Rhizome 2026: Open Session 01: Narrative Led Systems Change
The opening session welcomed potential Rhizome⁴ fellows with an introduction to Culture Hack Labs, its history, and the theoretical and methodological foundations of narrative-led systems change.
Culture Hack Labs grew out of its predecessor collective, The Rules (2012–2018), which brought together activists, writers, researchers, artists, hackers, and technologists from across the Global Majority to address the root causes of inequality, poverty, and ecological breakdown through narrative and cultural intervention. Out of that decade of practice, Culture Hack Labs was formalised as a not-for-profit consultancy, operating with a post-capitalist lens, working exclusively with social movements and progressive organisations, and freely sharing its research and tools.
Narratives are defined as interpretive social structures that frame what we see and guide what we do, operating largely on an unconscious level. The core proposition of CHL’s theory of change is that when you change the narrative, you change the system. True transformation requires both justice (dismantling structural inequities) and ontological shift (new ways of knowing, being, and relating to the world).
The Culture Hack methodology was introduced as a five-step iterative process: Ask (developing point of view), Listen (data collection through big and small listening), Understand (mapping narrative communities and power dynamics), Recode (developing narrative strategy), and Hack (creative implementation to seed culture change). The method is non-linear, open-source, and designed as a cycle of narrative actions and learnings.
The session also introduced the Pathways for Regenerative Futures — the research framework organising the Rhizome⁴ cohort, emerging from CHL’s Beyond the Carbon Fixation research. The five pathways represent the enabling conditions for true regeneration:
- Restoring Justice, Restoring Life — decolonisation for ecological healing
- Economies of Regeneration — transforming economic systems toward commons, gift economies, and regenerative models
- Land Back to Right Relationship — land redistribution and ownership models grounded in right relations
- Bioregional & Community Governance — decentralised, community-led governance organised around land rather than borders
- Healing the Spirit, Healing the Earth — cultural and spiritual shifts, indigenous knowledge systems, and earth wisdom
Fellows were invited to choose the pathway that most resonates with their project, with the understanding that all pathways are interwoven throughout the fellowship.The slides for this presentation can be found here.
Key Information for Potential Applicants:
- Application form open: March 26 – April 16, 2026
- Deadline to apply: April 16, 2026 Fellowship begins: May 28, 2026
- Bi-weekly online sessions (Thursdays, 11:00–12:30 Mexico City time): May 28, Jun 11, Jun 25, Jul 9, Jul 23, Aug 6, Aug 20, Sep 3, Sep 17, Oct 1, Nov 5, Nov 19, Dec 3, Dec 17 (14 sessions total)
- Mandatory in-person gathering in Costa Rica: October 22–28
- Hacking & implementation phase: November–December
- Final deliverables: January 2027
- Teams of at least 2 people required
- No cost to participants Projects can be local or transnational
- Next Session: April 2 – Fellowship application details and project pathway discussions