Introducing Our Ecosystem for Change: Bringing Encolor and the Shared Space Project Together

When Encolor launched in 2020, the vision was intentionally small and focused. Founder Quinn Parker set out to build a sole proprietorship. She’d deliver trainings across the country and work as a subcontractor to support organizations working to operationalize equitable outcomes in energy efficiency and clean energy programs.

In the wake of George Floyd’s murder, which catalyzed a focus on equity across industries, demand for what Encolor offered quickly grew.

By 2023, Encolor had become a collective of consultants with diverse lived and professional experiences. We had deep energy industry expertise, and we had expertise in education, community engagement, advocacy, and shared ownership. Our intersectionality helped us to think differently, and color outside of the lines. Yet we increasingly found ourselves in rooms where decisions were being made without the stories, priorities, and wisdom of the communities most affected by those decisions. And we were frustrated.

This gap mattered. We could help our clients think differently about program design, implementation, and evaluation. But community needed to be in the room in a real way for change to happen.

A gap we couldn’t fill… yet

We knew the problem. We also knew that, in our existing structure, Encolor wasn’t positioned to help solve it.

Encolor’s client work is slow, iterative, and intentionally transformative. That depth is essential to shifting power, changing systems, and helping organizations respond meaningfully to community needs. But it can also create tension when communities want, and deserve, change that is faster, more visible, or more direct than the regulatory and business environment we operate in allows.

We wanted to make authentic commitments both to our clients and to the communities they aim to serve, while recognizing that those commitments don’t always move at the same pace.

Encolor’s revenue model also limited our ability to create and sustain spaces for deeper community engagement, organizing, and ownership. We wanted to accept donations and access philanthropic funding designed to dismantle systemic barriers, funding that required a different tax designation to access.

Building a nonprofit seemed like the next logical step, but we didn’t want to lose sight of Encolor’s core mission in the process, which is to ignite change using data to disrupt the status quo, inspiring authentic and collaborative spaces for those who have been excluded to reclaim their power.

To do that well, we still needed to be close to decision-makers shaping program design, evaluation, and implementation within regulatory and institutional confines of the energy industry. We needed to leverage our deep energy industry expertise to help create the conditions for community power to flourish. Ultimately, we needed to still work from the top-down to create the conditions for meaningful change.

A quiet... and confusing… start

To do that, we made a deliberate choice to launch a nonprofit in 2024. The Shared Space Project (Shared Space) was born to do what Encolor could not. Shared Space would access new funding streams, center community organizing and ownership, and show up differently, yet led by the same values. The idea was that Encolor could continue to drive change from the top-down while Shared Space began to work from the bottom-up.

In 2025, against a tumultuous political landscape which at times challenged the fiber of the work we do at both organizations, we showed up more as Shared Space. Because in that moment, our communities needed intentionally safe spaces.

We presented at conferences, launched our flagship workshop-style training, “Applying Human-Centered Design to Community Engagement,” convened two working groups, partnered with our first clients. We learned quickly how strange it can feel to be the same people doing deeply connected work under two different organizations.

As Shared Space grew, so did the questions.

A false seperation

To meet the moment, Encolor staff stepped in. They’d facilitate working groups, represent Shared Space at events, and help think through how to grow both brands while keeping them distinct. We tried to draw cleaner lines. We tried to show up as one organization or the other.

It didn’t work. Not for you. Not for us.

People wanted to understand how the organizations worked together and how we navigated wearing two different hats. For us, the lens-switching felt natural. We were pulling levers of change from the top while also pulling from the bottom, hoping to meet in the middle and create what both organizations envision: a true shared space where organizations and communities partner to shape an equitable future.

But the advice we heard often was to separate. Differentiate the brands, differentiate the work streams.

We tried. But our intent had always been to move at the speed of trust, and prove the concept that investing in people and community can foster real change. Before long, we were spending more energy trying to divide two halves of the same coin than advancing Shared Space’s mission.

We questioned everything. We sought the perspective of a trusted advisor, who asked a simple question: “What if you brought Encolor and The Shared Space Project closer together?”

In that moment, it felt like a weight had lifted.

Choosing alignment

Soon our business plan developed clarity it never had. Our story became clearer and  we could articulate our offerings.

Doing what’s best for this work and the people behind it means trying something different. Even if it’s uncomfortable. We decided to take our own advice: be brave and lean in.

Encolor was born to disrupt. From day one, we’ve challenged ourselves and our clients, tested new approaches, centered people, and stayed rooted in community. The same spirit gave rise to The Shared Space Project. We saw a gap. We felt the urgency. And we innovated to meet it.

So we’re not going to force a separation that doesn’t serve anyone, when the alignment between our organizations is what will produce lasting change.

What will the relationship between Encolor and Shared Space look like long-term? We don’t know everything right now. But we have the clarity, intention, and excitement we need to figure it out. We hope you’ll join us while we do.

What this means for you

We’re the same Encolor you know. Our clients, their programs, and their organizational realities will continue to drive our work.

• We’ll keep partnering with you to strengthen program metrics and outcomes.

• We’ll continue evaluating programs through an evolving, culturally humble lens.

• We’ll advise on operationalizing equity, navigating regulatory frameworks, and pushing program design forward—asking hard questions along the way.

• We’ll continue to support inclusive procurement practices by educating buyers and sellers on how to navigate through competitive solicitations.

You may see us show up as Encolor or as The Shared Space Project, depending on the work and the moment. Our lens will shift depending on the situation, but we’ll carry dual expertise into every conversation we have based on our disparate roles.

Encolor is stronger because of Shared Space. Shared Space is stronger because of Encolor.

Our people

• Quinn Parker is Founder and CEO of Encolor, and Founder, Executive Director, and Board Chair of The Shared Space Project.

• Rachel Dortin is a Managing Consultant at Encolor and Director of Community Organizing and Ownership at The Shared Space Project.

• Kristi Hewitt serves as Executive Assistant for both organizations.

The rest of Encolor’s team (meet them here) will continue to work primarily within Encolor, stepping into Shared Space when their expertise strengthens the work.

Both organizations will grow, shift, and evolve. One day, our staffing structures may look different. For now, this alignment is what allows us to lead with integrity, deepen our impact, and serve you more honestly. Over the coming months, you’ll see clearer language, shared narratives, and coordinated outreach that reflect the reality of our work and our values.

We’ll stay nimble, iterative, and transparent through it all. We look forward to working with you, as Encolor and The Shared Space Project, in 2026. Together we can create the conditions necessary for our communities to step into their rightful seats in the rooms where their futures are discussed.