A paper for the people, by the people, about the people. Forged in this period we call late stage capitalism – when what is real is cloaked in layers of ambiguity and misinformation – Paper Zero offers an anchor for culture, critical thought and community care. The Preface taken from the beginning of Paper Zero, outlines our focus as a humanity first platform.
This preface features in The Quick + The Brave Paper Zero: Advocates + Allies out now.
Order yours from our shop on Ko-Fi where you can also support our indie publication through the Solidarity Economy.
Thank you, dear reader, for engaging with this paper.
What you are reading is what happens when intention meets demand.
The Quick + The Brave grew from our immediate necessity to make media accessible, inclusive and democratic.
Built on the Solidarity Economy, readers pay what they can to support our indie publication via the QR code on the front cover of the paper to our online shop.
Your support makes it possible for us to spread news fast and for us to build a relationship of trust with you as we all manage these challenging times.
We’re living in a dystopian era where tax dodging billionaires are free to buy up media outlets in order to spread misinformation and ensure political influence.
Meanwhile everyday citizens already suffering the impact of inequality are being shadowbanned, blacklisted, even jailed, for protesting against humanitarian and environmental destruction.
Such blatant hypocrisy is hard to ignore and leaves many of us asking how did we arrive at this dismal state – and how do we change it?
Next Goal Wins
We know that with the right intention, business and tech can make positive change; the Internet becomes a space for collective growth; Artificial Intelligence will create breakthroughs in the human experience that we can be proud of.
We’re increasingly aware.
Aware that if we don’t act to attain this goal soon, the dream may fade away as crucial access to resources to build is largely controlled by the Cloud Capitalists.
Our disenfranchised communities came together in response to this growing tyranny.
The intersectionality of our shared experiences cultivated an understanding that enabled us to build this collective safe space; where we could reimagine an existence that placed knowledge and power directly into the hands of the people.
Supported by a school of Advocates and Allies, we started this paper as a way to inform, educate and entertain our communities in this time of pivotal change.
The obstacles we were unwillingly laboured with became the building blocks of our path to collective liberation.
We started by centring our way of working around allowing people like us to contribute to society, find community and make a living while doing their best work.
Intentionally building from the bottom up, The Quick + The Brave is here to protect the world we are fighting for.
We exist primarily as a newspaper with a circulation of 10,000 copies supported by a digital blog for members.
Accessible.
Accountable.
Affirming.
Something real.
Something tangible.
Something that can’t be silenced by the digital space.
Democratically owned and governed by its readership.
Engineered for Collective Ownership
To actualise this vision we needed a system that was commercially viable and democratically organised. A sustainable system where the public has a say both in how we manage advertising space and how we distribute profits.
In order to achieve this, we looked at models outside of traditional corporate structures.
Our search led us to the Cooperative business model.
It is kismet that 2025 marks the United Nations’ Year of Cooperatives, themed ‘Cooperatives Build a Better Future’.
What an opportune time to partake in such an odyssey.
If successful, we’ll create lasting change across our communities.
Freedom of press combined with collective ownership.
One person, one vote.
Looking closer to home, we’ve been inspired by the Rochdale Pioneers who in 1844 formalised and publicised the principles of the modern cooperative movement in northern England. Their aim was to pull themselves out of a situation similar to the growing wealth inequality we’re witnessing now.
The co-op is recognised as a model that can address local and global issues, playing an important role in meeting the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
Unlike the role of a CEO in a traditional company, there is no single person with overarching, top down power in a co-op. Instead decisions are voted on by members and discussed by a board of directors – also made up of co-op members.
Research from the World Economic Forum looked at the positive impact working in cooperatives had on mental health. Comparing people working in equivalent industries, co-op workers were 40% happier in their jobs*.
With this model, we felt we had nothing to lose.
What would it look like if the platform was owned by its readership?
Learning more got us thinking.
Watch ‘These companies with no CEO are thriving’ TED-Ed in collaboration with World Economic Forum on YouTube:
Advocates + Allies
The theme of this issue, ‘Advocates + Allies’, explores the transformative nature of community care and holding space for others.
It’s helped us get through a particularly challenging time – we hope that more people find access to community and support, especially when they need it most.
While navigating that difficult period, we had a life-changing encounter with artist, theologian and community leader, Tricia Hersey.
Founder of The Nap Ministry, Tricia advocates for rest as a form of resistance against oppressive systems. Calling on us to remember that it is our divine right to find moments of stillness and rediscover the Dreamspace, The Nap Ministry’s mission is deeply rooted in community care.
In her second book, ‘We Will Rest!: The Art of Escape’, Tricia reminds us that:
“We don’t believe we are worthy of rest unless we burn ourselves out to accomplish it. Our thinking has been limited by disconnection, sleep deprivation, and the unattainable call for perfection. The systems will never give us rest. It is something we must create for ourselves and each other.”
Her message was strikingly clear.
When we push relentlessly to be recognised by systems that only value output and productivity – while the goal posts to reach that definition of success constantly shift – we can become isolated physically, emotionally and spiritually.
It is in a rested state that we are our most expansive.
It is in community that our identities become whole.
It is in this state of grace that we find liberation.
With this renewed understanding, we started Paper Zero.
Community Care
A paper for the people, by the people, about the people.
A space in the real world (not the reel world) where you and I can live and learn with peace of mind.
In order for us to grow together, we have to cultivate a space for trust.
We have to cultivate a culture where power is shared.
In the process of creating Paper Zero, we’ve had the opportunity to connect with independent thinkers, artists, journalists and griots around the world.
These inspiring storytellers come from Albania, Cameroon, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Hawaii, India, Indonesia, the Netherlands, Palestine, Panama, Mongolia, Nigeria, Serbia, Senegal, Suriname, Uganda, Türkiye, the UK and the US.
We’re especially grateful for the connection with our first Guest Editor, Shawn Jr.
Editor of online publication and community Coping With Capitalism, Shawn Jr holds space for clear and accessible paths to self and collective care.
He came across our blog about our experience in corporate and reached out at a very dark time.
Even though he was based halfway around the world in California, the warmth of his advocacy helped to restore our faith in community.
Culture Today
In these polarised times, when incivility is naively celebrated, The Quick + The Brave is a platform that takes a stand for humanity.
Print is the medium that we knew would connect with our readership.
While digital empowers us to reach far and wide, with so much of our lives taking place online, print feels more meaningful, more intentional, more real.
In 2020 and 2022, we released our first test prints: ‘New Ground’ and ‘A Sense of Home’.
These formed TQTB’s foundation of sharing stories from creatives, entrepreneurs and thinkers while empowering ourselves to publish independently.
With the rise of online censorship, shadow banning and misinformation in recent years, the importance of autonomy and freedom of speech in print is reaffirmed.
In this third and final promo print, which is £1 via our Ko-fi shop, we set our intention to introduce an affordable way for readers to access the platform while ensuring that the platform generates income to be sustainable via the Solidarity Economy.
Dare to Dream
This paper is for all of us.
We hope that it speaks to and inspires you.
It’s as much about how the stories affect you as it is about the people sharing them.
We are not as divided as we are led to believe.
We hope that by learning about the humanity in others we can better understand and advocate for our own.
Thank you to each of our contributors for sharing their stories, resilience, vulnerability and connection to their communities.
Through the Solidarity Economy, you can support or see more of their work directly via the QR codes and online contact details throughout the paper.
We invite you to visit The Quick + The Brave store on Ko-fi where you’ll find the pre-sale of upcoming issues of the paper. You can donate and follow our journey too.
Click and Connect
Our print editions are co-created with guest editors passionate about their communities.
Join us in the journey towards collective liberation.
For a limited time, pre-order the first four issues for £3.33 via the QR code Ko-fi:
Paper One: An Education in Dance
Autumn 2025
Journey through the enigmatic world of dance where ceremonial expression and social activism are tools of liberation. From the Afrobeat scene of inner city Lagos to the hypnotic allure of Northern Soul sweeping the UK, discover collectives using the flow state of performance art to uplift their communities and connect with creatives around the globe.
Paper Two: Surviving DEI
Winter 2026
What can we learn from the biggest equality rollback in employment history, the socio-economic implications of the dismantling of DEI and the unavoidable legacy industry will now bear? In this intergenerational special, Gen-Zers speak to educators and employees about workforce morale, AI and the foreshadowed Big Quit II.
Paper Three: Womanism
Spring 2026
Reconnect with internal wisdom as we explore the sacred calling of birthwork as told by doulas and birth workers. From ancient customs to modern medicines, from chestfeeding to edible placentas – this is the remarkable story of birth as told by the holders of life.
Paper Four: Get Rich Or Try Sharing
Summer 2026
Investigating the far-reaching impact of the Cooperative movement with founders, members and economists. How shared ownership is working to combat inequality in the UK and the wealth tax plan that the government can’t afford to ignore.
Be sure to secure yours with this special introductory price of four issues for £3.33 (excluding shipping) until 31st August 2025.
You also have the opportunity to become a member of The Quick + The Brave Media Co-op.
As a member, you get a say in the evolution of the platform, voting rights, discounts, early access to publications and more.
We’ll be holding a digital town hall this autumn to share more about the cooperative way of working, inviting you to join us as we build a platform together that empowers and informs.
Shying away from feeding social media and Big Tech’s pervasive influence, the majority of our stories are only available in print and on our blog so we encourage you to sign up to our newsletter for updates.
You can sign up through the form at the end of this blog.
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Common Sense
Why would we create a whole paper and digital platform just to give it away to the public?
What motivated us to take such a radical approach and form The Quick + The Brave Media Co-op?
1.
Having experienced and witnessed burnout multiple times in corporate, we saw patterns emerge.
In systems designed uniquely to maximise profit, even well intentioned individuals who want to make a difference can be constricted by rigid rules and unconscious bias.
When you see patterns repeat, wouldn’t you try to do something to avoid the same cycles?
2.
After more than a decade working in the creative and cultural industries, we were invited into a corporation to design and manage a DEI project.
We won’t go into detail here but you can read about our experience in our online case study. Search ‘Surviving DEI’ here on the blog.
You can also pre-order the Surviving DEI issue of the paper now in the shop on Ko-fi. Due this Winter, we explore the socio-economic and psychological impact of the wide reaching rollbacks in diversity programming. In conversations initiated by Gen-Zers, educators and employees shed light on work culture and morale in a post-DEI world.
3.
While cooperatives aren’t widely known about, they make up a significant part of the global economy employing 10% of the world’s workforce.
2025 is the International Year of the Cooperative, themed ‘Cooperatives Build a Better World’.
Jointly owned and democratically managed, the mission of co-ops isn’t to maximise profits but to serve their members.
That’s not to say that they aren’t profitable.
According to the World Cooperative Monitor, the three hundred largest cooperatives generate over $2 trillion in revenue annually. We think that that’s plenty to go around, so why not…
This preface features in The Quick + The Brave Paper Zero: Advocates + Allies out now.
Order yours from our shop on Ko-Fi.
Contact us
General queries and press: info@thequickandthebrave.com
Advertising and partnerships: partnerships@thequickandthebrave.com
The Co-operative Group is one of the world’s largest consumer co-operatives, owned by millions of members, including a supermarket owned by its customer members.
In line with its co-operative values and long-standing commitment to human rights, the Board have agreed a policy to stop sourcing from countries where the international community has identified serious risks of community-wide human right abuses and violation of international law.
To learn about The Co-op’s sourcing policy and countries concerned, visit:
www.co-operative.coop/ethics/ethical-policies/countries-of-concern
