Connectedness and collectiveness amid islands of hope and trouble

Recognizing the centrality of hope in times of crisis, this article uses interview data produced with two community organizations in Brighton and Hove to examine how spaces of hope emerge, survive and even flourish amid despair. In doing so, we pay particular attention to the role of collectiveness and connectedness in building and sustaining hope. Our findings indicate that, for many, collectiveness, connectedness and ‘doing together’ constitute forms of hopeful practice that both mobilize and sustain hope, but that these practices are not untroubled, are entangled with injustice and struggle, and do not negate a more general hopelessness. We conclude by arguing that how people comprehend hope shapes its experience, hope being more practical and accessible when it is understood as active, present and everyday.