Civil society networks often struggle with how to keep their members motivated and actively involved. It can also be a challenge to ensure that decision-making isn't dominated by just a small group of organizations with the greatest capacity. To help with this, our new materials offer a range of practical tips for internal network functioning. You can use the worksheets during the interactive parts of your general assemblies, annual meetings, strategic planning sessions, or meetings of network leadership or thematic working groups. They will help you not only better map out your network but also understand patterns in how it functions and what to adjust.
Functional and resilient CSO networks play a key role not only in driving systemic change, but also in building a more cohesive and less polarized society. Thanks to their internal diversity, they create a foundation for finding consensus, effective and sustainable solutions, or at least acceptable compromises across different experiences and perspectives. By bringing together a wide spectrum of individuals and organizations working toward a shared goal, these networks often generate innovative solutions and collective responses to the complex challenges that we face today.
For a functioning collaboration within networks, it is essential to have a clear understanding of what type of network it is, what function it serves for its members, and what stage of development it is currently in. This is exactly where network coordinators can benefit from our introductory guide, Get to Know Your Network: Types, Functions, and Stages of Development.
In the following practical guides, How to Engage Network Members, we respond directly to the needs that repeatedly come up among networks involved in the Stronger Roots program. Experience shows that no matter how advanced a network is, keeping members actively engaged remains one of the most common challenges.
“We struggle with how to ensure that all members feel included and that their voices are equally heard in the network. Another long-term challenge is finding ways to re-engage our less active members,” shared one of the Stronger Roots grantees.
The first part of this series focuses on how to structure membership and its various levels so that the network remains inclusive while respecting members' differing capacities. It also addresses how to clearly articulate the value of membership, and how a network's governance style can build trust, fairness, and predictability in decision-making.
The second part offers practical tips on using strategic planning and action plans to strengthen member engagement, as well as how to track and measure member participation.
These guides are designed primarily for the management teams and coordinators of civil society networks.
Each guide includes reflection questions, three practical worksheets, and links to other useful resources. You can use the accompanying worksheets as a foundation for collective reflection within your network. They are useful for interactive sessions at general assemblies, annual meetings, strategic planning, or meetings of leadership and thematic working groups.
All of these materials are available also in Czech, Slovak, and Hungarian, thanks to the Stronger Roots program, which operates across Central European countries.
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At Glopolis, we have been supporting the strategic development of CSO networks since 2019. The Stronger Roots programme is funded by the European Union through the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) programme. It is implemented in partnership with Open Society Fund Prague, Nadácia otvorenej spoločnosti Bratislava, NIOK Foundation and Batory Foundation.
