1. Use and adapt this PowerPoint template to give a presentation about your 2017 Learning Conference highlights!

2. Conference Theme
The Learning Conference 2017 brought us together to focus on a range of perspectives and ideas on learning and evaluation. What we learned will help us bridge the gap between what’s working for our peers and how to make it happen.
The conference explored ways to design and implement evaluation and learning approaches that generate stronger information, decisions and performance with our nonprofit partners and within our organization.
Conference website:
Conference program:
Program booklet PDF:

3. Priority Areas
Although there was no overarching theme, the conference program lifted up certain topics related to evaluation and learning:
Collaborative learning/learning with others
Diversity, equity and inclusion
Tools of putting a learning culture into practice
Beneficiary and grantee feedback
Systems grantmaking
Building nonprofit capacity for learning and evaluation
Engaging board members/ trustees in learning
Conference website:
Conference program:
Program booklet PDF:

4. My Learning Objectives for the Conference
[FILL IN] 2 3
List out the learning objectives or goals you brought with you to the conference.

5. Participants Were Dying to Talk About
[FILL IN] 2 3
What topics did you hear participants talk about most?

6. Pre- Conference Workshops and Site Visits
Pre-Conference Workshop Options
1. Embedding Intentional Group Learning into Everyday Work
2. Developing Systemic Theories of Change
Site Visit Options
1.Place Lab: Creating Social-Learning Networks
2. Ingenuity: Learning Together By Navigating Data and Value
3. Right on Justice: Using Data to Apply a Racial Equity Lens to Learning
Find session descriptions and materials here:
Program PDF:

7. Takeaways
I attended…. [insert site visit or pre-conference workshop selection]
This session made me think about…. [TBD] and how it affects…. [TBD]
Find session descriptions and materials here:
Program PDF:

8. Day 1: Opening Session: Building a Learning Culture
We started the conference by discussing our learning objectives with peers, talking about how to create healthy and unhealthy learning cultures in our organizations, and networking
My takeaways
[FILL IN] 2
Find session descriptions and materials here:
Program PDF:

9. Day 1: Breakouts Round A
1. Incorporating Equitable Evaluation in your Practice
2. Co-Creating an Evaluation Process with Nonprofits
3. Moving from Beneficiary Feedback to Inclusion
4. The Fluid Process of Nonprofit Evaluative Capacity Building
5. Learning Through Reflection and Analysis to Inform Planning
6. Tools for Measuring Place-Based Systems Change
Find session descriptions and materials here:
Program PDF:

10. Day 1: Breakouts Round A
I attended…. [insert breakout session title]
Something that stuck with me from the session I attended is…
Find session descriptions and materials here:
Program PDF:

11. Plenary Luncheon: Connecting Learning and Equity
The plenary luncheon showcased how grantmakers are connecting racial equity with learning and evaluation, and what it means to actualize that commitment and keep the work moving forward.
My takeaways
[FILL IN] 2
Find session descriptions and materials here:
Program PDF:

12. Day 1 Breakouts Round B
1. Alternative Models to Support Nonprofit Learning Capacity
2. Forming a Culture of Evidence to Improve Outcomes in Place-Based Initiatives
3. Partnering with Nonprofits to Build Equity-Focused Fields
4. Breaking the Barriers for Honest Feedback
5. Measurement and Evaluation of Impact Investing and Market Solutions
6. Harnessing Disaggregated Data to Progress Racial and Economic Equity
Find session descriptions and materials here:
Program PDF:

13. Day 1: Breakouts Round B I attended…. [insert breakout session title]
A new insight or resource I can share with colleagues after attending this session is:
Find session descriptions and materials here:
Program PDF:

14. Fail Fest
Embracing failure is necessary if we want to improve as grantmakers. In this event, grantmakers shared stories of setbacks they’ve experienced and hard lessons learned.
My takeaways 1 2
Find session descriptions and materials here:
Program PDF:

15. Day 2: Short Talks ROUND 1 A. Jessamyn Shams-Lau, Peery Foundation
B. Trabian Shorters, BMe Community
ROUND 2
A. Cathy O’Neil, Author of Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy
B. Liz Dozier, Chicago Beyond
ROUND 3
A. Rami Nashashibi, Inner-City Muslim Action Network
B. Jon Schwabish, Policy Viz and Urban Institute
Find session descriptions and materials here:
Program PDF:

16. Short Talk Takeaways
The most memorable talk for me was… [TBD] because…. [insert reason].
Something that surprised me or challenged me was… [insert here].

17. Closing Plenary Luncheon: Learning Culture in Action
In the closing plenary, nonprofit speakers and grantmakers discussed the learning cultures within their organizations and how they approach creating and tending an active learning culture across all levels of an organization.
My takeaways
[FILL IN] 2
Find session descriptions and materials here:
Program PDF:

18. Changes I Will Make to My Work
1. [FILL IN] 2 3
Based on your conference experience, what changes do you plan to make to your work?

19. Changes We Can Apply to Our Internal Operations
1. [FILL IN] 2 3

20. New Insights
1. [FILL IN] 2. 3.

21. What Did I Bring Home?
1. [FILL IN] 2 3

22. Additional Resources What participants said on social media:
@geofunders and #GEOLearn
Conference website:
Find session resources here:
To peruse GEO publications, go to:
Note: Plenary session and short talk videos coming soon!
Find additional resources here:
Conference website:
Social Media (hashtag #GEOLearn on Twitter):
Conference mobile app (available only to event participants; log in with your address and registration record number):
Conference program (PDF):
Participant roster: