After We Gather: Building the Connective Tissue That Lasts

About the session We are good at gathering. Sometimes we are even good at following up. But the relationships needed to connect and nurture collective efforts over months and years are much harder to sustain. This session asks what it takes to build that connective tissue: the networks, trust, relationships, coordination and ways of working that allow organisations, movements, governments and communities to act with greater coherence without defaulting to another coalition or coordination mechanism. What skills, models and infrastructure actually make collaboration last? How do we build trust across the widening gaps between civil society and government? And what can we learn from people who have spent years managing multinational networks and global communities of practice? The goal is to move beyond the moment of connection and examine what turns a promising gathering into durable collective action. Discussion Group Leaders Bonnie Koenig is an Independent Consultant, strengthening organizational impact, strategy, governance, and leadership across international organizations. Kim Kucinskas is Director, Organizational Transformation at Humentum, strengthening civil society organizations and networks to navigate disruption, build resilience, and advance systems change. Precious Brooks is Global Community Builder at The School for Moral Ambition, fostering communities and connections that help people pursue meaningful social impact. Zack Fowler is Co-CEO at AMPLIFY Girls, advancing locally led solutions that expand opportunities and agency for adolescent girls. What to expect A practical, participatory conversation drawing on lessons from community-led ecosystems, multinational networks and communities of practice. Participants will examine what strengthens relationships over time, what causes collaborative efforts to fade, and where formal structures can help or get in the way. Expect to compare experiences, interrogate familiar approaches to collaboration and explore what better connective infrastructure could look like in practice. Who this is for This session is for funders, network builders, movement leaders, civil society organisations, government actors, community leaders and practitioners trying to sustain collaboration across organisations, sectors, geographies and different kinds of power. What you will get out of it Practical lessons for turning connection into sustained collective action New approaches to building trust across institutional and sectoral divides Insights from managing multinational networks and communities of practice A clearer view of when formal coordination helps, and when it gets in the way Connections with others wrestling with how to make collaboration endure