Harambee - Resource Sharing Pools - US

Why We Do What We Do 

Life is unpredictable and any of us can be hit by a crisis at any time that may be connected to, for example:

• The loss of employment
• A sudden illness or accident
• A bereavement or the breakdown of a relationship

When these unexpected events bring with them serious financial impact and insecurity they are referred to as ‘income shocks’.  Millions of us have neither savings nor access to family and friends who may offer temporary assistance in such a time of crisis.

Without an adequate safety net, many people’s last resort is high- cost borrowing in the form of credit cards, payday loans, overdrafts, and pawnbrokers. This toxic combination of an unexpected financial challenge arriving suddenly in the absence of protective factors pushes millions of people per year into serious problem debt.

Membership Agreement

We share the hope of a transformation in ourselves and our communities by sharing our resources like food, clothing, shelter, healthcare, and companionship.

We commit to honestly sharing the needs of our community and those with whom we are in relationship. We commit to active participation in the group by bringing needs, weighing in on discussions, making regular contributions, and bringing our talents and gifts to the support of those in going through a difficult time.

We commit to making an effort to create ongoing relationships across lines of class, race and geography, and to building reconciliation through these relationships. We invite each other to encourage and stretch our understanding and practice of collaborative, relational giving.

Our collective participation helps make the voice of a new way be heard throughout our community and the globe.


Inspired by Common Change Model