Principles →Discover
Sorted by transparency, not virality
Common Grounds Members · Lisbon, Portugal
Member-owned roastery and three neighborhood cafés. Profits returned to members or reinvested by member vote.
North Bay Tenants Union · Oakland, CA
A community land trust acquiring 40 units of permanently affordable housing under resident governance.
Open Grid Working Group · Berlin, Germany
A neighborhood solar cooperative. One member, one vote. Surplus revenue distributed transparently.
Ledger Contributors · Distributed
A contributor-owned alternative to closed bookkeeping software, governed by the people who maintain it.
Westside Neighbors LLC · Minneapolis, MN
Neighbors collectively buying the corner store after the owner's retirement. Governance designed for staff + customer co-ownership.
Riverside Commuters Assembly · Portland, OR
A passenger-cooperative proposal to operate the abandoned commuter line under member governance.
From the register
Every initiative is convened by named people willing to be accountable. No anonymous treasury, no hidden founders.
"We want the structure to be readable before we ask anyone for a dollar."
"Our charter belongs to the readers. The publication is governed in public."
"Stakeholder balance is hard. We'd rather show our work than hide it."
"A member should be able to recall me. That's the point."
The five layers
You can see exactly where any initiative is in its institutional life. Nothing is claimed without being shown.
Read the full process →Public from day one. No claims have been checked.
Real names attached to real authority.
Who decides, how, and under what constraints.
Reviewed for coherence and meaningful accountability.
Eligible to connect external fundraising. Money never moves through GROUNDWORK.
A standing commitment
People should be able to understand how an institution functions before they are asked to commit their time, money, labor, or community to it.
Join the waitlist and help shape the future of transparent institutions.
