Collective Impact Forum

How Does Emergent Learning Help Collaboratives Learn and Adapt?

When collaborative partners come together to tackle complex challenges, learning must be part of the work itself and not an afterthought. In this new podcast episode, we

How Can a Collaborative Radically Restart?

What does it look like for a collaborative to shift from nearly sunsetting to achieving a vibrant renewal? We tackle this challenging question in the 100th episode of ou

How Can Your Collaborative Strategy Be Both Structured and Emergent?

What does it look like for a collaborative to balance planned strategies with new and rising needs? In this new podcast discussion, we talk with Melissa Darnell, Heather

Building Belonging through Conversations

In a time when so many are grappling with division and polarization in their communities, where does one start to build connections to better understand when and why do y

How to Influence without Authority

A backbone’s role in a collective is often to facilitate collaboration among partners and help the group make progress toward a shared goal. This can be a complex challen

How Collaboration Can Support Communities Through Economic Transitions

How can a community shift their economic future? In this episode, we explore how communities heavily reliant on a single industry can come together to diversify and buil

Defending and Advancing Democracy and Equity in Collective Impact Work

Collaboratives based in the U.S. that are working to solve for and reduce disparities in their communities are facing compounding challenges with the current chaotic soci

Why Community Listening is Critical to Achieve Effective Philanthropy

Listening to community members and tapping into community expertise are key factors when trying to understand why social issues are happening, and what potential solution

Why is Backbone Leadership Different?

What are the skills and mindsets necessary to be a backbone leader for a collaborative? In this new podcast discussion, we talk with Paul Schmitz and Dominique Samari, a

Partnering with Companies to Advance Collective Impact

Companies can be a critical partner in collective impact work. However, working with companies can pose unique challenges, from understanding how to initiate these partne

How to Foster Effective Partnerships with Government

Achieving long-term change requires having government—whether local, state, or federal—at the collaborative table as a key partner. However, many collaboratives share tha

Reflecting on a Career Committed to Collective Change

Later this fall, Tamarack Institute’s Co-CEO Liz Weaver will retire, closing a chapter that includes many decades supporting community change, collective impact, and pove

Connecting Advocacy and Data to Advance Collective Goals

Last year, Independent Sector published research on how advocacy by the nonprofit sector has evolved over the last 25 years, and specifically, how it has severely decline

Designing to Inspire Community Joy and Connection

How can inclusive design spur community connections and build stronger partnerships in the process? During the COVID pandemic, the Van Alen Institute and the Urban Desig

How Practicing Futurism Can Strengthen Your Collaborative Strategy

When building a collaborative strategy or working through your implementation plans, it might feel like what you need most is a crystal ball (or a mystically accurate Mag

Advancing Equity in Times of Polarization and Division

Without proactively removing the structures and systems that have contributed to inequity, place-based collaboratives can not make a meaningful impact on the lives of tho

The Necessary Skills to Navigate Change

Navigating and managing change is key to a collaborative’s journey, but it’s also one of the most challenging as each partner’s relationship, personal history, and abilit

For Philanthropy to Succeed, All Strategies Must Address Disability

Addressing issues related to disability and access are often cordoned off within the social sector and philanthropy. Disability is often deemed as “separate” from issue-s

Why Understanding Local Context Is Critical for Collective Impact

Understanding a community’s “context” and its readiness for complex change work is a critical factor for launching and advancing collective impact work. Knowing the loca

Why a Policy Agenda is an Important Part of Collective Impact Work

A core element of collective impact is changing systems in the pursuit of equity. Pursuing policy change and advocacy efforts are some of the key levers to effectively ch