Purpose
To make care needs and existing sources of support visible within a person, community, or team, helping care become more balanced, accessible, and shareable.
What Need Does It Address?
- Making visible who needs what kind of support
- Understanding who can offer what kind of care and assistance
- Preventing care responsibilities from concentrating on a few individuals
- Making it easier to ask for help and offer support
- Strengthening existing care networks
How to Practice It
1. Create a simple framework.
Start with two basic questions:
- Needs: What do I need right now?
- Resources: Who can support me, and how?
You can also add categories such as:
- Support I need but haven’t asked for yet
- Support I can offer others
- Support that may be needed in the future
2. Visualize your map.
Turn your needs and support resources into a map, table, or diagram.
You can create it on paper, in a digital tool, or within a shared document. The goal is not to create a perfect design but to make relationships and support networks visible.
3. Decide together what to share.
Agree on who will have access to the map and what information should be included.
Privacy and consent should always come first.
4. Update it regularly.
Care needs and support resources change over time.
Reviewing the map periodically helps keep it relevant and useful.
5. Use it as a living tool.
A care map is not a document to be created and forgotten.
It can be used whenever a need arises or when someone wants to offer support, serving as a living resource for collective care.
Things to Consider
- Not everyone will want to share their needs; participation should always be voluntary.
- The map should be used as a support tool, not as a tool for monitoring or control.
- Respect people’s boundaries, preferences, and privacy.
- A care map loses its usefulness if it is not updated regularly.
The İhtimam Perspective
İhtimam Rituals offer practical ways to strengthen care relationships in everyday life. However, lasting solutions to the invisibility of care also require changes in institutions, policies, and systems.
For more structural approaches, explore the Care Policy Recommendation Tool:
https://ihtimam.org/poa/
You can also use the Care Mapping Template and the Digital Care Mapping Tool developed by İhtimam Association to better understand and visualize care relationships.
Shared By
This ritual was contributed by Gizem Kendik Önduygu, one of İhtimam’s Co-Nurturers.
İhtimam Rituals are a living collection of care practices developed by individuals, communities, and organizations in everyday life. You can contribute to this collective archive by sharing a ritual that strengthens care relationships in your own daily life.