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This July, we came together from across the globe for We Rise and Win Together Week, four days spent rooting ourselves with one another, sensemaking, in this moment, and then began to reimagine who we could be if we moved from a independence to interdependence.
We opened by imagining ourselves as trees in an oasis, root systems reaching toward one another rather than standing alone. From there, the week took that idea into the real world: reimagining medical debt and access in healthcare, rethinking how philanthropy shows up in relationship with communities, asking who gets to own and shape the data that describes our lives, and grounding all of it in the deeper, generational work of healing the roots we've inherited and building a root commons that sustains us. What follows are the stories, voices, and ideas from each session, a small piece of the root system we're building together.
Whether you joined us live or are catching up now, we invite you to watch the recordings and explore the key reflections from each session below. May these conversations continue to spark new ideas, deepen relationships, and inspire action long after the week has ended. Join us to learn more and continue the journey.
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| | | WE RISE & WIN Together Week Sessions at a Glance | | |
OPENING SESSION:
FROM INDEPENDENCE TO INTERDEPENDENCE
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The opening session of We Rise & Win Together Week began with an invitation to bold imagination. If there had been founding mothers, indigenous communities, founders among those who understood how to build a society on the principle of "ubuntu" --"I am because we are"--had been present at the founding of this nation, what would they have imagined and created? Might we have had a Declaration of Interdependence? What would it look like if we were to create that now as founders and better ancestors for the next seven generations? What would our principles be? And how might this help us be multisolvers to create solutions together that we couldn't solve alone?
From Colleen Flynn at Build Healthy Places Network to Jeff Campbell from Emancipation Theater to Dr. Ruby Gibson from Freedom Lodge to Wangui wa Kmonji in Kenya to Geordan Shannon in Switzerland, we had a session filled with storytelling, community-building and radical imagination about what it would mean for us across our nre We Rise & Win Together network of networks to move from independence to interdependence.
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Jeff Campbell - Emancipation Theater
Jeff Campbell shared this powerful reflection during the Opening Session of the 2026 WE RISE & WIN Together Week: From Independence to Interdependence, where he served as one of the featured speakers and facilitators.
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Geordan Shannon - WE in the World and Planet Health
As a featured speaker during the Opening Session of the 2026 WE RISE & WIN Together Week, Geordan Shannon reminded participants that the work of creating lasting change is not meant to be carried alone
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One of the most memorable moments of our opening session, From Independence to Interdependence, was a collective poem facilitated by Jeff Campbell of Emancipation Theater Company.
Through a series of reflective prompts, participants from around the world contributed words, images, and emotions that captured what it feels like to build a movement rooted in care, hope, healing, and interdependence. The result was not just a poem—it was a living expression of our shared imagination and our collective commitment to creating a future where no one carries the work of change alone.
This poem reminds us that movements are built not only through strategy and action, but also through the stories we tell, the meaning we create together, and the relationships that sustain us.
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Better Ancestors in Healthcare: Mission First
| | | | What would it look like to build a healthcare system that truly cares for generations to come? In this session, leaders explored how we can become better ancestors in healthcare by transforming systems, addressing inequities, and connecting care with community well-being. Watch the recording, then explore the key takeaways below. | | | |
Heard at Better Ancestors in Healthcare Session
"Medical debt is a structural failure, and it is a policy choice." — Melina Boudov
"Hospital billing practices can harm patients, exacerbate poverty, and fuel homelessness." — Jasmine Hutchinson
"Health equity isn't achieved only inside the hospitals or in clinics. Sometimes it begins with something much more simple. It's a key. It's a safe home… when healthcare, housing, and the community come together, hope truly becomes home." — Andrew Martin
| | Funders (and Intermediaries) as Better Ancestors: Rooted Philanthropy | | | | How can philanthropy move beyond traditional approaches and become a deeper force for collective transformation? This session invited funders and intermediaries to reflect on trust, shared power, and the role of relationships in creating lasting change. Through stories and practical insights, participants explored what it means to resource communities as partners rather than projects. Watch the recording , then explore the key takeaways below | | | |
Heard at the Funders as Better Ancestors: Rooted Philanthropy Session
"Those who are in adversity are some of our greatest wealth of creativity and resource and imagination for the healing of the world." — Dr. Somava Saha
"I ask communities, tell me what would make me trustworthy. I don't need you to trust me." — Vickie Mays
"Trust is an outcome that we can look for, but it's not what's given prematurely in the process." — Dr. Somava Saha
"Those who are closest to the pain are usually closest to the solution, but furthest from the resources and the ability to do anything about it." — Michael Baldwin
"Learn to move from competing against each other for grants to working together to get grants." — Richard Taylor
| | Data for Power Cooperative: Rooting and Reimagining Our Data | | | | |
Data shapes the decisions we make — but who gets to define what matters? This session explored how communities can reclaim data as a tool for power, accountability, and collective action. Together, speakers examined how community-driven measures can help reveal needs, strengthen solutions, and guide resources toward meaningful change. Watch the recording, then explore the key takeaways below.
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Heard at the Data for Power Session
"We can't improve what we can't see." — Dr. Somava Saha
"Our goal is not to let data make decisions. It's to give Better Ancestors a transparent, consistent framework that helps direct resources towards communities where they can make the greatest difference." — Jonathan Scaccia
"If it's of the people, by the people, for the people, where's the voice of the people themselves?" — Dr. Somava Saha
"A strong community and civic foundation enables populations to thrive." — Angela Johnson
"Data is commons, we own it, and it also has the power to convey our true interconnectedness." — Elizabeth Romero
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Michael Baldwin - Legacy Alliance Staffing LLC
Michael Baldwin shared this reflection during the Funders (and Intermediaries) as Better Ancestors: Rooted Philanthropy session of the 2026 WE RISE & WIN Together Week, reminding us that communities closest to challenges often hold the wisdom and solutions needed for change. He is also a WE in the World Better Ancestor Fellow.
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Jonathan Scaccia - PubTrawlr
Jonathan Scaccia shared this reflection during the Becoming a Better Ancestor Root System for Generational Change session of the 2026 WE RISE & WIN Together Week, reminding us that data should be a tool to support better decisions, direct resources, and strengthen communities. Jonathan is a WE in the World Data for Power Fellow.
| | | Imagining a Better Ancestor Root System for Generational Change | | | | What kind of future are we creating for the generations that come after us? In this closing session, speakers reflected on ancestry, responsibility, and the choices we make today that shape tomorrow. Through personal stories, cultural wisdom, and visions for collective abundance shared by those who are imagining and building these root systems around the world, participants explored what it means to build a root system together for generational change. Watch the recording, then explore the key takeaways below. | | | |
Heard at Becoming a Better Ancestor Root System for Generational Change
"A grandmother tree doesn't see itself as only being about itself. It sees itself as growing and tending the root system, contributing to, being nourished by, and building for future generations." — Dr. Somava Saha
"Our roots are never meant to be tamed. Our roots are free to grow." — Reverend Dr. Melva Sampson
"I don't want my children to ever wonder whether education was affordable for them. I don't ever want my kids to struggle with having tuition as I do." — Isatou Sonko
"It is really rooted in taking full responsibility for our past, each and every person, and then think about how we can repair." — Sarah Crawford-Browne
"We don't need people to rescue us. We need people who will believe in the things that we believe in and support our dreams... we need people who will see our potential before our success." — Isatou Sonko
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SAVE THE DATES: NEXT WE RISE & WIN TOGETHER WEEK
JAN 18-22nd, 2027 11-1AM ET, 2-4PM ET
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Enterprise community
Returning Home: Mobile Home Park Residents and Renters
"This session, the sixth of the six-part LA County Wildfire Rebuilding Webinar Series from Enterprise Community Partners in collaboration with The Center by Lendistry and Office of: Office, covers tenant rights, rebuilding options, tenant protections, and pathways to access legal aid and housing resources."
Start
June 17, 2026 | 12:00 pm
End
June 17, 2026 | 01:30 pm
Location
Virtual
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REI - racialequityintstitute
IN-PERSON Groundwater 3-Hour Presentation
"REI’s Groundwater presentation is designed to develop the capacity of participants to better understand racism in its institutional and structural forms. Moving away from a focus on personal bigotry and bias, this workshop presents a historical, cultural, and structural analysis of racism. With shared language and a clearer understanding of how institutions and systems are producing unjust and inequitable outcomes, participants should leave the training better equipped to begin to work for change."
Thursday, July 30, 2026
1:00 PM 4:00 PM
| | | | Well-Being and Equity In The World Institute | 252 Daniel Webster Highway #1017 | Nashua, NH 03060 US | | | | |
