The CGI annual meeting is no more. Can anyone fill the gap?

The opening of the U.N. General Assembly’s 72nd session in September may now seem far in the hazy future, but already dates are set for some of the sideline conferences and events — such as the Concordia Summit and Climate Week NYC — that routinely attract global development experts. This fall, however, there will be a noticeable gap in the calendar for many who gather each year in New York to learn about the latest trends, financial commitments and partnerships in development. The Clinton Global Initiative, once considered a seminal forum for thought-leadership and fundraising, has closed its doors, 12 years after its inception. The multi-day event — which resulted in more than 3,600 commitments toward health, technology, gender equality, the environment, poverty and more — held its final New York conference last year (although some of these commitments have stalled or remain unfilled, as Devex has reported). Its exit from the scene was marked by a difficult political climate and a recognition that its work was always intended to reach a natural conclusion after about a decade. CGI was anchored by its founder, former President Bill Clinton, and the high-wattage celebrities, business leaders and politicians who flocked to speak and contribute to the annual event. In its later years, during the 2016 U.S. presidential election, it was also plagued by some controversy surrounding how foreign donors potentially conflicted with the work of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Regardless, the question remains: With the loss of CGI, what will happen to all of the development communications work that it once facilitated? What new opportunities are cropping up in its stead? Devex talked with three communications and development experts: Paul Massey, the global lead for public relations firm Weber Shandwick’s Social Impact practice; Carol Ballock, executive vice president for Weber Shandwick; and Denielle Sachs, the founder and managing director of the social impact consultancy the Tembo Group. They told us what they are looking out for this fall when it comes to connecting on development. New events and organizations join established ones as convening spaces There are a number of organizations and networks that see themselves as having the potential to fill the role of CGI, said Sachs, considering the multifaceted work of mobilizing financial and partnership commitments and convening people. The work of inspiring and facilitating significant commitments is harder to achieve, as opposed to gathering experts, she suggested. For now, her eye is on the U.N.’s Office of Partnerships and Solve, a new initiative from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which is seeking and awarding solutions on development and poverty from individual entrepreneurs. Massey, meanwhile, considers the Concordia Summit, coming into its sixth year, one of the most “interesting entries into this space of event platforms and convenings where people can come and share their expertise, explore ways of working, and ultimately drive solutions forward, particularly post-CGI.” Massey — noting the disclosure that Weber Shandwick has worked with Concordia in the past — said he thinks that there are “heightened expectations” for this platform, as it has grown to attract the type of attendees and address many of the same issues as CGI, from climate change to human trafficking. This year, Concordia has expanded beyond its base in New York and broadened beyond the domestic U.S. focus that tends to split some of the agenda each year. It recently hosted a forum in Bogota, Colombia, on transparency, peace and the Sustainable Development Goals, and it will have its first Europe conference this spring in Athens, Greece. Media organizations are increasingly offering specialized events that are worthwhile Massey noted the rise in prominent global media outlets placing an “additional emphasis” on their event series. Fast Company, The Atlantic, Forbes and The Financial Times are among the media organizations that are hosting — or have recently led — live events on innovation, politics, health and more. “They are curating smaller, more niche gatherings, that allow people to explore topics like global development, or economic inequality, or the role of purpose in corporate reputation,” Massey said. These series tend to draw impressive speakers and diverse crowds from cross-cutting sectors, and many of them also happen year-round. “You don’t have to wait each year for the marquee event you know happens each fall. Increasingly, you have got quite a menu of events to choose from on a quarter-by-quarter basis,” Massey explained. “I think the event series media properties are curating offer opportunities for deeper dives into topics and they allow for investigation and exploration of specific topics.” CGI’s loss may not be felt so acutely given the natural rise of public-private partnerships CGI’s retirement marks the lifting of an anchor from the development and convening space, said Ballock — but its impression remains. “The whole CEO convening space and the number of conferences in general since CGI has surged since it was launched,” she said. “It’s not only the conversations around societal issues that have shifted, but the landscape where CEOs gather to address these kinds of issues has shifted as well, and the need to be visible externally has grown.” As recognition of the benefit for corporations to engage in public-private partnerships has increased, the types of conversations CGI used to foster between CEOs and nonprofits, for example, is now everywhere, Ballock said. As Massey put it, the work is continuing, one way or another — either virtually, on social media, or in person. In some cases, the intermediary is not even necessary. “Organizations are still making investments in large development challenges but they are going directly to the nonprofit who can help deliver the work,” he said. “The value of CGI as a platform is to lift up [this work] but the reality is those investments are still happening at the same scale.” He continued, “It might not be a moment in September where those investments are, I guess, amplified via the platform of a CGI, but I don’t think it has changed how the work is ultimately being done or the resources [that] are being invested.” Devex delivers cutting-edge insights and analysis to the leaders shaping and innovating the business of development. Make sure you don't miss out. Become a Devex Executive Member today.