In a globalized world, what can a vision of Ecological Belonging look like for our food systems? Today, nearly a fifth of all food produced for human consumption is wasted before it can be consumed, all the while billions of people face growing food insecurity around the world. Farmers’ and rural communities’ wellbeing is impacted by climate change, economic trends, and urban development. 

Spaces like the United Nations’ first-ever Food Systems Summit are bringing this topic to major decision-making agendas. The Hearth Summit will take these conversations further: exploring how to shift our relationship with food and farming to achieve wellbeing and flourishing for all. We will explore how we can better honor farmers, the soil, and biodiversity in the way food is produced. We will reflect on how to ensure the economic wellbeing of farmers and accessible, nutritious food for all. 

The Hearth Summit will offer food both for thought and for feeling: celebrating the central role of breaking bread, sharing meals, and savouring the tastes of life in bringing people together.

We will also feed our appetite with Ljubljana’s vibrant culinary scene and uniquely localized food systems: nearly half of Slovenia’s agriculture is produced in the Ljubljana region, while the Ljubljana Central Market features goods from 2,500 local farmers year-round.

Bridging the traditional with the technological, the Hearth Summit will connect us off-screen for human conversations on digital wellbeing. Studies and stories are increasingly telling us about the impact of screen time, social media, and technology on our mental health, self-esteem, and relationships with others. Rapid developments around artificial intelligence, data privacy, the digital divide, and cybersecurity are changing how we interact with technology on a daily basis. The production of electronics has led to increased amounts of electronic waste, pollution, and exploitation of natural resources.

In a world where technology is everywhere, how can we hardwire wellbeing into algorithms and AI? How can our devices be used and designed with wellbeing in mind? How can we harness the power of technology to serve humanity and the planet in a better way? Is there an ethical approach to AI? These emerging conversations and more will offer us time to pause and reflect on the virtually infinite dimensions between technology and human wellbeing.

At its core, the Hearth Summit will invite us to continue our personal wellbeing journeys, reflecting on the role of inner work and personal growth in our work as changemakers.

We will hear touching, invigorating stories of wellbeing inspiring welldoing from changemakers from all different fields – sharing a collective story of the universal human value of wellbeing. We will also learn more about the ripple effects of personal wellbeing, such as the business case for supporting employee work-life balance and wellbeing, how citizens’ wellbeing impacts civic engagement, and more. As a space for experience and emotion, the Hearth Summit is also designed to be a space for wellbeing: with activities and workshops, we’ll have time to explore different practices that help us feel and be our best.

At the heart of wellbeing and social change, the Hearth Summit will be a space for healing; a space to reflect on trauma and its presence all around us. At the Hearth, we will acknowledge how trauma ripples through generations, affecting mental health, relationships, and community wellbeing. From personal stories, evidence-based research, and case studies, changemakers will learn how trauma is passed down, ways to break the cycle, and strategies for fostering personal resilience. We will also look at the interconnectedness of our experiences, understanding how we can work to transform harmful systems into healing ones. By inviting us to reflect on the past, the Hearth creates a new space for the future: one of wellbeing and healing for all.

The global Hearth Summit will help us understand how wellbeing at work, works: with insights from our Organizational Exploratory Program, people and culture experts, and other executives and leaders, we will understand the value of organizational wellbeing and how to bring it to live. 

For our community of social changemakers, creating wellbeing in our work is top of mind: some surveys reflect that more than 90% of non-profit professionals leave the sector due to burnout and stress. As only one-third of employees worldwide report feeling like they are thriving at work, and depression and anxiety cost the global economy an estimated USD $1 trillion per year in lost productivity, we will discuss how investing in organizational wellbeing benefits everybody – people and organizations alike.

At the Hearth Summit, panels and discussions will not only explore how we can continue shifting the culture of changemaking from one of burnout and stress to one of brilliance and success – but also provide space for our community to put wellbeing into practice with guided activities and space for personal reflection.

Philanthropy is key to advancing the global wellbeing movement by normalizing the conversation on wellbeing for grantees and providing the resources needed to make it a reality. By strategically and swiftly allocating funds, philanthropists can help support initiatives that prioritize holistic wellbeing for changemakers, creating a positive impact that ripples across communities and the planet. At the Hearth Summit, we will hear strategies for giving that create valuable impacts rippling across communities and the planet with insights from philanthropists, leading foundations and grant-making organizations, our Funders + Wellbeing Group, and inspiring grantees.

The World Bank predicts more than two-thirds of the world’s population will live in cities by 2050. How can we ensure these spaces foster and encourage our wellbeing?

As centres of creativity and innovation, cities have enormous potential to be hubs for human and planetary flourishing. In sessions exploring urban environments, city planning, and sustainability, join us for dialogues about how our outer worlds can be transformed and built to care for our inner worlds. Beyond panels and workshops, become inspired by the celebrated city of Ljubljana – internationally recognized for its architecture, civic engagement, environmental activism, and more.

Every day, changemakers face polycrises of challenges, with division at the heart of many. How did we become so disconnected from ourselves? From others? From the Earth? The 2025 global edition of the Hearth Summit will follow a year of significant elections and political developments worldwide. Here, we will provide space for open discussions on what separates us – and, more importantly, what can bring us together. 

With voices from around the world, we will reflect on good governance, finding common ground, and emerging from crises united by a common vision for collective wellbeing. Perspectives from government, academia, neuroscience, civil society, and grassroots movements will interact for a holistic dialogue on constructive approaches to civic engagement and healing the divides of polarisation.

In the midst of conversations on governance, polarization, and intergenerational trauma, we will explore pathways towards conflict resolution and peace as an integral element of wellbeing for all. With many of our community members bringing perspectives from both active and enduring conflicts, we will hold space for healing, hope, and agency in our discussions on peacebuilding and reconciliation. What can we do individually to be actors for peace? How can our organizations best serve our communities and the world? What transformations are needed in larger institutions, like governments and the United Nations, to drive long-term, sustainable peace – and what new systems may need to emerge? Reflect on these questions and the path towards peace in the dynamic conversations around the Hearth.

The Hearth Summit’s dynamic environment of collaboration, innovation, and wellbeing will inspire actors in the corporate sector to fully embrace their potential as agents of change. Conversations at the intersection of wellbeing, economics, and sustainable business will provide fertile ground for the growth of a whole new type of sacred economy: one that puts the wellbeing of people and planet first, where profit and purpose are one and the same.

We will take in the latest research and insights from leaders and innovators; share best practices and successful case studies; and foster partnerships to drive collective progress. In exploring different economic models, sustainable value chains, and the power of business for good, we will demonstrate the value of wellbeing economies and their impact on human and planetary flourishing.