About Us

What is this? 

Groundswell is an online social action platform powered by Auburn Seminary. Auburn equips bold and resilient leaders who can bridge religious divides, build community, pursue justice, and heal the world. 

We provide a digital platform for the multifaith movement for justice to take strategic social action to stand for racial and religious dignity, end human trafficking, embrace full LGBTQ dignity and equality, call for a moral economy, get money out of politics, prevent religious extremists from hijacking our faiths, and much more. Together, we echo and amplify a call for justice welling up among people of faith, the secular, and the seeking. 

Campaigns on our site will be big and small, heroic and ordinary. If you have an idea to make your community, your school, your local playground, faith community, religion, or the planet a better place, this platform puts the technology tools to assist you at your fingertips. 

Why are you doing this?

We believe the way we make change matters as much as the change we make. That's why we are committed in principle and practice to an open-source social action platform that lifts up the stories of those on the front-lines and cultivates right relationships with our allies and movement partners. 

We aim to transcend the polarization that divides the right from the left, the religious from the spiritual and the secular, the haves from the have nots. We hope people of all walks of life can be mobilized in their communities using this online tool around shared moral imperatives in order to build a community where every person flourishes.

We believe the greatest social challenges of our time are interconnected.  We cannot realize racial equality in the U.S. without addressing religious bigotry, securing dignity for immigrants, and ending violence against women and girls, for example.  Groundswell's tools and resources aim to build solidarity across "issues" so that we stand up for one another’s causes as our own.

We won't pretend to be THE organizers of the multifaith movement for justice. Our movement is too big for that. We can hope to contribute, in our own way, to the empowerment of the vast segments of society who, motivated by the religious and moral commitment, are fighting for a better world for their children. We hope to model a new approach to "the movement" whereby distributed open-source activism can thrive. This movement, and this tool, is yours. 

What can I run a campaign on?

What have you noticed that needs fixing? Where do you see an opportunity for positive change? Your campaign need not be limited to particular issues or locations. Your audience can be global or local.

When starting a campaign the most important step is to get the ball rolling - don't worry about getting everything 100% right. Even experienced, professional activists make mistakes and often change tack as things develop. You don't need to be an expert to launch a campaign, you just need to be willing to learn new things along the way.

While you're building your campaign, we'll guide you every step of the way. And if you'd like to contact one of us before you start, that's fine, too. Just email us at info @ Groundswell-Movement.org. 

What is your privacy policy?

These things take up a lot of space, so please read our privacy policy in full.

Who controls the data on the site?

The data collected on and through the site is our property. However, we are committed to providing petition data to petition creators -- as long as we verify with the petition creator that they'll abide by basic rules about providing the ability to unsubscribe from email lists. 

Besides starting a petition, what else can I do in my campaign?

On Groundswell you can start a petition, share it with your network and communicate further with your supporters via email. You can also request help to pitch your campaign's success to the media by emailing us here. [email]

Groundswell also helps you take your campaign to the street. For instance, you can download a blank copy of your petition, collect signatures in person and then enter your data easily into the system. You can also download a finished copy of your petition to print and deliver to your target.

You can access all of these features from the manage page.

This is a tool that allows anyone, anywhere to take a campaign from start to finish.

Can I cancel my petition?

Yes.

How will signing petitions make a difference?

Petitions provide a useful snapshot of the level of public support for an issue and put forward a list of people who all share a common commitment or concern. And they don't always need a big number to make a big impact - think about a local issue where a petition of 20 people in a single faith community would require someone to sit up and take notice.

Petitions can be the catalyst for conversations that change how people think conversations with your friends, family, colleagues, neighbors, church group, school, fellow consumers, local club; political representative or business leader. It's most effective when you make a point of delivering your petition to your target in personal, high-profile or creative way, explaining why supporters feel the way they do. But it probably won't do much if you just start a petition and walk away.

What other services do you offer?

We offer trainings that are specifically targeted to help faith leaders and organizers like you get better at harnessing the power of the Internet to make social change. Learn more about training here.

I no longer wish to receive updates on a campaign I signed up to. How do I unsubscribe?

It's sad to see you go, but you can unsubscribe by clicking the 'unsubscribe' link in site emails you receive.