Impact
The NGO Academy network is working to achieve a positive impact on society day by day. Its members give impulses for progressive change. Here we want to share insights from the field as well as updates and inspiring stories.
What sets the NGO Academy apart is its genuine focus on relevance and interactivity. This isn't just another workshop. It's a space where NPO/NGO professionals come together to learn, collaborate, and find inspiration to overcome the challenges we face every day.
Watch: Power, For All: How It Really Works and Why It’s Everyone’s Business
On June 18, 2026, Harvard professor and leader of the Social Innovation + Change Initiative, Julie Battilana, delivered an exceptional NGO Academy keynote about how power is not an exclusive domain of the few, but a capacity available to all who take the time to understand its mechanics. Julie Battilana’s
Member Story #19: On Human Trafficking in Albania with Gazmir Memaj and Redion Qirjazi
Gazmir Memaj and Redion Qirjazi are both part of our Member Organisation Mary Ward Loreto Foundation. While we usually use our NGO Academy Member Stories to present collaborations and projects of our Members, in this edition we put the spotlight on Gazi and Redi, and their work at Mary Ward Loreto Foundation, an organisation tackling human trafficking in Albania since almost 15 years.
Strengthening Integrated Social Services through MFCC Models – a Community-Led Event by Help – Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe Albania
On 27–28 April 2026, practitioners, NGO representatives, and institutional actors from Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro and Romania gathered in Tirana for a two-day Community Learning Lab on Multi-Functional Community Centre (MFCC) Success Factors. Organised by Help – Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe e.V Albania Country Office this Community-Led Event focused on practical solutions for delivering integrated social services at community level.
Save the date | 18.06.2026 | NGO Academy Keynote
We are thrilled to announce that renowned social innovation scholar Julie Battilana will hold NGO Academy’s next keynote! Join us on 18 June 2026 for a deep dive on what power really is and how we can harness it for positive change in organizations and beyond.
Boris Marte named Honorary Senator by WU Vienna
Boris Marte, long-standing CEO and now Senior Adviser to the Board of ERSTE Foundation, was awarded with the title of Honorary Senator by WU Vienna. The honour recognises Boris’ sustained commitment to civil society across Central and Eastern Europe and his decade-long partnership with WU.
Call for Applications: Civil Society Leadership Programme for Ukraine 2026
When was the last time you were able to reflect on the development of your organisation and your own personal resources? The NGO Academy warmly invites you to apply for a scholarship for the “Civil Society Leadership Programme for Ukraine 2026”.
Member Story #18: Andreea Nistor and Simona Beldiman on Amplifying Social Impact through Inter-organizational Cooperation
Andreea Nistor and Simona Beldiman are Alumni of our Social Innovation and Management Programme 2025. Together, they created a campaign to tackle one of Romania’s most pressing issues: functional illiteracy. Their campaign is a showcase of how inter-organizational cooperation can amplify social impact and what cross-sector partnerships can achieve.
Watch: The Politics of Fear: The Shameless Normalization of Far-Right Discourse – NGO Academy Keynote with Em. Prof. Dr. Ruth Wodak
Across Europe and beyond, once-taboo rhetoric is entering the political mainstream, and hereby reshaping public discourse, policymaking, and democratic norms. In her keynote, Ruth Wodak explored the phenomenon of “shameless normalization”: a process through which provocation, denial, and conspiracy theories are not just tolerated but strategically deployed by political actors to shift the limits of the sayable.
Lessons on EU Grant Writing with Dijana Pejić and Lisa Ringhofer
NGO Academy Member Dijana Pejić from Bosnia & Herzegovina shared a story with us that we think is a great example of what is possible in EU fundraising. We figured that her success is a great chance to compile a few learnings and a mini toolkit on EU grant writing for all of you.