Bellagio Bulletin and Bellagio Perspectives
The Rockefeller Foundation
What’s the background?
The Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Center has access to a wealth of knowledge and information, thanks to the work they do with changemakers who visit for workshops or stay for residencies at their hallowed venue in Italy. But they weren’t leveraging the content and ideas that came out of it, or the network that they were fostering. Storythings worked with the Bellagio team to conceive and produce two editorial projects.
What was the solution?
The Bellagio Bulletin is a quarterly newsletter oriented around specific formats: The People and Ideas of Bellagio highlight some of the people who have attended Bellagio and the ideas they worked on while they were there (they include authors, academics, poets, activists and philosophers), Bellagio Conversations brings a few Bellagio alumni together to reflect on their time there, From The Archives looks at important events or programmes that were influenced by Bellagio, Bellagio Library looks at books that were written by people who spent some time at Bellagio, and Postcards from Bellagio showcases a postcard from a resident that was written by them when they were staying at the Bellagio Center, which is then sent to them six months later as a reminder of the ideas they got excited by and the collaborations they participated in.
Bellagio Perspectives is an editorial project highlighting the work of recent Bellagio Center residents and conveners who are driving progress on globally pressing issues. The first theme they looked at was Racial and Economic Justice, and it covered work by Amara Enyia, Cecille Blondet, Erica Smiley, Darrick Hamilton, Ralph Richard Banks, Rebecca Dixon, and Ai-jen Poo, all leading groundbreaking work in this space.
What’s the impact?
The publications have helped Rockefeller Foundation reignite connections with the attendees and communities forged at the Bellagio Center, with past attendees from decades ago getting back in touch with the Foundation and sharing their own stories. As Bellagio Center attendees include high-status global leaders across sectors, restoring engagement is hugely valuable.
