Wasan Session December: Community Connections & Network Ownership

For December's Wasan session we will be hosted by Meg Busse who will share insights from her work with the Roddenberry Fellowship. The fellowship has over 100 alums, many of them actively engaged, and the group has been experimenting with how to cultivate not only deep relationships, but a broader community connection to and ownership of the network with great success. Meg will share lessons learned and guide us all into conversation.

About the session

At the core of the Roddenberry Fellowship is the belief that we can solve today’s most pressing issues through deeper connections and smarter networks. Given the uncertainty of today’s world and that change seems to be the only constant, relationships are the most revolutionary - and reliable - force we have. As a foundation, funding and material resources are a baseline, but they can create dynamics that make it hard to cultivate deep, trusting relationships. The question we’re exploring is how we can ensure material resources as well as cultivate an environment where changemakers feel safe and supported, can connect with each other deeply and holistically, and can find the solidarity that helps them not just sustain the work - but personally thrive. To date, the Roddenberry Fellowship has 100+ alums with over 70% actively engaged. For their most recent network gathering this fall, they experimented with how to cultivate not only deep relationships - but a broader community connection to and ownership of the network with great success.

Meg Busse

Meg is the COO at The Roddenberry Foundation, which strives to move us closer to a more diverse, inclusive, optimistic future, as envisioned by the creator of Star Trek, Gene Roddenberry. Meg’s work at the Foundation includes leading a global grants program for early-stage initiatives; a US-based fellowship for activists; and a collaborative fund that leverages a network-centered, trust-based approach. Prior to The Roddenberry Foundation, Meg was a principal at a design firm focused on networks and communities, and led initiatives for organizations including The Rockefeller Foundation, WWF, and National Geographic. She has directed communications at startups focused on creating opportunities for students. And Meg wrote the book on nonprofit careers for Idealist.org. In past lives, Meg was a middle school English teacher, a white water rafting guide, and a semi-professional athlete. Connect with Meg.