Impact Story

Powercube tool empowers UK nurses to act

Published on 24 August 2024

Launched in 2009, the Powercube.net is a toolbox for analysing power relations to further social change. Developed by IDS Research Fellow John Gaventa, with Research Associate Jethro Pettit, and a number of partners, the website allows global audiences to access a number of resources. Over the years the site has been visited over a million times and applied by dozens of groups.

Title says 'Powercube'. beneath, there is a blue cube. On the left, a heading says 'Levels' with the 'Global, national, local, household' in a column beneath. Along the bottom, another heading says 'Spaces' with 'closed, invited, claimed' underneath. On the right a heading says 'Forms' with 'Invisible, hidden, visible' underneath.

It was recently used by a UK grassroots campaign group, Nurses United, to empower nurses, who are subject to strict rules on striking, to act for change. According to Nurses United, hierarchies in the nursing profession led many nurses to feel that they could not influence policies affecting their working lives or patients’ treatment.

Powercube.net resources helped the nurses recognise forms of power within an organising context. Following training that highlighted concepts of ‘power within’ and ‘power with’, nurses led 40 simultaneous demonstrations across the UK about pay and working conditions.

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The views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author/s and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of IDS.

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