A Living Story of Adapting Communities to Thrive: Join in on the ACT

Like rain pooling on parched earth, slowly finding channels to flow together into streams, then rivers, so too do our collective responses to climate challenges begin as scattered actions, gradually connecting into powerful currents of change.

This is the essence of Adapting Communities to Thrive (ACT). Co-creating a living, participatory journey where our diverse knowledge, experiences, and visions converge to map adaptation pathways. And today, we’re opening a new channel for this convergence: the ACT Mural.

This digital canvas can become a living map of our collective intelligence, a space where the wisdom of many Earthians can mingle and multiply, revealing patterns that none of us could see alone.

Why a Mural for Adaptation?

The scale and complexity of climate adaptation requires a new form of collaborative intelligence. A form that can honour local knowledge while enabling shared learning across communities. One that inspire us to imagine and co-create a future where we can thrive.

The ACT Mural offers a space where:

• Local wisdom becomes visible alongside scientific insights
• Emerging experiments can be connected to reveal patterns
• Future visions can be co-created across different perspectives
• Your voice joins a growing tapestry of community adaptation strategies

This isn’t just another online whiteboard, it’s living map of collective intelligence that feeds directly into the upcoming ACT events and beyond, helping to shape tangible action and policy.

Exploring the Three Horizons

The Mural is structured around the Three Horizons framework: a powerful way to imagine and navigate transformation.

• Horizon 1: Business-as-Usual & Current Challenges: What’s holding us back? What challenges do you see in your community? What are people saying (or not saying) about climate change?

• Horizon 2: The Transition Zone: How might we adapt together? What seeds are you planting, both literal and metaphorical? What emerging experiments inspire you? How might we build bridges between composting the old and crafting the new?

• Horizon 3: The Future of Thriving Communities: Imagine writing letters from 2035. What does an adapted, thriving community look and feel like? What do you see, hear, smell, and feel in this flourishing future?

Each horizon needs your caring contribution, and you can move freely between them as you explore different perspectives.

Like the mycelial networks¹Mycelial networks are the underground systems of fungi that connect trees and plants in forests, sharing nutrients and information across ecosystems. A beautiful metaphor for how our collective knowledge can spread and nourish communities and our planet we are part of. beneath forest floors that connect trees in vast communication webs, the Mural creates connections between ideas, projects, and possibilities that might otherwise remain isolated. Through these connections, something greater than the sum of parts begins to emerge.

How best to engage with the Mural

Ready to join this collaborative space? Here’s how to make the most of it:

1. Set aside 20-30 minutes for thoughtful engagement (the Mural works best on desktop browsers)
2. Start in the sandbox if this is your first time using Mural, learn how to create sticky notes, add images, and explore the basic tools
3. Check out the “How & What to Contribute” section for ideas on different ways to participate
4. Get inspired by community initiatives by exploring the video case studies of climate adaptation projects across NSW
5. Choose which horizon you want to explore first and add your voice through:
   • Sticky notes sharing your experiences, worries, or hopes
   • Images from your community showing adaptation in action
   • Poems or stories about adaptation journeys
   • Letters from the future imagining thriving communities
   • Links to projects that inspire you
   • Questions that need exploring

Remember, this isn’t about having perfect ideas or polished contributions. It’s about bringing your authentic perspective into a growing collective intelligence. The Mural is a conversational place to both share and be inspired by others.

What happens next?

The Mural isn’t a static exercise. It’s a living process and just one part of the broader ACT journey. As patterns emerge, connections form, and insights arise, we’ll be:

• Hosting some online workshops with work through the ACT Mural experience together. Register your interest here to be notified about upcoming sessions.
• Weaving your contributions into futher stories and imagination exercises to share back with the larger community.
• Bringing community stories, voices and wisdom into the AdaptNSW Forum
• Creating a visual archive of community wisdom that continues to evolve
• Identifying opportunities for collaborative action across communities

Your contributions become part of a growing body of knowledge about how we might adapt and thrive together. This participatory approach reflects a core insight: adaptation isn’t something done to communities, but by communities, drawing on their inherent wisdom and creativity.

Note: The Mural is a public space, and your contributions will be visible to others. Please be aware of your own privacy and that of others you may share stories about, and only share content that you are comfortable with being public.

The broader the ACT journey

The Mural is one piece of a larger journey of collective futurecrafting with the AdaptNSW community. Here are a few ways to get involved…

Join the Pol.is conversation here and share your perspective on what becomes possible when we weave together the transformative power of community-led adaptation

Explore the AdaptNSW website and connect with broader adaptation initiatives and trusted, localised climate information

Invite others - Share the this article with friends, family, or neighbours who might want to contribute their ideas about transformative climate adaptation and community thriving