At this year’s conference, hundreds of leaders and partners gathered to share a simple, powerful belief: neighborhoods shape who we become, and every community should be a place where people can thrive.
Across breakout sessions, strategy workshops, and powerful keynotes, a deeper theme emerged: how we lead in moments of uncertainty matters just as much as what we do. We must listen more carefully, tell better stories, and walk more boldly toward one another.
Here are five takeaways that will stay with us long after the lights went down in Houston.
1. Inviting people into the vision is essential in times of uncertainty.
When the path ahead feels unclear, the temptation is to double down on tactics. But as Dr. Tiffany Manuel (DrT), Founder and CEO of TheCaseMade, reminded us in the pre-conference session, what communities need most in uncertain times isn’t more strategy—it’s clarity of purpose.
She challenged us to “break new ground” by making compelling cases for change, rooted not just in data, but in the lived realities of people and the legacies we hope to leave behind. DrT named the six levers of systems change and pointed to shifting mental models, how people see the world, as the most difficult but most crucial. Without transforming how people see each other, policy and practice gains remain fragile.
Case making, she emphasized, helps us move past resistance and toward a shared vision. The most powerful cases speak to both ground truth and legacy, naming current conditions while painting a picture of what’s possible. It’s not only about convincing others to act; it’s about pulling people forward with us, aligning hearts and minds around what’s possible. Case making, she said, “is talking to people about why they should invest in who we are. Why this is an important moment.” When we invite people into that vision, especially in times of uncertainty, we don’t just build support—we build momentum.
2. Stories shift narratives—and narratives shape systems.
Michele Norris, founder of The Race Card Project, shared how inviting vulnerability and honest conversation creates space for deeper dialogue about race, belonging, and identity. Drawing from her experience as a journalist on NPR, The Washington Post, and MSNBC, Norris highlighted how people want to discuss race but seek a safe, intimate way to engage. Storytelling allows entry into narrative-shifting conversations that go beyond simple labels and reveal the nuanced realities of people’s lives.
Speakers Jose Antonio Vargas and Soledad O’Brien further amplified the power of storytelling’s role in shifting culture. While facts may inform, they reminded us, stories transform. O’Brien encouraged leaders to amplify community voices, especially those too often ignored, because the storyteller matters as much as the story. When organizations fail to share compelling narratives of positive change, the media often defaults to negative or simplistic portrayals. Our work, therefore, must include shaping the stories that shape our world.
3. Trust is the foundation for community transformation.
In a powerful closing conversation, Soledad O’Brien, award-winning journalist, documentarian, entrepreneur, and host of Matter of Fact, offered hard-won wisdom about the role of media, equity, and leadership in shaping narratives that drive real change. Her central message was direct: “Trust is a really important currency in our work. And in fact, without trust, it’s almost impossible.”
In both journalism and community-building, trust isn’t built through optics or one-time efforts. It grows through sustained presence, accountability, and the courage to admit when we fall short. “You just have to keep showing up for people,” she said. “And when you make a mistake, you have to say, ‘Wow, we messed that up. I’m really sorry.’”
O’Brien urged us to move beyond performative engagement and into genuine investment. “There’s no version of, ‘Quick, tell me how I can fake being invested.’” Real understanding comes not just from listening to gatekeepers, but from hearing the everyday stories of people living the realities we seek to change. Especially in uncertain times, trust is both the path and the destination—fueling deeper relationships and more lasting impact.
4. Belonging is a collective project.
What does it mean to belong? For Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and immigrant rights advocate Jose Antonio Vargas, it begins with being seen and continues with being embraced. In a powerful keynote, he reminded us that belonging isn’t something one group bestows on another; it’s something we build together.
Vargas, who shared his personal journey as an undocumented immigrant, emphasized that belonging must be structured into how communities function—from language access and representation to equitable investment and inclusive engagement.
In cities like Houston, where nearly half a million undocumented residents live, he challenged leaders to go beyond rhetoric and create tangible pathways for every resident to feel that they matter.
Panelists from across the Purpose Built network echoed this call. They shared how their neighborhoods are responding to demographic shifts with care, courage, and creativity, forging new relationships across cultures and generations.
Vargas left us with a profound charge: “Unless we actually see and realize that our futures are dependent on each other… How do we use our identities as bridges?” Belonging, he showed us, isn’t just a warm feeling. It’s a courageous commitment to each other’s humanity and shared future.
5. Bridge building is a critical skill for this moment.
In a time marked by polarization, fatigue, and deep cultural divides, the call to build bridges rang out clearly from every keynote and panel. Michele Norris said it plainly: “We need bridge building. I believe it is the most important skill that we can give people today, is to teach them how to be bridge builders.”
Norris invited leaders to lean into the hard but sacred work of fostering connection across differences. In her words, “The hill is steep, but we are strong. Because the hill is always steep when you’re doing this work… but it feels like it’s gotten a little bit steeper now.” In that climb, she emphasized, community becomes essential. “You lean on each other.”
From racial tension to immigration complexity, this moment demands not perfection, but proximity. DrT reminded us that leadership isn’t about having all the answers. It’s about being willing to go first. Vulnerability, she noted, is a necessary starting point. Vargas echoed this theme, urging us to reimagine identity not as a wall but as a bridge. Belonging, he said, begins with visibility and shared humanity, and flourishes through cross-cultural, intergenerational relationships. “Be a hope for each other,” he charged.
And as Michele Norris closed her keynote, she left us with a vision for what this work means in the long run: “The work is slow, but it’s sacred.” The bridges we build today become the foundations that others will walk across tomorrow.
Building What’s Next—Together
There was far more wisdom shared in Houston than can be captured in a single recap. Across plenaries, panels, and hallway conversations, one truth echoed again and again: we are not in this work alone.
The path forward, toward choice-filled neighborhoods, shared prosperity, and lasting transformation, is not linear. It’s layered, local, and led by people like you. As we return to our communities, may we carry these insights not as a checklist to complete, but as a call to courage, connection, and care.
The future we envision isn’t something we arrive at. It’s something we build—one relationship, one neighborhood, one act of belonging at a time.
