SEPTEMBER 9-11 | PHILADELPHIA, PA
FISHING DIFFERENTLY® 2026 NATIONAL CONFERENCE
Bridging the gap between anchor institutions and the community in which they sit
Lead with what you already have. Build what your community actually needs.
Registration
$319
Seminarian/Student
$219
There's no shortage of resources in our communities.
What's missing is alignment, access, and a new way of thinking about what's possible. Fishing Differently® is where faith-inspired leaders, investors, and institutions come together to re-imagine how communities grow— not through extraction but through activation.
Registration ends soon!
With hotel accomodatinos: August 1, 2026
Without hotel accomodations: August 17, 2026
This is not a typical conference.
You'll leave Fishing Differently® with a shift in how you see your work and what's actually within reach.
Fishing Differently® is designed for leaders who are:
- Tired of chasing solutions that don't stick
- Ready to move from scarcity thinking to asset-based stretegy
- Looking to build real partnerships across sectors
- Committed to creating lasting economic and community impact
- This is where strategy meets conviction—and where vision turns into something tangible.
Who You'll Be In The Room With
This is a curated cross-sector gathering designed for meaningful connection and empowerment.
You'll be alongside:
- Faith leaders and Congressional innovators
- Place-based investors and funders
- Anchor institutions (hospitals, universities, etc.)
- Community development practitioners
- Policy and systems leaders
People who are serious about doing the work and doing it differentlyPeople who are serious about doing the work— and doing it differently
What You'll Experience
Real Conversations
Honest dialogue about what's working, what's not, and what needs to change.
Strategic Connection
Intentional spaces to build relationships that extend beyond the conference
Proven Models
Case studies and frameworks grounded in real communitiesnot theory
Practical Insight
By the way, to apply what you're learning in your own contex—immediately
Join Us in Philadelphia
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 10 - FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 11
The Oikos Institute for Social Impact has been empowering faith communities and anchor institutions to drive communal transformation and economic renewal for six years. The Oikos Institutes asset-based community development model accelerates the revitalization of distressed communities, alleviates human suffering, maximizes human capital, and solves social problems.
For the fourth year, the Oikos Institute Fishing Differently® Conference will connect faith-inspired leaders and place-based investors/funders with anchor institutions, including faith communities and organizations for people of color, to leverage their assets for positive change.
In addition to plenary sessions, design labs, and networking, your conference registration includes two dynamic experiences!
The Clearing
(Pre-conference gathering)
Wednesday, September 9
This year we are elevating our pre-conference to equip participants with timely resources for economic, mental, and spiritual resilience. The Clearing: An Intervention September 9, 2026, 9 am to 4 pm, is facilitated by Lisa Sharon Harper, President and founder of Freedom Road Consulting LLC, with financial advisor Brian K. Walls and licensed clinical psychologist Claudia Owens Shields, Ph.D. This year we are elevating our pre-conference to equip participants with timely resources for economic, mental, and spiritual resilience. The Clearing: An Intervention September 9, 2026, 9 am to 4 pm, is facilitated by Lisa Sharon Harper, President and founder of Freedom Road Consulting LLC, with financial advisor Brian K. Walls and licensed clinical psychologist Claudia Owens Shields, Ph.D.
Inspired by baby Suggs Holly's call to radical self-love and Toni Morrison's Beloved, the clearing is a national intervention seeding and resourcing locally rooted networks of mutual care across the United States in the context of mounting economic crisis, including the expulsion of nearly 700,000 Black women from the U.S. economy in 2025 and drastically cut healthcare access. This one-day retreat will equip participants with timely resources for economic, mental, and spiritual resilience. Participants will also learn about key mutual aid organizations across the Philadelphia area.
Come to the clearing, connect and equip yourself to meet the challenges of our times. This special offering has limited capacity.
Register today and reserve your space at The Clearing.
Oikos Impact Awards Gala
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 10 - FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 11
The Oikos Institute for Social Impact acknowledges and celebrates people in the faith community who demonstrate innovative approaches to community service at our Fishing Differently® Impact Awards Gala.
Awardees are nominated and selected for utilizing their spaces and resources to create a positive impact in their communities. They address a range of critical issues such as food insecurities, affordable housing, child care accessibility, recidivism, etc.
Furthermore, some awardees successfully generate jobs and revenue, showcasing their significant contributions to society and exemplifying the essence of Fishing Differently® for social impact.
One gala ticket is included with every conference registration. If you can't make the conference but still want to attend, you can purchase a separate ticket for this special evening!
Come ready to think differently. Come ready to build differently. Come ready to fish differently®.
Guest Speakers
Senator Vincent Hughes
PA State Senator, Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Comittee
Impact Awards Gala Speaker
Reverend William H. Lamar IV
Pastor, Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church
Closing Plenary & Worship Speaker
Bishop Dwayne Royster
Executive Director Faith in Action
Opening Worship Preacher
Reverend Dr. Teresa L Smallwood
Dean and Vice President for Academic Affairs
The James Franklin Kelly and Hope Eyster Kelly Associate Professor of Public Theology
Morning Manna Speaker
Dr. Randal Maurice Jelks
Ruth N. Hall Professor of African American and African Diaspora Studies Indian University Bloomington
Lunch Plenary Panelist
Jonathan Vazcones
Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) Officer Amalgmamated Bank
Lunch Plenary Speaker
Why This Matters Now
Communities are facing increasing pressure—econmically, socially, and structurally.
At the same time, there are unprecedented opportunieies sitting right in front of us.
The question is not wheter resources exist. The question is whether we know how to recognize, organize, and activate them.
Fishing Differently® exists to answer that question—together.
This conference is part of a broader effort to reshape how we think about community transformation
Through intentional initiatives and strategies Oikos is working to eleveate overlooked models of impact and shift the national narrative around what's possible.
Wen you attend, you're not just showing up for three days. You're stepping into a growing ecosystem of leaders building something differnt.
Bring Your Team
Transformation doesn't happen in isolation. We encourage organizations to attend together.
- Group rates available
- Ideal for teams looking to align strategy and execution