What We Listen In does

We Listen In (WLI) is a Swedish non-profit association (ideell förening, organisationsnummer 802538-5751) founded in 2021 in Stockholm to strengthen the mental health of women with foreign backgrounds in Sweden. Its mission centers on two concepts it has helped introduce into the Swedish discourse: "mellanförskap" (in-betweenness, the liminal experience of people rooted in two or more cultures) and "bikulturell stress" (bicultural stress), the latter being the first use of that term in a Swedish context. WLI targets multicultural women — including those born and raised in Sweden with foreign-born parents and immigrants who navigate between Swedish and heritage cultures — through empowerment workshops, social events, multi-day empowerment retreats, coworking sessions, and internship programs, with primary delivery in Stockholm and secondary operations in Gothenburg.

The organization's core "product" is a human-delivered, evidence-based workshop methodology called "Empowerment through Interdisciplinary Knowledge," which integrates norm-critical pedagogy (Kevin Kumashiro), Paulo Freire's critical consciousness framework, and Lisa Goodman's social justice agent framework. Programs are grounded in academic research from gender studies, sociology, psychology, and medicine, with planned research collaborations with Malmö University's Institute for Studies of Migration, Diversity and Welfare and Södertörn Högskola. WLI does not develop, operate, or sell any technology product or platform; its digital footprint consists of a Squarespace-hosted website (welistenin.com), Instagram and LinkedIn accounts, and a Squarespace/Zapier/standard-fonts backend, with no proprietary AI, API, or software offering.

WLI operates on a pro-bono, freemium model: all activities are free to members, no membership fees are charged, and the only commercial transactions are minor cost-recovery items (e.g., dinners at cost, a 200 SEK no-show fee, group event tickets at 499 SEK). The organization is funded through sponsors and financial partners — including Mindler, Integrationspakten, Ideell Kulturallians, and the Reach for Change incubator (2024-2026) — and runs on a volunteer base of more than 20 people plus a four-person board, all multicultural women with lived experience of the challenges the organization addresses. Go-to-market is community-led via word-of-mouth, partner referrals, and presence at major Swedish civic and cultural events (Almedalen, Järvaveckan, Folk & Kultur). As of the latest reporting, WLI is not accepting new members and is actively seeking funders aligned with its values.

Name

We Listen In

Legal name

We Listen In

Website

https://welistenin.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

We Listen In is a Stockholm-based Swedish non-profit association founded in 2021 that delivers free empowerment workshops, retreats, events, and coworking to strengthen mental health among multicultural women in Sweden, grounded in an interdisciplinary methodology addressing bicultural and minority stress.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Stockholm

HQ country

Sweden

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership contributions (pro-bono model): WLI currently operates entirely pro-bono and through sponsorship. No membership fees are charged. The organization is funded through sponsors and financial partners and is actively seeking funders who share its values.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

We Listen In is a Swedish non-profit association that runs free empowerment workshops, events, retreats, coworking sessions, and internship programs for multicultural women in Sweden, aimed at strengthening mental health and addressing bicultural and minority stress. Its methodology integrates norm-critical pedagogy, mindfulness-based interventions, and psychological tools grounded in research from gender studies, sociology, psychology, and medicine. Membership and all activities are offered free of charge to participants aged 16-25, with operations centered in Stockholm and Gothenburg.

Product overview

We Listen In is a non-profit organization (ideell förening) founded in 2021 in Stockholm, not a technology company. Its core offerings consist of empowerment workshops, social and cultural events, empowerment retreats, coworking space access, internship programs, and a membership network. All services focus on strengthening the mental health of women with foreign backgrounds through community, personal development, and self-leadership using evidence-based methods. The organization does not offer a software product or platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Empowerment Workshops

Quantifiable outcome

• 34% of Sweden's population (3,557,912 people) are foreign-born or have foreign-born parents; 16.8% (1,755,253) are women — representing the addressable population.
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

19 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Reach for ChangecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChairman Samira Rahman was selected as a Change Leader by Reach for Change, and WLI was admitted to Reach for Change's incubator program for social entrepreneurs for 2024-2026. WLI participates in Reach for Change events including Pitching for Change and Change Talk series.
• Malmö Universitet (Sayaka Osanami Törngren)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPlanned research collaboration with Associate Professor Sayaka Osanami Törngren at Malmö University's Institute for Studies of Migration, Diversity and Welfare. Research focus on race, racism, discrimination, and identity.
• Södertörns Högskola (Katarina Mattsson)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPlanned research collaboration with Docent Katarina Mattsson at Södertörn University. Research focus on gender studies, whiteness, and transnational belonging.
• PavagruppencoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPavagruppen provides WLI and its members with a coworking and event space at Arena Sergel, Malmskillnadsgatan, Stockholm. WLI holds workshops, events, and meetings at the venue.
• The Kollective by VakansacoreGTM or Marketing PartnerWLI won office space at The Kollective, a coworking collective in Kista operated by Vakansa. The space supports WLI's operations in the Järva area.
• ESS-GroupminorGTM or Marketing PartnerESS-Group provides WLI with event venues at their hotels and destinations. WLI has held events at ESS-group properties in Gothenburg.
• Villa SolbackaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerVilla Solbacka on Skarpö island hosts WLI's Empowerment Retreats, providing the venue for workshops and team-building activities outside Stockholm.
• Idhult NorrgårdenminorGTM or Marketing PartnerIdhult Norrgården in Östergötland hosts WLI's Empowerment Retreats outside Stockholm, providing venue for workshops and activities.
• Stockholm Stad JobbtorgminorGTM or Marketing PartnerWLI participated at Järvaveckan together with Stockholm Stad Jobbtorg, which provides support and guidance to young people who are not studying or working.
• MindminorGTM or Marketing PartnerMind is a non-profit organization working to promote mental health and prevent mental illness. WLI chairman Samira Rahman wrote a column for Mind on the strengths and challenges of being multicultural in Sweden.
• StudiefrämjandetminorGTM or Marketing PartnerStudiefrämjandet is one of Sweden's largest study associations. WLI has collaborated on events and interviews with the organization.
• YAIF (Fryshuset)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerYAIF is an international project by Fryshuset and Coexister in France that educates and supports young people in starting their own initiatives on racism and anti-discrimination.
• MindlerminorGTM or Marketing PartnerMindler, Sweden's largest digital psychology clinic with 250+ licensed psychologists, sponsors WLI by providing a free book ('Lilla boken om psykisk ohälsa') to WLI members.
• IntegrationspaktenminorGTM or Marketing PartnerIntegrationspakten is Stockholm City's member network for organizations contributing to a more inclusive labor market, with approximately 400 member organizations.
• Husby och Kista BibliotekminorGTM or Marketing PartnerWLI has collaborated with Kista Library on events including the Multicultural Festival and lectures on place-taking.
• EmmstechminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEmmstech is a non-profit working to increase the number of Women of Colour in the tech industry. They have featured and supported WLI.
• The KloudminorGTM or Marketing PartnerThe Kloud is a media platform that interviewed WLI chairman Samira Rahman about WLI's mission and work with multicultural women in Sweden.
• FeminvestminorGTM or Marketing PartnerWLI participates in Feminvest's 'Run For Women's Ownership' (RFWO), a purpose-driven race to highlight the ownership gap for women in Sweden and the Nordic region.
• Svenska Turistföreningen (STF)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerWLI organized a hiking event in Rösjöskogen in collaboration with Svenska Turistföreningen, introducing hiking basics and the Right of Public Access (allemansrätten) to WLI members.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Integrationspakten: Stockholm city's member network of ~400 organizations working toward a more inclusive labor market. Enabling ecosystem partner; WLI is a member and collaborates through it.
• Reach for Change: Swedish incubator supporting social entrepreneurs; currently hosts WLI in its 2024-2026 incubator cohort. Not a peer in mission but an enabling ecosystem participant.
• Mindler: Sweden's largest digital psychology clinic with 250+ licensed psychologists; sponsors WLI by providing free mental health literature to members. Enabling/adjacent partner rather than direct peer.

Direct peers

• Fryshuset: One of Sweden's largest youth-focused non-profits, working with multicultural and at-risk young people through empowerment programs, education, and community events. Closely comparable to WLI in mission (youth empowerment for multicultural communities), volunteer-driven delivery, and Stockholm base.
• Emmstech: Sweden-based non-profit increasing the number of Women of Colour in tech. Directly comparable target audience (multicultural women in Sweden), non-profit civic model, and partnership overlap with WLI.
• Tjejjouren: Swedish non-profit supporting girls and young women via support services and empowerment. Directly comparable in target audience (young women), Swedish non-profit model, and community-based service delivery.
• Mind (Swedish mental health non-profit): Swedish non-profit dedicated to promoting mental health and preventing mental illness. Directly comparable mental-health mission and Swedish civic-non-profit structure; Mind is a broader mandate while WLI is narrowly scoped to multicultural women.

Regional players

• Coexister: France-based non-profit educating and supporting young people around anti-discrimination, pluralism, and interfaith dialogue. Highly comparable mission and youth-multicultural framing; serves a different national market.

Broad incumbents

• Unizon: Swedish non-profit coordinating women's shelters and organizations against men's violence. Comparable Swedish women's-rights non-profit structure and target audience (women), though with a different primary focus (violence support vs. mental health).
• Studiefrämjandet: One of Sweden's largest study associations offering folkbildning (popular education) courses and events. Comparable as a large Swedish civic/educational non-profit with similar event-based delivery, though broader in audience and curriculum.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/welistenin
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/welistenin
• Instagraminstagram.com/welistenin

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about We Listen In