The Global Network of the Consensus Building Institute met in the Netherlands

Picture above: CBI Global Network members Pablo Luberman, Lasse Peltonen, Nuno Delicado, Hans van Zijst, David Fairman, Michael Brown, Merrick Hoben, Marc Wesselink (front) Jonna Kangasoja, Kate Kopischke, Mara Hernández

Mid June 2023 Akordi co-founders Jonna Kangasoja and Lasse Peltonen met with international mentors, colleagues and friends as the Global Network of the Consensus Building Institute gathered together in the Netherlands. Besides the three day meeting, the network members participated in a half day inspirational event of the Dutch Mutual Gains Approach community organized at the University of Amsterdam.

 

The CBI Global network was inaugurated in 2014. The members come from a wide range of countries and cultures, and work in diverse contexts. Some facilitate negotiations on policies and projects among government officials, businesses and civil society advocates. Some work to build bridges across societies divided by intergroup conflicts. Some mediate among rivals for power and resources in large-scale development projects, through local, regional or national dialogues. Still others work primarily to build dialogue-based platforms of collaboration or broad coalitions of stakeholders to advance democratic change and sustainable development within communities, corporations, and/or government agencies. The members work with various levels of social stability, transparency, participation and accountability in public decision-making, and different balances of power and influence among stakeholders.

Despite this great diversity in contexts and work, the network members have found common ground as a community of practice on several guiding principles, which include inclusivity, informed participation, empowerment, procedural fairness, substantive fairness, respect for rights, empathy and mutual respect, trust building and relationship building, transparency, facilitator impartiality, context sensitivity, and legitimacy.