“In every community, there is work to be done. In every nation, there are wounds to heal. In every heart, there is the power to do it.” – Marianne Williamson

Featuring Emily, Adam, Nathalia and LEE (a curious life-ennobling economist). There are also many softer or even silent voices in this story. Voices that extend over the many years and geographies of this work. They will have layers to add and different perspectives that weave with those shared here. Maybe they will respond. Or maybe their stories are for another time. 

There’s a quiet revolution happening in a few communities around the world, a shift in how we value what matters. Supporting this growing ripple of change is a small team at Dark Matter Labs.

Introduction
Seeding the revolution

This revolution, called Cornerstone Indicators (or Cornerstones), started a few years ago, it was one of Emily Harris’s first projects at Dark Matter Labs. After a year working for Dm in finance, she transitioned into leading projects just as The Cornerstones was slowly taking shape. Samhällskontraktet had agreed to fund and support the initial work, but the concept remained fuzzy. It had been seeded by Dr Katherine Trebeck who co-founded the Wellbeing Economy Alliance, but there was no clear path forward.

“We really didn’t know how to do it, or where to start,” Emily recalls. “At first it was very academic—so many people were involved, yet the budget was minimal.” The original idea was to ‘close the loop’ between communities and high level measures of wellbeing, but it felt fragile and undefined.

Emily had grown frustrated with the beyond GDP movement. “It all felt like greenwashing, tweaks at the edges,” she said. This space created by Katherine and her Dm colleague Linnéa Rönnquist, by contrast, seemed like a place where they could ask the deeper question: How can we actually help people have a real voice in politics? Since the approach was new, they dove into extensive research.

At first, they didn’t know what the indicators would be (Katherine’s original inspiration had been girls riding their bikes to school as a marker of holistic wellbeing). They began with workshops in the city of Västerås in Sweden, and to their surprise, the work came alive. “So much data started surfacing,” Emily said.  

One key memory for Emily came on a rare flight to Vancouver. “I hardly ever fly, unless there is no other way,” she said, “but I’ll never forget that one.” She spent the 10-hour flight completely immersed in Miro boards, surrounded by thousands of digital post-its full of people’s thoughts, feelings, longing, fears, and desires. Her North Star was clear: representing people’s voices. “I was overwhelmed,” she said. “But what really mattered to me was honoring what people had shared. My deepest fear was that they wouldn’t feel represented.” Though she often felt out of her depth, she kept going, as she always does.

Keep going, little fairy. Show us the magic in life.

And she did. Swimming through that ocean of emotionally charged post-its, she searched for patterns, correlations, and ways to express what mattered most to people.

When she returned home, she met with her colleague Linnéa —a brilliant designer —and they began a creative ping-pong of ideas. As the concept started to take shape they were joined by Vlad Afanasiev, another talented designer and a statistician called Alberto Hernández Morales. An accountant-economist, a statistician and two visual thinkers, fusing data and design. That exchange rich in diverse backgrounds and expertise, sparked a prototype: a first iconographic representation of The Cornerstones.

They tested it with participants to see if it resonated. “To my relief, the feedback was positive. People felt seen.” Though still early and not academically rigorous, they presented at festivals and published it in a few blogs, acknowledging its limitations and experimental nature. Much of the work had been done in overtime—fueled by belief more than budget.

The next iteration came when Adam joined the project. Together, Emily and Adam designed a new workshop format—Adam ran the first one in Edinburgh.

Adaptation and Evolution,
in Edinburgh

Adam is a community builder and a father, whose path to this work was shaped by his upbringing. Born in England, but living over half of his life in Scotland, he grew up in a family that believed in the power of stories to shape the world. His grandfather, a passionate storyteller, would tell him, “Life is like a rollercoaster. It’s only ever a ride, and you can change it any time you want, you can choose how you respond to emotion, choose between love and fear.” That belief—that we have agency, that we can rewrite the systems around us—stayed with Adam.

Before joining Dark Matter Labs, Adam dedicated years to supporting young changemakers through The Power of Youth, an initiative focused on empowering mission-driven leaders. He worked across sectors, always seeking ways to bridge gaps between ambition and action, between vision and tangible change.

But one frustration persisted:
How do we create new measures of success that reflect human and ecological well-being?

How can we unleash the power of our hearts–and in doing so, inspire others to do the same? 

Two Dm Collaborators in conversation:

Emily: How are you feeling about the world and your place within it? Emily asks Adam. 

Adam: I feel such a mixture of things. Frustration, hope, overwhelm, anger, love, anxiety, joy, determination…

Emily: Yes, I feel all of that and more, I think we all do. 

This feeling of disconnection between the issues that we are facing and what we (as individuals, organisations, communities and nations) can do about them was the underlying driver for this initiative–explains Emily. Our conviction is that meaningful change will only be achieved collectively via widespread citizen engagement. The escalating global situation is too complex and too important to be entrusted to niche system change experts, politicians or economists. 

The Cornerstone movement is therefore about reconnecting people to public life, to build shared agency and inspire positive civic action. In the Cornerstone Indicators project, these human experiences take center stage. Inspired by Dr Katherine Trebeck and nurtured by the vision of many, the project asks: What if we measured what actually matters?

Two Dm Collaborators in conversation:

Emily: Do you feel like something’s starting to shift? I keep coming back to this thought: when we finally face the tension we’re carrying—the dissonance—it forces us to see what really matters.

Nathalia: Yes, I think I get what you mean. But that’s hard. It’s scary. I feel like people are resistant because they are afraid that if they really see it… they won’t be able to unsee it.

Emily: True. But the thing is—you already see it. You’re just pushing it down. Deep down, you know that what we’ve been told to value—like all the transactional stuff in our economy—isn’t what actually matters. And yes, it’s scary. Because once you realize the system isn’t working anymore… then what?

Nathalia: Exactly. That’s the part that’s so overwhelming.

Emily: I know. But I think once you move through that fear, there’s something else waiting—like, a kind of relief. And agency. That’s what opens up space for the real work—the stuff that does matter. It’s this intangible shift that Adam experienced during the Cornerstone workshops that gives me hope.

What Problems Do We Have?

Two citizens in conversation sitting on a park bench, watching their kids ride their bikes.

Citizen 1: My daughter had an assignment on GDP last night. Apparently, it is up this year. I guess we’re doing well.

Citizen 2: What does GDP even stand for again? Gross… Domestic… something?

Citizen 1: Yes, Gross Domestic Product. I had to google it last night, I wasn’t sure. I always forget, and to be honest, I don’t think it was very interesting homework.

Citizen 1: Yeah, well it doesn’t measure the things that really matter. Like… look at those kids on their bikes. Isn’t that a sign of a healthy community? These economic indicators always make me feel small. Isn’t the economy supposed to be ours?

Citizen 2: Funny you say that. I was part of a workshop recently, where they actually asked us what was important in our daily lives. First time I’ve ever been asked, honestly. They wanted to know what gives us joy, what stresses us out. I felt heard.

Citizen 1: And what happened?

Citizen 2: We created new indicators. Real ones. Like people enjoying not owning a car because if that’s happening, it means so many things are working—safety, trust, infrastructure, health, climate awareness. And now, with those, we’re changing how decisions are made.

For decades, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has been the measure of a nation’s success. But what does GDP tell us about the quality of our lives? Does it measure how safe our children feel biking to school? Does it capture the generosity of neighbors helping each other? Does it acknowledge the strength of a community that listens and acts together?

Why Does This Matter ?

For Adam, the work is urgent. His children are growing up in a world that isolates us, which means we have to stand in the messiness of it all by ourselves. We are scared. Our lives are structured around work, efficiency, and our bank accounts—leaving little space for joy. The worst part is, we’ve become numb to this. Adam wants the world his children grow up in to be one where we feel connected. 

I ask Adam what happens if Cornerstone doesn’t succeed and he says without thinking, 1984! (referring to the dystopian novel by George Orwell, published in 1949, that explores a totalitarian society where the government, led by the omnipresent “Big Brother,” controls every aspect of life, including thought, history, and language, through constant surveillance and manipulation). Adam saw it firsthand. In his own neighborhood, power was held by a few, and people felt voiceless. The systems designed to serve them had become obstacles instead. But something else is possible—a process that stops us from doing business as usual and unlocks what it means to be human.

LEE: What do you notice here? 

I see a desire for change. I know I want the same for my children: the feeling of having participated in something bigger than yourself. I am not sure that’s possible, can we really feel the joy of co-creating a legacy with and for our community?

The Work in Action

The Cornerstone workshop led by Adam and his colleague Nasim took place in a small, glass-walled room in a community hall in Edinburgh. Outside, the ancient Antonine Wall, once the edge of the Roman Empire, stood as a reminder of past divisions. Inside, history was being rewritten.

Six tables, each with five or six people—neighbors who had never spoken before. Some shifted in their seats, skeptical, their arms crossed. Some were probably thinking “what the hell have I come to”? Others leaned forward, intrigued. The air smelled of coffee and wood polish. Soft music played in the background, just enough to break the silence but not enough to distract.

Adam, an experienced facilitator, had thought of every little detail to host his community. Then, the questions were shared. What brings you joy? What causes you stress? What would make this community thrive? The first responses were hesitant. Then, momentum. Conversations warmed. Laughter. Heads nodding in agreement. Ideas sparking. A collective intelligence emerging.

“First, it was hard, I am not going to lie,” said Adam. He mentioned how there was a lot of skepticism. There were dynamics in the room from old power structures that created resistance and lack of trust. People had forgotten how to listen. There were a lot of people who are retired, and who used to have a lot of power, and they act from that past way of knowing. It’s not their fault, it’s simply what they are familiar with. With patience, Adam answered their questions. Steady tempo. He didn’t let go. Eventually, what unfolded was that the other participants started to understand what was possible, they leaned in and stepped in to create a different dynamic, helping Adam in the co-creation process. 

LEE: And so through Adam’s mastery of gathering and holding conversation, in this small group, power dynamics evolved. 

If you could decide, what would you change in your street?

Adam’s AHA moment.

As the workshop neared its middle-point something shifted. The room, once filled with fragmented voices, was now humming with agreement. A realization spread: We all want the same things. People who had started as skeptics stayed behind, talking long after the session ended. For the first time, they saw the common thread of humanity that connected them all.

Two Dm Colleagues:

Adam: Emily? Are you awake? I’m sorry, I know it’s late, but I had to call you!

Emily: Hi Adam, yes no worries, I was just reading–what is it ? Is everything OK? 

Adam: You won’t believe what just happened. I just finished the Cornerstone workshop, and… well how can I say this; you know how we are developing these indicators, 

Emily: mhm….

Adam: …That are really rich and illustrate what a community really cares about. 

Emily: Yes, yes I know Adam, and…?

Adam: Well, I think the most important part of the project is actually not the Indicators, but the process itself. Today, I saw first hand how people were changing. You had to be there. 

It’s like… they experienced having agency for the first time, and they saw how together, they could do what’s best for their community. I think I just saw a new community forming…

LEE: You’ve likely read countless critiques of GDP as an economic measure. Let’s skip that and focus on something even more fundamental: the flaw in publishing a single, linear indicator to measure progress. What if the process of creating the indicator mattered more than the indicator itself? Traditional measures are mechanistically determined by institutions. But Cornerstone Indicators are co-created by communities, weaving what truly matters: our relationships and interdependencies.

There are so many things we cannot do alone or understand in isolation—among those are improving soil health, strengthening trust, feeling heard, self-awareness… These happen in the presence of others (human and non-human), through dialogue, through interaction. 

There was agency

“Okay,” said one participant, standing up with a sudden burst of energy. “I can do this. I get it.”

Another pointed across the room. “Then you should run for city council.”

“Me?”

“Why not?”

A third participant grinned. “If we wait for the government to fix this, we’ll be here forever. We make it happen.”

And just like that, three citizens, empowered by this process, decided to become leaders. They weren’t career politicians, just people who had seen what was possible when a community came together. They wanted a well-functioning local democracy—not as a distant ideal, but as something real, something they could build with their own hands.

“This is our immunity,” one of them declared. “Our antidote to things broken in our society.”

Now, three of the newly elected council members are former Cornerstone participants who walked in as citizens and walked out as changemakers. The process didn’t just give them ideas—it gave them confidence, purpose, and a roadmap for action. It changed how they saw themselves, their community, and what was possible.

LEE: Here, we see a community moving beyond passive frustration into collective agency. They feel connected and empowered. They’ve discovered what happens when intrinsic motivation is unlocked—when individuals feel connected to something larger than themselves. 

What would you do for your community if you truly believed you had power?

People who felt powerless now see themselves as part of change. Across the Edinburgh participants, the Cornerstone process didn’t just generate data points. It created a culture. People saw their differences and celebrated their similarities. That moment of interaction, of being seen and heard, was generative in itself. So what did they do with this newfound power? Well, beyond electing three new council members, they started rethinking the everyday problems they had once accepted as inevitable.

Take local scouting groups. In one part of the city, every child who wanted to join the Scouts or Beavers could. The system worked because they had a strong network of parent volunteers. But just a few neighborhoods over, it was a different story—families were struggling, parents were too busy, and there weren’t enough volunteers. Kids were left on waiting lists, unable to participate.

That became a conversation: How do we extend beyond our immediate community? How do we ensure our neighbors thrive, not just us?

The realization was clear: We are part of something bigger. If our neighbors are well, we will be well.

The Next Steps?

After this initial phase of work, the team formed a partnership with the David Suzuki Foundation and brought the project to Canada. Anchored by a Montreal based colleague, Maddy Capozzi, they spent time looking for a community that would benefit. Partnering with a community that wanted the work, rather than imposing it was important. “We spent a lot of time listening and adapting,” Emily said. “This wasn’t about dropping in a model, but co-creating something meaningful.”

By then, the process was stronger. “I felt more confident. We had a proper methodology and valuable academic input. We could finally put it all together into a full, self-standing process.” Emily said.

Out of this came an open-source toolkit. “We’re finally getting somewhere!” Emily beamed. From the beginning, she had envisioned something communities could run themselves. Dark Matter Labs doesn’t seek to own the process, it exists to steward ideas and make them accessible to others.

“Now it’s fully open source,” she shared. They launched a facilitator training course, hoping a few people would join. Over 200 signed up—far more than Emily had dared to hope.

The beauty of the process is that it doesn’t require scale. What matters is time, care, and meaningful back-and-forth as indicators emerge, ensuring that the thoughts, values, and cultures of a place are genuinely held within the Cornerstones, both by the process and those designing it.

Recently, an automation tool was added to analyze large datasets, it opens the possibility to include data from universities and city records among others. Still, the human touch remains essential. “AI often misinterprets things,” Emily said. “I’ve spent days reading and understanding what people shared to sense whether the AI was capturing it properly. It has to be a mix.”

“When we think of data,” she added, “we imagine it’s cold. But really, it’s warm.”

“As an accountant, I’ve always felt that. I often know so much about people’s lives through the data I work with. I’m used to being intimately connected with others through numbers—but I never take it lightly.”

What is Changing?

In every Cornerstone project, a kind of magic unfolds. A collaborator—often a Dark Matter Labs researcher or a local university student—analyzes the community’s insights, translating them into something tangible. They create a unique set of indicators that reflect what this specific community values.

These indicators aren’t abstract or financial. They are human, relatable, and deeply tied to the realities of daily life. In Västerås, Sweden, one key indicator was the number of households who enjoy not owning a car. 

Another? The percentage of people who feel positive about the week ahead on Sunday evening (my personal favourite). What does success look like? It looks like local solutions, created by and for the people who live there.  

What’s even more interesting is the complexity each indicator holds. Behind each relatable indicator, is a series of elements that science and history tell us we need as human beings to flourish in our societies, such as safety, health and meaningful work. Just like that, in choosing for example the number of active intergenerational spaces as an indicator, you weave in social cohesion, sustainability, sense of purpose, cultural respect, and so on.  

What shift did you notice Adam? I asked while interviewing him. From the six LEE shifts (beyond theories of property, labour, extraction, private contracts, governance and monetary colonisation) which one is more present through the Cornerstone project ? Beyond labor Adam, answered without hesitation. People discovered they are much more than just workers; they are co-creators of society. Their participation is not only important, but needed, and it is not measured in economic output but in the well-being of their community. This is an economy that ennobles life, not just sustains it.

LEE: How interesting that a process of creating indicators created a sense of identity beyond labour. What about beyond governance, the Cornerstone indicators allow me to take decisions and steward the community. 

Which shift do you see ?