The fifth edition of the Ambrela Development Forum (ADF) 2026, organized by the Slovak Platform for Development Organizations – Ambrela on October 1–2 in Bratislava, brought together more than 200 participants from around 25 countries to explore practical responses to today’s complex global challenges.

Held under the theme ‘From Fragility to Resilience: Reclaiming Hope Amidst Global Turmoil’, the two-day international conference created a space for development and humanitarian actors, policymakers, civil society representatives, businesses, and experts to exchange ideas, build partnerships, and identify practical tools for navigating an increasingly uncertain geopolitical landscape. Hosted at Nová Cvernovka in Bratislava, Slovakia, the ADF 2026 moved beyond formalities to focus on actionable connections, practical solutions, and what civil society organizations need to remain resilient in what participants described as a coming ‘geopolitical winter’.

High-level perspectives on a changing world

The conference opened with addresses by Daniel Kaba, Executive Secretary of Ambrela Platform; Rastislav Chovanec, State Secretary at the MFEA Slovakia; Nadine Saba, President of the Akkar Network for Development in Lebanon; and H.E. Bilal Zahid, Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Slovakia.

The opening was followed by a keynote address, ‘Re-centering Human Development in the Global Gateway’,delivered by Jozef Síkela – EU Commissioner for International Partnerships, and chaired by Šimon Pánek – CEO of People in Need Czechia. The keynote address examined how European values can help shape global infrastructure and international development strategies through the EU’s Global Gateway initiative.

The first plenary, ‘Bridges over Fragility – NGO Action Across the Spectrum of Conflict’, was chaired by Eilidh Kennedy – Founder and Director of IARAN, and explored the role of civil society organizations in responding to crises across different contexts of conflict and fragility.

Stories, partnerships and practical solutions thanks to ADF

The DevCo Talks session brought together voices from different sectors to share personal experiences and innovative approaches to humanitarian aid and development cooperation. Inspired by the TED-style format, the session featured concise and engaging inspiring presentations from Liudmyla Kryzhanovska – Director of the Promprylad Foundation from Ukraine; Nadine Saba – President of the Akkar Network for Development from Lebanon; and Allan Bussard – Director of Integra Foundation (Ambrela’s member) from Slovakia.

The second plenary, ‘NGO-Business Partnerships & Global Gateway – Beyond Ethical Transactionalism’, chaired by Matthew Simonds – Senior Policy and Advocacy Officer at Eurodad network, focused on how civil society and business can develop more meaningful partnerships around global development.

The third plenary, ‘Ukraine as a Strategic Partner – Rebuilding, Learning, and Growing Together’, was chaired by Andrea Najvirtová – Director of People in Peril Slovakia (Ambrela’s member). The discussion considered Ukraine not only through the lens of reconstruction, but also as a strategic partner from which Europe can learn and with which it can build a more resilient future.

ADF 2026 also featured a range of high-level meetings, roundtables with EU Commissioner for International Partnerships Jozef Síkela and Chiara Adamo from DG INTPA, as well as networking opportunities, including ‘Speed Dating’ sessions and the informal ‘Night Owl Session: Conversations Under the Stars – Embracing the New Reality: Uncomfortable Truths and Hard-Earned Hopes’.

A new format introduced at this year’s conference was the Unconference Talk on ‘Democratic Decay and Civil Society Under Fire – Surviving the Geopolitical Winter’, amazingly moderated by Thomas Seifert – Founder of the Story Institute and Editor-in-Chief at European Voices.

Participants could also take part in three practical workshops addressing pressing challenges facing organizations in the field: ‘AI for Greater Impact: Helping Organizations Do More with Less’ thanks to Inclusion Systems; ‘From Survival to Strategy: Futures-Thinking for Resilient NGOs’ thanks to IARAN; Who Gets to Speak? Power & Privilege in Humanitarian Communication’ thanks to PAH.

The conference also included ‘Reflections on the Day’, featuring members of Ambrela Development Forum’s International Advisory Board (IAB): Dr. Michael Köhler – Grand Bargain Ambassador; Jeroen Uytterschaut – International Development Expert; and Nadine Saba – President of the Akkar Network for Development. 

Connecting Europe’s national development platforms

Another important moment of the forum was the National Platforms Roundtable, which brought representatives of more than 20 development platforms from across Europe to Bratislava, Slovakia. The meeting created an opportunity for platforms from Western, Central and Eastern Europe to exchange experiences and explore opportunities for cooperation on funding and fundraising, shrinking civic space, the evolving role and voice of national platforms, and organizational change.

Reflecting on the fifth edition of the forum, Daniel Kaba – Executive Secretary of the Slovak NGDO Platform – Ambrela, said: “I am very proud that the fifth edition of the ADF conference brought to Bratislava representatives of more than 20 important development platforms from across Europe. I am also very proud that ADF gave Slovak non-governmental development organizations – not only our Ambrela platform’s members – the opportunity to speak up during two roundtables with EU Commissioner for International Partnerships  – Jozef Síkela. These high-level discussions brought together EU Commissioner Síkela with key regional NGOs, think tanks, private-sector leaders and government officials to explore the direct engagement of these actors in European projects through the Global Gateway initiative.”

ADF Closing with solidarity and hope

The conference concluded with remarks from Šimon Pánek – CEO of People in Need Czechia, followed by a special performance by opera tenor from Ukraine – Vasyl Alekseiev. The closing program also featured the opening of a photo exhibition by Albert Lores, ‘What we carry – Stories of Leaving Home in Ukraine’. The exhibition (brought to Bratislava, Slovakia by People in Need Czechia) documents the stories of people displaced by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, focusing on the belongings, memories and connections they carry with them after leaving home.

The Ambrela Development Forum 2026 reaffirmed the importance of cooperation, solidarity and practical innovation at a time of growing geopolitical uncertainty. By bringing together actors from across sectors and regions, the forum sought not only to understand the current global reality, but to equip civil society and its partners with the relationships, ideas and resilience needed to navigate it – and to reclaim hope in the process. 

This ADF forum is made possible through the generous support of the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family of the Slovak Republic (MPSVR SR); the Ministry of Investment, Regional Development and Informatization of the Slovak Republic (MIRRI SR) via Programme Slovakia – co-financed by the European Union; ČR via CZECH AID; SR via SlovakAid; British Embassy to Slovakia; Embassy of Belgium to Slovakia; Inclusion Systems GmbH; partner organizations People in Need; Polish Humanitarian Action (PAH); FairTrade Czechia and Slovakia; Julius Meinl Coffee Intl. and the media partner euBrief. The Ambrela platform is solely responsible for the content of the conference and does not necessarily reflect the views of the donors, the SR or the EU. Find more here.