WORKSHOP TRACKS

Workshop tracks are guided pathways through the International Fundraising Congress, each spotlighting a key area of fundraising and social impact.

At IFC 2026, you will build your own programme of learning and engagement – our tracks will help you easily navigate and plan those sessions that are most critical to your work.

Fundraising & Resourcing

At the heart of IFC remains one simple question: how do we resource the work we care about? This track focuses on the craft and strategy of fundraising today, including how fundraising is changing and what you need to know to stay ahead.

• Mass fundraising and public engagement
• Reimagining fundraising campaigns and supporter journeys
• Fundraising leadership, strategy, and decision-making
• Fundraising in hostile, polarised, or low-trust environments
• Ethical fundraising and public trust
• The future of donor relationships and public giving
• New and alternative financing models

Civil Society, Activism, & Global Perspectives

The social impact sector is operating in a more politicised and challenging environment than many of us have experienced before. This track explores how organisations and movements are responding, and what we can learn from each other.

• Fundraising as civic participation and public action
• The role of civil society in shaping change, not just responding to crisis
• Movements, organising, and collective power
• Global collaboration and learning across contexts
• Fundraising in restrictive or shrinking civic spaces

Leadership, Power, & Ways of Working

What does it take to lead well when it can feel like a relentless task? This track is about navigating constant change and the risk of burnout while thinking differently about accountability and how our organisations actually work.

• Leadership under pressure and uncertainty
• Middle management and frontline leadership
• Power, accountability, and decision-making
• Burnout, resilience, and sustainable leadership
• Leading organisational and cultural change
• Letting go of leadership models and practices that no longer serve us

Audiences, Supporters, & Public Behaviour

Everything we do ultimately depends on people choosing to care, act, or give – which means understanding our supporters and cultivating deeper, more meaningful relationships with them is a critical part of our work.

• Understanding supporter motivation, trust, and behaviour
• Responding to donor fatigue, disengagement, and distrust
• Behaviour change and public participation
• Listening to communities and supporters, not just communicating to them
• Building long-term relationships in a fragmented attention economy

Marketing, Communications, & Public Narrative

How we talk about our work shapes how people see, connect with, and engage with our causes. Communications and storytelling are key drivers of trust – and a key focus at IFC 2026.

• Reimagining how the public sees fundraising and fundraisers
• Challenging damaging narratives
• Comms as a driver of trust, mobilisation, and long-term support
• Integrating fundraising, marketing, and campaigning effectively
• Storytelling for systems change and social movements
• Communications in moments of crisis, backlash, or misinformation
• Protecting organisational voice in a polarised media landscape

Innovation, Change, & Learning

Most organisations know they need to change or adapt in some way, but actually doing it is rarely straightforward. What does it really look like to experiment, learn, and evolve – especially in times of crisis or change?

• Innovation in fundraising models, income mix, and resourcing
• Experimentation, testing, and learning
• New ways of organising teams, roles, and decision-making
• Innovation under constraint
• Reimagining the systems, structures, and processes that no longer serve humanity
• Scaling change without losing values, trust, or legitimacy

Technology, AI, & Digital Practice

The way tech is changing how we communicate, fundraise, and mobilise seems to be changing faster than we can keep up with. This track will help you stay ahead of the curve.

• AI in fundraising and communications: practical uses, ethics, and risks
• Digital mobilisation and organising
• Data, tech, and infrastructure for impact
• Technology as an enabler of – not a replacement – for human connection

Financial Sustainability

Financial realites are getting harder. Which is why we’re creating space to talk honestly about funding pressures, income choices, and tough decisions.

• Financial realities: pressures, uncertainties, & long-term viability
• Funding models under strain and trade-offs being made
• Balancing growth, stability, and mission
• Risk, reserves, and responsible decision-making
• Making ethical financial choices in times of constraint

The International Fundraising Congress is more than just a conference.

It is a global gathering of fundraisers, campaigners, activists, and world-changers. Join us in October 2026 and reaffirm your commitment to being part of a force that shapes the world, not just one that responds to disaster.