Waar
Global challenges increasingly land on the desks of companies: new supply chain regulation, climate risks, human rights expectations, and pressure from customers and investors. Yet the solutions rarely sit within one organisation. They require collaboration across Business, Government and NGOs, especially where global value chains intersect with public interests and local realities.
Learn what it takes for effective collaboration
In practice, those collaborations can be frustratingly hard to make work. Progress stalls, meetings multiply, and trust can erode quickly. Not because people don’t care, but because these three worlds often operate with different values, incentives, timeframes, languages and accountability. What looks “pragmatic” to one party can feel “compromising” to another; what feels “urgent” to one can be “impossible” for the other.
In this free online inspiration webinar at Radboud University, you will explore how to work outside your bubble in a way that is both realistic and constructive. Using international supply chains as a concrete anchor, we’ll unpack common friction points in Government–Business-NGO collaboration and share practical, research-informed ways to align stakeholders, clarify expectations, and move from dialogue to workable joint action—without overselling quick wins.
Practical insights from academic experts
On Tuesday 2 June 2026, dr. Willem Elbers, programme director of Global Challenges, and dr. Leona Henry, cross-sector partnership specialist at Radboud University, will be in conversation about what cross-sector collaboration actually demands in day-to-day practice: from navigating competing mandates and reputational risk to building trust, setting shared goals, and communicating across fundamentally different organisational cultures.
What will you take away?
In one hour, you will leave with:
- A clear view of why collaboration across sectors often gets stuck (and the most common “hidden” causes)
- A better understanding of differences in interests, incentives, time horizons and accountability—and use that to prevent misunderstandings
- A sharper understanding of what “getting out of your bubble” looks like in real interactions and decision-making
- Concrete examples from international supply chain contexts where public, commercial and civil-society priorities collide
- A set of realistic principles for structuring multi-stakeholder collaboration so it becomes more efficient and less draining
Who is it for?
For professionals involved in multi-stakeholder partnerships working on global challenges across sectors, including:
- Consultants working in sustainability;
- Sustainability professionals, such as ESG, procurement and responsible sourcing managers and impact professionals;
- Policy and programme professionals in Government and public agencies;
- NGO partnership leads, programme managers and advocacy professionals;
- Anyone involved in multi-stakeholder initiatives and international value chains.