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Collective Care: the freedom and opportunity to pay attention to, and care for each other through participation

Collective care is the capability to be attentive to, and care for, each other in participation. This includes active listening, reflexivity, and mutual respect, the hallmarks of deliberative democracy (Sass and Dryzek 2024). But it also supports the affective task of “creating caring spaces for democracy” (Mendoza 2025: 16) through mutual support and responsibility between and within participants and organisers (Freire 1970; Masungo 2024: 217). Careful attention must also be directed towards the typically gendered and often invisible nature of care work both within participatory spaces and beyond, where care burdens are disproportionately carried by women, particularly women already marginalised in society (Holdo 2025).

Downstream Enablers of Collective Care in INSPIRE

„ Attentive and careful facilitation helps to create a process and space where participants and organisers are supported to listen and reflect on diverse perspectives (INSPIRE Safe(r) Spaces Deliverable D3.2, forthcoming).

„ Participatory research methods enable shared sense-making. In the UK pilot, such “opportunities for deeper collective reflection together created unity and cohesion, through shared storytelling and mutual witnessing” (Ezeldeen et al 2025: 28).

„ Having dedicated support persons available helps participants feel cared for, so that people know who they can turn to for support if needed.