# Get Involved in Your Community
Geographical, interest, skill or profession based groups are great ways to connect to others.
# Local Groups
>**Principle 10: we are based on autonomy and decentralisation**
We organise in small, autonomous groups distributed around the world. The aim is to balance being able to act quickly with using group wisdom when needed.
#### Join a Local Group
A Local Group (LG) is a group of people that gather in a local area to build support and take action towards XR’s three demands. To find a local group close to you - take a look at the UK Local Group map.
Joining a Local Group can be one of the most rewarding things to do in XR. Many members of Local Groups become great friends, and find understanding and cameraderie that they struggle to find elsewhere.
Local Groups often run campaigns based on issues that matter in their local areas, and this is very varied across the country. Current campaigns being run by local groups range from Community Assemblies to Air Pollution, Dirty Water to Incinerators, Warm Homes to tackling Biodiversity Loss.
And their actions don't stop there!
Local Groups do their own Outreach, Relationship Building, run Talks and Trainings, maintain social media pages and send newsletters, and much, much more!
**So to do all of this, they need you!**
#### Starting and Developing an Local Group
Lots of guidance is available for you regarding how to set up and grow a local group, ways of working together, guidance on internal communications and more in the [Local Group](https://rebeltoolkit.extinctionrebellion.uk/books/local-groups) book.
#### Need help?
If there is no Local Group near you or you are having trouble getting in touch with them, then feel free to contact Local Group Support team via our [Mattermost Reception channel](https://organise.earth/uk/channels/gardener-reception) or by emailing **LGsupport@extinctionrebellion.uk**.
#### Learn More
If you'd like to read more about Local Groups, or perhaps even start a new one near you then [take a look at this guide](https://rebeltoolkit.extinctionrebellion.uk/books/local-groups).
# Community Groups
#### What are Community Groups?
XR includes lots of diverse groups of people with common interests or identities, from profession, faith, life stage, or other connections and backgrounds such as ethnicity, gender or sexual identity. But fundamentally we all share our XR values. And we’re definitely stronger together!
That’s where XR Communities comes in: we meet fortnightly so we can come together to support and learn from one another, by getting to know one another and sharing our different ideas, creativity and plans. We welcome everyone and every part of everyone!
#### Join a Community Group
XR Community Groups are a way for people to connect, work together and support one another through communities of shared self-identity e.g. faith, profession, ethnicity or sexual identity.
A list of community groups is on the XRUK website.
#### Start a new Community Group
There is always room for more! Could you moblise _your_ community? Get in touch with the Community Groups circle via their Mattermost Reception or by email **communitygroups@extinctionrebellion.uk**
#### Actions by Community Groups
Here are some examples of recent actions by some Community Groups:
**Health For XR**
Over 60 health professionals joined hundreds of protesters outside the Energy Intelligence forum – the recently rebranded ‘Oil and Money’ conference – the largest annual gathering of oil companies and their backers.
**Christian Climate Action** - The Church of England Pensions Board and Church Commissioners announced they were divesting from fossil fuel companies after a series of prayerful protests at Cathedrals across England and Wales.
**XR Scientists** - In September 2023 to coincide with the publication of the 'State of Nature' report, XR Scientists joined more than 40 non-governmental organisations and environmental groups at the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) in London.
