Helping PSOs grow
and thrive
Free services to practical support organizations
We provide operations and programmatic technical assistance to any grassroots organization or group that provides travel, lodging, food assistance, childcare or other basic needs support to people seeking abortion care.
All of our programs are offered for free to the practical support organizations (PSOs) we work with. Many PSOs are underfunded and understaffed, and we want to make sure that everyone has access to the tools they need to support their clients.
We also offer sliding-scale trainings and services to other groups interested in learning more about how practical support works.
*Special thanks to our funders and donors who let this happen!
Programs
The Hivemind
The Hivemind is the backbone of all our programs - our community spaces made up of people who work or volunteer at practical support organizations and groups. We host twice-monthly calls and manage digital community spaces where anyone can quickly raise questions or share resources.
If you're an organization who does practical support and you're interested in joining the Hivemind, please fill out this form!
For all other inquiries, use the contact us button below.
Hivemind Office Hours
We offer Technology Assistance office hours as a resource for the Hivemind organizations to brainstorm and troubleshoot any technological issues they're encountering.
Practical Support Blueprint
Apiary supports organizations who support people. Our Practical Support Blueprint program has two main branches: Technical Assistance and our Blueprint Cohort.
Technical Assistance
We provide individual technical assistance for established or budding practical support groups around processes, tools, sustainability, and system-building as needed. If you are a part of a group or organization that is interested in or currently providing practical support services and are looking for assistance on where to start or how to move forward, we are here to help! We can provide support for:
Sustainable practices
Creating plans for starting or restructuring services
Relationship-building and connection with adjacent access partners
Thought partnership in planning
Tool/Tech recommendation
Referral to our wide network of comrades in: Legal, Tech, Security, and more
Blueprint Cohort
The Blueprint Cohort is a facilitated space where organizations and groups assess the specific needs and capacities in their communities, imagine possibilities and solutions, and build out a plan for practical support services in their area. Click here to learn more about the 2024 Cohort, focused on building a volunteer driving program.
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The Cohort will include 6-8 organizations at a time, working together over a 3-month period with planning sessions and optional supplemental skill shares.
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There is no limit to the number of team members from any particular organization who can join. We do ask that the participant(s) are able to confidently participate in conversations within the Cohort related to the community they serve and the organization's values and potential.
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You do not have to be currently offering practical support to join the Cohort.
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The Cohort intensive training lasts approximately three months, with continued support for implementation of services with no time constraint. There are three group learning sessions, once a month for two hours that are required for all Cohort participants. Participants can expect to spend roughly 4-6 hours on work outside of meetings. Organizations can schedule individualized time with the Blueprint Manager throughout each month, as needed for additional support. There will also be optional, virtual meetings for additional skills-building, concept-understanding, debriefing, and relationship-building.
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Our first Cohort launched in May 2023, stay tuned for an announcement about the next one!
The Pollination Station
Many practical support organizations (PSOs) have been struggling with the sheer number of new volunteer signups from folks fired up to take action and join the movement since the Dobbs decision.
Vetting and training new volunteers takes A LOT of time and resources from groups that are often entirely volunteer-run themselves, and much of the time, volunteers aren’t able to get trained and mobilized quickly because of the high-volume of applicants.
In response to this need and direct requests from PSOs in our community, we decided to do something about it! In May 2023, we launched the Pollination Station, a practical support volunteer training program that screens and trains potential volunteers on behalf of the organizations in our Hivemind. Potential volunteers go through a series of three trainings and then are connected to a local PSO serving their community.
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We offer the Pollination Station training series throughout the year. The top of our application form is updated with the month of the next training round. For security purposes, only accepted applicants are provided the exact date and times of sessions.
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There are three sessions, each two hours long over Zoom, that are offered at an array of weekday and weekend times to allow for different scheduling needs.
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It is crucial to build at the speed of trust! The Pollination Station is meant to provide volunteers with a strong foundation for engaging with practical support that is guided by Reproductive Justice. We help volunteers best understand their roles, responsibilities, and expectations as well as equip folks with the necessary skills and knowledge. By providing the basics of practical support, we are working to establish a consistency of standards, ensure safety, build confidence, and extend joy across the practical support landscape.
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You can apply here. All applicants will be notified of their application status prior to the start of a new training round.
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Anyone interested in learning more about practical support volunteering is welcome to apply! We welcome folks looking to support abortion access in their local community and/or remotely.
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Some of us need a bit more love before becoming a practical support volunteer and that is okay! We will share more learning opportunities to those applicants that are not accepted, and upon further engagement with anti-oppressive work one can re-apply to the program.
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We will try to connect you with "local" PSOs based on your skill set and what type of volunteering you would like to pursue as well as what PSOs need. Orgs may have their own vetting process and onboarding training. Apiary is building more training program opportunities (outside of the Pollination Station) to broaden and strengthen your skill sets.
For all other inquiries and TA, Contact our Volunteer Coordination Manager here
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ineedana.com Advanced Search Directory
We partnered with the folks at ineedana.com and the National Network of Abortion Funds to make a comprehensive resource directory of abortion funds, clinics, and practical support organizations so that people seeking abortions and the groups helping them can see more easily what resources exist and how to connect to them.
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TA Coalition
A monthly call to align goals and strategies with other organizations that provide technical assistance or other supportive services to abortion access organizations. What started as a small collaboration with the Digital Defense Fund and Forefront Project has grown to ten organizations and continues to expand.
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PS 101
PS 101 is an hour-long training by Apiary detailing what practical support is, an overview of the current ecosystem, and how it can be provided. We offer this training to anyone interested in learning more about practical support or providing logistical assistance to clients obtaining abortion care in their communities.
PS 101 can be tailored to a particular audience as needed; we will work with you to create a training that covers the unique interests or expertise of your team.
