The theory of I rather be generous
We operate as a collective and we place great value on diversity, on personal agency, and on the presence of multiple perspectives—our own, and those of everyone, and everything, that joins us.
I Rather Be Generous is, at its core, about seeking alternatives.
What that generosity actually is, we don’t want—or claim—to define too precisely.
What we do have is a strong intuition, shaped by personal experience, by existing practices, and by theoretical insights, that generosity is exactly what the world needs right now.
For us, generosity is a stance. A way of researching, of working, of making and designing, and of living everyday life.
It is an ethical orientation, a starting point—something that sets better thinking, and better doing, in motion.
Is generosity a revolution, then?
Perhaps. But we believe generosity must grow.
We’re not interested in simply replacing one system with another. Systems imposed from above tend to be discriminatory toward anyone who doesn’t fit the prevailing norm—and that is no fertile ground for generosity.
Generosity demands sustained engagement.
To “generosify”, as we like to say, is an explicitly affirmative act.
It means using generosity as a navigational tool to slowly transform structures: leaving behind what no longer works, and carrying forward what can be sustainably developed.
In this way, new generous stories and perspectives can emerge.
This is not something one starts lightly.
There is no blueprint—though there are conditions.
And one crucial condition is the necessity of self-examination.
We began by re-learning our own ways of working through the lens of generosity. This process gave us insights, tools and techniques, habits and methods that we believe may also be useful to others—though their application will always look different in every field.
Another essential condition is that a generous practice can only unfold within a collective. In a collective, you are always engaged with others. It means you do not think for others, and you carry responsibility—because something is at stake.
That is why, for us, everything begins with a conversation.
Generosity is already present everywhere.
So we enter into conversations with others to see how they try to cultivate generous change within their own situations—whether in an artistic practice, a medical practice, or simply in everyday life.
Through these exchanges, we aim to share knowledge and approaches, making them visible and accessible to all.
Conversation allows us to embrace complexity. It requires time and attention.
The generous conversation, for example, is a powerful and workable tool for this.
In our conversations, our stories, our texts and our lectures we offer tools that might help you build your own generous practice.