TWO NEW SHIFTS…
Compared to the world when we created the six shifts in 2022, things have changed. We are entering a period of unprecedented global change. Climate change continues to accelerate, ecosystems are under growing pressure, artificial intelligence is reshaping economies, geopolitical tensions are increasing, democracies are becoming more polarised and the digital world increasingly competes for our attention in ways that can leave us overwhelmed rather than informed.
None of us knows exactly what the coming decades will bring. But it is becoming increasingly clear that uncertainty is likely to become a defining feature of modern life.
That is why Take the Jump has introduced two new shifts alongside our environmental actions: Stay Grounded and Grow Community.
These shifts are not a departure from our mission. They are an expansion of it.
Reducing our environmental impact remains essential. But if we are serious about helping people live well in a fast-changing world, then we also need to ask a different question: what qualities enable individuals and communities not merely to survive uncertainty, but to flourish through it?
We believe the answer begins with inner resilience and strong communities.
Stay Grounded
Most of us now live in an environment where our attention is constantly pulled in competing directions. News arrives every minute. Social media rewards outrage and urgency. Our phones rarely leave our pockets. Many people describe feeling distracted, emotionally exhausted or permanently behind. Even when the world around us is relatively calm, it can feel as though our minds rarely are.
Throughout history, people have faced immense uncertainty. Wars, economic upheaval, natural disasters and periods of profound social change are nothing new. What often distinguished those who navigated these periods well was not that they possessed more information or greater certainty about the future. It was that they cultivated qualities such as perspective, emotional steadiness, compassion, curiosity and hope.
These qualities do not emerge by accident. They are practices.
That is why Stay Grounded focuses on strengthening our inner lives.
It is an invitation to spend more time in nature. To create moments away from screens. To develop mindfulness or quiet reflection. To cultivate gratitude. To prioritise sleep and rest. To make time for relationships that nourish rather than deplete us. To notice beauty. To laugh. To remember that our attention is one of the most precious resources we possess.
None of these practices solve climate change or political division on their own. But they help us become the kind of people who can engage with difficult realities without becoming overwhelmed by them.
Being grounded does not mean withdrawing from the world. Quite the opposite. It means developing the inner stability needed to participate in it thoughtfully and generously.
In an age that constantly demands our attention, learning to choose where that attention goes may become one of the most important skills any of us can develop.
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Grow Community
If Stay Grounded is about strengthening ourselves, Grow Community is about strengthening one another.
One of the defining characteristics of modern societies is that many people have become increasingly disconnected from those living closest to them. We may know people on the other side of the world through social media while barely recognising the names of our neighbours. We often rely on distant systems for food, transport, energy and support, while local relationships have become weaker than they once were.
Yet when researchers study what helps communities recover from crises—whether floods, heatwaves, pandemics or economic shocks—the same conclusion appears again and again. The strongest predictor is rarely infrastructure alone. It is the strength of relationships between people.
Neighbourhoods where people know and trust one another recover more quickly from disasters. Communities with strong social networks experience better physical and mental health. People who feel they belong somewhere are generally happier, healthier and more resilient than those who feel isolated.
Community is not simply a nice extra. It is one of society's most important forms of infrastructure.
That is why Grow Community invites us to become active participants in the places where we live.This might mean getting to know our neighbours. Joining a local group. Volunteering. Learning first aid. Growing some food. Sharing tools instead of buying new ones. Organising a repair café. Supporting local businesses. Starting conversations across generations. Hosting community meals. Sharing practical skills. Creating places where people feel welcome.
These actions may seem modest, but together they create something remarkably powerful. Communities with strong relationships are better able to support vulnerable people, respond to unexpected challenges and solve problems creatively. They are also more enjoyable places to live. Children have more adults who know them. Older people experience less loneliness. Skills circulate. Friendships deepen. Everyday life becomes richer.
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Two shifts that belong together
Although we describe Stay Grounded and Grow Community as two separate shifts, they are deeply connected.
Grounded people tend to build healthier communities. Healthy communities, in turn, help people remain grounded. One supports the inner conditions for resilience; the other strengthens the outer conditions. One helps us respond wisely as individuals; the other helps us respond effectively together.
Both recognise something that modern culture has too often overlooked: that human beings are profoundly relational creatures. Our wellbeing depends not only on what we own or achieve, but on the quality of our relationships—with ourselves, with one another and with the natural world.
