How can a virtual Summit about collaboration be effective???
We are often asked why our Collective Impact Action Summit is "still" virtual, so, we thought we’d share why we think it is important to continue virtually hosting our flagship convening, and the five things we’ve learned since hosting it online annually since spring 2020.
🔹 1. Lots of Learning at a Lower Cost
At this April's Action Summit, we will share over 40+ learning sessions that highlight practical and concrete recommendations at a *much* lower registration price than if we were in-person.
(The registration cost for pre-pandemic in-person Summits was approximately $1,000 per person, not including travel, and that was before inflation.)
You also don’t have to use your budget for travel, family care, or for a petsitter.
(And bonus--it's early-bird registration through April 4, so right now, you save $100 off full registration!)
🔹 2. Lower Cost = Easier to Learn with Your Team
With the lower registration price now, we see more backbone teams, partner organizations, committee and community members joining than when we gathered in-person.
Now, with more teams joining together, the Summit has become even more of a shared learning and professional development experience.
🔹 3. Easier to Cross Time Zones and Geographies to Learn Together
Hosting a virtual Summit has made it possible for teams to join from around the world so that they can learn and interact with other collaboratives, and bring key practices and recommendations to their own communities. In past virtual Summits, we’ve seen attendees join from over 40 countries and nearly every state in the U.S.
🔹 4. Increased Accessibility for Attendees
Going virtual has allowed us to deepen our practices around accessibility, including offering American Sign Language interpretation, auto-captions on all sessions, and providing session materials ahead of time via the Summit app.
🔹 5. Session recordings mean you don’t have to pick or choose. You get EVERYTHING.
The hard part about going to an in-person conference is that you have to select a few sessions out of a schedule with many options, while missing out on other offerings. And it’s always tough to choose!
With virtual, we’re able to record EVERY session, and attendees have access to all recordings for three months after the event.
🔹 Going Virtual Has Advanced Our Work and Mission
In-person gatherings are important and valuable, AND we wanted to share why "staying virtual" has helped us support our community and mission.
It’s allowed us to gather many people who otherwise may be left out of an in-person learning experience due to cost, geographic distance, or other accessibility factors.
Our goal is simple—we want to learn with YOU about how we all can better collaborate to create lasting, equitable change in our communities and the broader world.
Will you join us? https://lnkd.in/g4iK2shR
