The Discover phase created a space for women’s funds to explore collaboration topics and themes. Facilitated by a dedicated team, this phase helped identify shared challenges, articulate questions, and discover mutual interests and perspectives.
The focus was on setting the groundwork for co-creation, offering a safe space for honest discussions and a brave space for tackling difficult questions. This helped determine if there was enough shared interest to work together.
“Knowing will be more valid—richer, deeper, more true to life and more useful if…our knowing is grounded in our experience, expressed through our art, understood through theories which make sense to us, and expressed in worthwhile action in our lives.”
— Peter Reason, “A Laypersons’ guide to cooperative inquiry,” University of Bath, 1998
To guide exploration, we asked funds to share their interests, setting up 12 thematic sessions. Women’s funds could attend any and as many sessions as they liked. The carefully selected facilitation team ensured a supportive and intentional process. Initially expected to be a quick process, the discovery phase extended to three months as the process itself became a space for learning, connection, and building trust.
Ultimately, 13 groups formed across four thematic areas. The Advisory Committee recommended each fund join a maximum of two collaboratives to avoid overextension.
Each group defined their thematic focus and why it was important to them. Then it was on to the next phase: Define.