Find our worker self directed nonprofit resources for starting, supporting, or cultivating WSDNs below.

Collaborate to Co-Liberate Series

In 2025, we're launching our second iteration of Collaborate to Co-Liberate, a 12-month peer learning journey that explores the stickiest questions facing movement groups striving to build equitable, democratic, and life-giving organizations, with modules led by leading practitioners, including adrienne maree brown, Gopal Dayaneni, and more. Check out our calendar (in progress) here!

Webinars:

Just getting started? Watch our introductory webinar, “Worker Self Directed Nonprofits: Implementing Workplace Democracy in Nonprofit Organizations"

Looking for a deeper dive into nuts and bolts of worker self-direction? Watch our webinar, hosted by the praxis project, "Deeper Dive: Tools, Structures, and Examples of Worker Self-direction" [En Español] [In English]

Bylaws Toolkit for Worker Self-Directed Nonprofits

Check out our new (2021) bylaws toolkit, complete with template bylaws and a guide for how to draft more participatory, equitable, and accessible bylaws.

Bite-Sized Legal Guide to Becoming a Worker Self-Directed Nonprofit

Click here to view this Bite-Sized Legal Guide, where we explore how worker self-direction can help nonprofits better achieve their missions, as well as the legal considerations for becoming a worker self-directed nonprofit. This bite-sized guide also includes a sample board resolution for worker self-direction.

Other Legal Guides

Here's a Legal Guide for Boards of Directors of worker self-directed nonprofits!

Check out our Bite-Sized Legal Guides on nonprofits in general, including How to Form a Nonprofit, How to Become a Worker Self-Directed Nonprofit, and How to Start a Fiscally Sponsored Project with a Partner.

Model Documents and Other Resources:

Click here to see all of the Law Center's internal policies and processes for worker self-direction. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International license for easy sharing!

This public Google Folder also has an ever-growing collection of handouts, slides, model documents, and more.

Case Studies: Democratic Leadership in Practice

Faye Christoforo, a researcher with Nonprofit Democracy Network and codirector of the New England Grassroots Environmental Fund, based in Newmarket, NH, shares research they did to understand current democratic leadership practices across the United States. Check out their case studies here.

Topics and Videos:

⭐ Who Sets Priorities at a Worker Self-Directed Nonprofit?

⭐ The Role of The Board

⭐ Meeting Processes

⭐ Tour the Office of a WSDN!

⭐ Onboarding New Staff

⭐ Dividing Labor and Assigning Responsibilities

⭐ Fiscal Sponsorship Versus Independent 501(c)(3)

⭐ Bringing our Whole Selves to Work

⭐ Alignment and Resiliency 

⭐ Setting Staff Compensation

⭐ Paying Nonprofit Board Members