The conference has already taken place.
CONFERENCE
For decolonial organizational development
"Walking the talk" – putting words into action. Sounds easy. But in organizations or groups, it's often challenging to truly implement the core values we stand for externally.
In your organization...
Do you perceive a gap between what is taught in your educational work and how you work together as an organization?
Are there any injustices you would like to change?
…learning and unlearning should continue, and you're wondering how?
Are there moments when you feel overwhelmed by the big tasks you are undertaking?
Societal influences, global power structures, and external pressures often lead to the reproduction of precisely what is rejected in one's own educational work. This includes discriminatory structures, colonial continuities, and opaque power hierarchies that restrict individual participation and perpetuate global inequalities.
In this event, we ask: From organizational culture to target groups – how can we build and embed structures and practices within our organization that truly focus on and aim to bring about change in global justice? How can critiques of power, anti-racism, decolonization, and global responsibility become integral to organizational processes? What does it mean to be a "learning organization"? Who is involved – and in what way? What prerequisites are helpful? How can we avoid being overwhelmed? And what opportunities do concepts like the "Whole Institution Approach" from Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) offer for shaping change processes in a sustainable and equitable way?
At our conference "Paving the Way Together," we want to discuss these questions, exchange ideas, and network. You will learn about concepts and concrete examples that will help you deal with challenges and advocate for the discrimination-sensitive and decolonial development of your organization.
Valerie Viban will also report on the challenges and successes of practical decolonial organizational development. Valerie Viban is an expert on anti-racism and decoloniality at Bread for the World. He works on addressing colonial continuities in development cooperation and church partnerships, combining political analysis, ethical reflection, and perspectives from partner organizations in the Global South.
This event is aimed at all individuals and educational stakeholders interested in organizational development and global justice. It doesn't matter whether you are currently part of an organization or plan to become one, or what your current role within it is.
The conference took place on August 25, 2026, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Leipzig . A vegan lunch was provided.
Accessibility: The venue is wheelchair accessible. The large event room is step-free. There is a wheelchair-accessible toilet on the ground floor.
Language: Spoken German, possibly with interpretation from English to spoken German for one input.
In cooperation with Bread for the World
