2021-2022 Impact Report: Our Resiliency Journey

The global events of the past three years have fundamentally altered the nonprofit space. At a time when trust in institutions, leaders, and systems is at an all time low, the need for strong communities and civil society is great. As a result, PartnersGlobal has adapted all aspects of how we work and how we think about our role as a peacebuilding organization based in the US and with programs around the world. It’s also reminded us about our why – to contribute to resilient communities and civic spaces to bring about more peaceful, secure, and accountable societies.

Below is our 2021-2022 Resiliency Report, which is a snapshot of the different impacts and outcomes from our collective efforts during the period of January 2021 through June 2022. To download the report, click here. Thank you for accompanying us on this journey.

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In July 2020, the National Endowment for Democracies (NED) engaged PartnersGlobal to promote new models for building civil society resilience in Central Europe. In partnership with our sister organizations Partners for Democratic Change Slovakia and Partners Hungary, Partners implemented a 17-month civil society resilience-building project using our trademark ResiliencyPlus Framework (R+). R+ is a new approach to understanding the challenges of a shrinking civic space and charting a path for civil society organizations and actors to adapt and thrive in response.

Thanks to the generous support from NED, Partners has produced the following document to provide a quick overview of the R+ Framework as well as some guidance on how to operationalize (the R+ Process) with local organizations interested in strengthening their resilience. Our long-term vision, with support from NED and other funders, is to establish a lasting infrastructure of resiliency support for civil society in the region. We hope that this quick guide on process and coaching will contribute to that vision.

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We live in an increasingly dynamic world that is experiencing a range of changes to civic space – the ability of people to exercise their right to free speech, expression, and assembly. These changes vary from country to country, but collectively are impacting civil society’s ability to serve their communities and operate freely without fear of repercussions.  As an organization that advances resilient civic space throughout the world, we wanted to create space for learning and reflecting on the civil society experience from the individual, organizational, sectoral and systemic perspective. So we started Resilient Conversations – a podcast that that explores different facets of civil society resiliency by talking to experts and peers who have had to navigate shifting dynamics and adapt how they function. Our podcast also captures insights and lessons from the implementation of our ResiliencyPlus approach – a civil society strengthening process for organizations operating in different levels of closing civic spaces. We invite you to take part in this collective conversation either by listening below (also available on other podcast streaming services Apple Podcasts and Audible) or being a guest on the show and contribute to a global resilient civil society community.

This supplement provides detailed information on the research that informs FrameWorks’ strategic brief on peace and peacebuilding. Below, we outline the research conducted for the project, describing both methods used and sample composition. This research provides the evidence base for the recommendations in the strategic brief.

As a part of our broader Narratives for Peace initiative, PartnersGlobal, together with the Alliance for Peacebuilding, has been investing in bridging narrative theory and practice to make “peacebuilding” a more salient policy priority for the broader public. With support from Humanity United and the Open Society Foundations, we are working closely with Frameworks Institute on a social science research project to uncover effective narrative frames for peacebuilding in US foreign policy.

If you would like to watch a webinar of the research team presenting these findings, you can watch the 45 minute video presentation here on YouTube.

Visit here for Frameworks’ Research Methods and Sample Composition.

In this presentation, Nat Kendall-Taylor, CEO of FrameWorks Institute, shares some of their most applicable research findings to this moment of COVID19, with lessons and tips for all civil society leaders to be able to incorporate into their communications and outreach.

The PartnersGlobal Resiliency+ Framework requires a shift in mindset for leaders and teams within organizations to think differently and partner in new ways to continue to survive and thrive when facing shocks.  At times of great stress, upheaval, and change, we are called upon to build up our conflict resolution skills. Therefore, communication skills, including asking the right questions, are integral to applying the Resiliency+ Framework in practice, putting empathy and restorative practice at the center of our resiliency journeys as civil society.

As conflict resolution expert Ken Cloke explains in this slideshow presentation, chronic conflict reduces resiliency within organizations and societies. Mediation and conflict resolution, he says, are therefore resiliency processes. By applying mediation or conflict resolution-based communications to reach out to those who think differently and address challenges, we are in fact working to bolster our resiliency.

Staff Readiness and Well-Being are essential to an organization’s sustainability and resiliency. Yet too often, organizational culture, leadership, and resources don’t provide frameworks and policies to ensure these key elements can be meaningfully supported. In conjunction with the webinar series for PartnersGlobal’s Resiliency+ Framework, this resource guide form The Contact Project aims to provide basic insights for developing a culture and policies for well-being and staff readiness.

Learn about one of the key factors of civil society resiliency, Adaptive Leadership. Presenter Natalie Boudou, who works with companies and organizations to improve their overall resiliency as part of her role at PEPIT Consulting, presents PEPIT’s model for resilient and agile leadership and share how her clients are realizing that investing in a resilient culture is fundamental to growth and innovation.

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