Day Two leaned into one of the field’s toughest realities: doing more with less. Speakers challenged participants to rethink funding, forge unexpected partnerships, and build social and behavior change programs designed to endure. The conversations were practical, optimistic, and rooted in action.
The day closed on a celebratory note as Summit participants gathered for the welcome reception, connecting over food, conversation, and a spirited watch party as Panama took on Croatia in the World Cup – a reminder that some of the best networking happens well beyond the session rooms.
Today promises another highlight as Panamanian icon Rubén Blades takes the stage with New York University Carlos Chirinos for a conversation on storytelling, culture, and the unique ability of communication to move people – and societies – toward change.
What Everyone Was Talking About
As funding constraints continue to reshape the social and behavior change communication field, speakers at Tuesday’s plenary session focused less on the challenges and more on the opportunities.
The session brought together Norma Jean Straw, deputy director at the Gates Foundation; Nontokozo Madonsela, an award-winning marketing executive from South Africa; and Martha Mérida, executive director of ProSalud in Bolivia, to discuss how organizations can sustain social and behavior change efforts through new partnerships, local investment, and innovative funding approaches.
While speakers acknowledged the difficult funding environment facing many organizations, they also pointed to examples of what is working – from supporting local content creators and storytellers to building partnerships with the private sector and developing organizational systems designed for long-term sustainability.
“We’re not at an end,” Straw said. “We’re at a point in a transition. Let’s be part of creating an even better, more positive sector on the other side of this transition.”
Drawing on lessons from a four-year Gates Foundation learning agenda focused on gender norms and adolescent girls’ and young women’s health and livelihood outcomes, Straw described efforts to work directly with content creators and local storytellers in countries including Kenya and Nigeria.
“We took a very broad approach,” Straw said. “How do we get directly to creators? How do we get directly to local voices?”
The discussion also explored how organizations can diversify funding sources and build relationships beyond traditional donors. Nontokozo Madonsela, an award-winning marketing executive from South Africa, encouraged participants to think differently about engaging the private sector, arguing that successful partnerships begin with understanding what businesses are trying to achieve.
Drawing on examples from the financial services sector, Madonsela described how community initiatives can align with broader business objectives, creating opportunities for partnerships that benefit both organizations and the communities they serve. She also emphasized the importance of governance and accountability, noting that business leaders want clear evidence that investments are producing results.
Martha Mérida, executive director of ProSalud, shared lessons from her organization’s experience building sustainability in Bolivia. Speaking in Spanish, she emphasized the importance of organizational structure, donor confidence, and strong administrative systems. She also highlighted the role of a revolving fund that became an important component of the organization’s long-term sustainability strategy.
Audience members expanded the conversation with questions about radio’s continuing role in social and behavior change communication, support for creators in rural communities, journalist safety, and ownership of content created through funded initiatives.
Throughout the discussion, collaboration emerged as a recurring theme.
“There’s a need to think about new strategy, new way to be collaborative at a local level,” Straw said. “Collaboration across sectors is going to be more important than ever.”
As organizations adapt to a changing funding landscape, speakers suggested that the future of social and behavior change communication will depend on a combination of local leadership, diverse funding streams, and partnerships that extend beyond traditional donor relationships.
As the moderator, Olufunke Olufon, founder and principal consultant with Iwà Consulting, noted in closing: “The funding crisis in SBC is real, but it’s not the whole story.”
Voices from the Summit: Rethinking How Communication Is Measured
At the 2026 SBCC Summit, Adenike Ayodele of the Centre for Centre for Communication and Social Impact (CCSI) highlighted a tension in how communication is evaluated: standardized tools designed to measure “quality” can sometimes miss the very thing they are trying to capture—connection. Drawing on radio programming experiences, she described how local presenters were sometimes penalized for humor, idioms, and culturally grounded expression that did not align with rigid evaluation frameworks.
“What was flagged as inaccurate or showing bias was actually connection around shared faith and language of trust,” she said, noting that responses rooted in humor or religious framing were often interpreted as unprofessional or unbalanced, even when they resonated strongly with audiences. For Ayodele, the issue is not the need for standards, but the failure of some systems to recognize how communication naturally happens within local contexts.
She called for a shift in how the field thinks about evaluation itself. “Whose lens are we wearing when we talk about cultural appropriateness?” she asked. “Are we seeing through the lens of the beneficiary or the expert evaluator?” Her message was clear: cultural literacy is essential for those assessing communication interventions, and quality must be understood in relation to lived experience—not only uniform metrics.
Day Two Insights
Three takeaways that surfaced across sessions:
Honor Expertise:Communities are already experts in their own context. Don’t assume expertise does not exist in communities. Value lived experience alongside professional expertise.
Rethink Funding:Financing for social change needs a fundamental shift. Expand our ideas on funding sources and what can sustain change processes. Acknowledge that the funding disruption was not a singular experience.
Trust Communities:The right tool is whatever actually reaches people—not necessarily what’s newest or most familiar. Honor approaches with a proven track record while staying open to new ideas where communities want them.
Coming Up Today: Human Rights in a Changing World
How can social and behavior change efforts thrive amid rising authoritarianism, disinformation, and shrinking civic space? Tomorrow’s featured plenary explores strategies for building trust, resilience, and collective action—and asks whether democracy itself is a behavior that must be practiced and protected. It starts at 9 a.m. in Americas 1 and 2.
Today features two plenaries. Don’t miss Panamanian icon Rubén Blades in conversation with Carlos Chirinos at 4 p.m. in Americas 1 and 2 for a discussion on storytelling, culture, and social change.
Blades will reflect on the power of storytelling, culture and music to shape public understanding, strengthen communities and inspire social change. To prepare, please familiarize yourselves with Blades’ famous work, Amor y Control.
