Belonging Design Principles

Though the types of groups that are marginalized may be different in every culture and setting, we can identify a similar set of processes that gives some groups more access to goods, authority, opportunities, and rights than others. These hierarchies of value are presented as natural, usually through collective narratives, but are manufactured by those who have something to gain from division and treating others as less than equal. They also do the most harm when they become self-sustaining parts of structures, continuing to fuel inequity long after individuals cease holding bigoted attitudes. The solution to othering is not more othering. Nor is it what we call “same-ing,” in which we erase our diversity and claim we’re all the same. The solution is belonging.2

While many liberation efforts end up replacing one othered group with another, thus continuing the cycle of othering, our definition of belonging is radical because it includes everyone. A place of belonging is not one in which certain “in groups” are welcome, and “out groups” are not. This may be a big ask for some, but it is critical to embrace universal positive regard for all members of a community whose belonging is not contingent but a given. The universal right to belong should also not be confused with the right to harm or dominate others.

While the work of building belonging includes interpersonal work, it must always involve transforming structures. That is because structures most often do the work of exclusion, regardless of the attitudes or identities of the people whose job it is to uphold them. Put another way, places of belonging go tough on structures and soft on people.

Power and power imbalances are woven into everything including the distribution of work, program design, collective histories, relationships, and much more. Effective belonging initiatives are transparent about how power is distributed and how that distribution may need to change to create belonging. They also provide spaces for acknowledgment and repair of historical or present-day harms with the goal of advancing forward together. 

Individuals must be able to contribute to an initiative on belonging. This means they must have ways to express agency without elevating one person’s needs above the needs of the collective. The work must include mechanisms for making sure people are heard, and how or when spaces or projects can be co-created, and to what extent.

Belonging requires some form of co-creation, which means everyone has some responsibility for creating the whole. This includes being self-aware of behaviors, responses, and contributions to inclusive structure-building outside of specific work projects. All people hold responsibility for learning and growing together.

Universal belonging does not mean everyone is or must be the same. We each have different histories, communities, needs, and ways of showing up in the world. Research shows that diversity leads to greater problem solving and creativity—we are better when we are diverse. Belonging means that all of these differences are valued and respected, and that different groups, based often on deep histories of exclusion, may need different kinds of support to create an equitable place of belonging.

No one is just one thing. We each carry multiple interests, identities, and relationships to power. This means flattening others into a singular identity is a way of reducing them. But it also means we can always find commonalities with each other because no identity is singular. Identities are fluid, complex and continuously evolving; they are not static or rigid. Belonging invites us into curiosity and connection across varying identities with respect and appreciation. 

Because we are interconnected, relationships are central to our transformation into places of belonging. Tough moments or conflicts are inevitable, and we can move through them when we are rooted in relationships. In places of belonging, we exercise our bridging muscles, which means we get practice at moving towards each other with curiosity and a willingness to be transformed, rather than away from each other. 

No one is an island. Even if the impact is not immediately observable, our actions and choices impact others and can change the dynamics of a team, a structure, even the planet. This principle of interconnection helps us understand the tremendous power individuals have to enhance or diminish the world around them. Because we are wired for and exist in relationships, both our problems and the solutions are also based on relationships. 

Bridging

The essential practice of relational belonging

Bridging is both an intention and a technique that helps strengthen relationships across differences so we can transform structures that exclude some groups over others. It is applicable in personal interactions as well as within organizations. In the context of fostering belonging, we have found it particularly useful in helping different groups collaborate towards a common goal. Cultivating a bridging culture is not always easy—some people have been bridgers all their life, while others may find it uncomfortable, like using muscles they never knew they had. However, fostering a bridging practice can change a culture steeped in shame, isolation, and judgement into one infused with curiosity, transformation, celebration, and care.

Narratives

New stories that reflect our multitudes

Social psychology suggests you can’t have a self until you have a story about yourself. That’s why people universally rely on narratives—whether they be individual, family, religious, political, national, or other—to literally find our place in the world. But power and narrative cannot be separated. Any place of belonging must look carefully at the stories of identity that have been repeated so frequently that they seem to be natural. The story everyone has traditionally told about “who we are” may actually create a sense of exclusion for some people. 

Belonging leaders are deeply aware of the stories that have been repeated over the years, and they consciously tell new, expansive narratives that actively welcome all members of a community and avoid “breaking” or dehumanizing select groups. Belonging narratives, built through stories and symbols, make the case for being a radically inclusive community. They are particularly powerful when they serve as a scaffolding for practices, programs, and institutions—like policing, healthcare or education—that have deep material impact on countless lives.