The Vision for 2026
“We are working harder than ever, yet losing our peace, sleep, and joy of living.”
When we invest in changemakers' wellbeing, we invest in the wellbeing of all life. We nurture healthier people, stronger relationships, peaceful communities, and a deeper connection with the living world.
By being in nature and remembering that we are nature, we rediscover our interconnectedness with one another and with all living beings. From this connection grows a more compassionate, resilient, and regenerative future—one where people, planet, and all life can thrive together.
The meaning of HEARTH
HEARTH
An open space to gather and share.
HEART
An invitation for self-exploration and connecting with others.
EARTH
A grounding force that reconnects us to our environment and roots.
ART
The creative expression that shapes our culture and healing.
HEAR
To listen deeply to ourselves and to the voices of our community.
Wellbeing Inspires Welldoing
When changemakers are met with genuine care, emotional nourishment, and space to rest, their renewal naturally blossoms into welldoing—nurturing deeper compassion, gentle relationships, peaceful communities, and a hopeful, regenerative future.
Caring for the hearts and spirits of those who care for our world is where true transformation begins.
A Gentle Strategic Pause
A nurturing sanctuary to step away from chronic burnout and daily strain, breathe with nature, and replenish your spirit in authentic fellowship.
Ecological Belonging
Remembering our kinship with the natural world. Reconnecting with the earth restores emotional calm, grounded presence, and collective wholeness.
The Joy of Thriving Together
Moving gently from surviving and carrying heavy burdens toward celebrating life with peace of mind, shared agency, and resilient hope.
Fostering a Culture of Care in the Social Change Sector
A yearly gathering of social changemakers around a shared space to pause, breathe, belong, and be met with care and empathy. Here, meaningful conversations and shared experiences invite us to reconnect with ourselves, each other, and the work that calls us.
Across four spheres of society, Hearth nurtures an experiential journey of wellbeing, offering ideas, connections and practices to carry back into our organisations, communities, and the lives we touch.
Grassroots EmpathyYouth and Grassroots Voices
Youth and grassroots changemakers rooted in the wisdom of their communities—coming together around nature, land and tradition to share stories, listen deeply, and rediscover the connections that sustain us.
Compassionate PolicyPolicy Voices
Changemakers working across public, private and civic spaces to shape laws, policies and systems with compassion, responsibility and accountability—bringing wellbeing, connection and the wisdom of nature, land and tradition into institutional thinking and practices.
Mindful EnterpriseConscious & Regenerative Leaders
Visionary business leaders, social entrepreneurs, and sustainability executives reshaping work cultures to honor human dignity, mental health, and planetary care.
Culture & HealingArtists, Healers and Thinkers
Artists, healers and thinkers who remind us that art is a universal language of wellbeing—creating spaces to reconnect with ancestral wisdom, nature, land and tradition through story, music, movement, creativity and reflection.
Core Summit Objectives
Transforming shared ecological distress into heartfelt belonging, emotional grounding, and community-led renewal.
Deepening Our Connection with Nature
Recognising “I am nature”. Reconnecting with the understanding that we are not separate from nature, but an inseparable part of it. Through the wisdom of land and tradition, we explore how nurturing our connection with the living world can deepen our own wellbeing, strengthen our relationships and communities, and contribute to the wellbeing of the planet we call home.
Nurturing Shared Belonging
Creating spaces to feel seen, heard and connected—where trust and empathy can grow, and where our sense of belonging to one another, our communities, and the land we share can become a source of strength and care.
Restoring Our Wellbeing, Renewing Our Well-Doing
Creating a space to pause, rest and reconnect—with ourselves, one another, nature, land and tradition. Hearth invites social changemakers to step away from the demands of their work, restore their own wellbeing, and return to their communities with renewed energy and possibility. We believe that wellbeing inspires well-doing—and that caring for ourselves is part of sustaining the work we do for others.
Weaving Dialogue into Action
Together, we also make space to recognise how environmental degradation, social injustice and disconnection from nature can shape our individual, social and planetary wellbeing. By listening to these realities with care, we can cultivate deeper connection, resilience and a more compassionate way of contributing to the wellbeing of people and planet.
Healing Through Conversation, Art & Nature
Plenary Session
Uplifting keynote dialogues and cross-sector gatherings illuminating how planetary healing and human psychological flourishing mirror one another.
Thematic Workshops
Collaborative learning circles exploring clean air, living rivers, and climate resilience through empathetic dialogue and practical hope.
Therapeutic Workshops
Sensory, expressive art labs—clay sculpting, tactile crafts, and breathwork designed to soothe the nervous system, release tension, and spark joy.
Free Flow Sessions
Quiet walking pathways across the lawns and courtyard at British Council Bangladesh, inviting unhurried reflection, grounding, and peace of mind.
Open-air experiential circles and nature-based therapeutic labs
Cultural Engagement
A shared community art canvas co-created throughout the summit—weaving diverse personal stories into an inspiring celebration of unity and hope.
Two-Day Summit Programme
An experiential immersion featuring keynote plenaries, thematic workshops, and somatic movement labs—from puppetry, dance therapy, and power yoga to clay sculpting, sound healing, and mindful walks across the lawns.
Reflective cohort circles in a serene, welcoming setting
Session Spotlight
Explore our immersive parallel workshops, contemplative plenary dialogues, and creative healing sanctuaries designed to nurture inner calm, community empathy, and ecological renewal.
Saree na Sorry Funshop
Poppy Jaman OBE
Mental Health Advocate & Cultural Dignity Champion
A playful, liberating funshop exploring cultural pride, women's empowerment, self-worth, and breaking guilt through laughter and shared stories.
Creative Expressions of My Untold Story
Fareh Zeba
Renowned Visual Artist & Art Educator
An intuitive mixed-media art lab enabling participants to express unspoken emotions, private memories, and vulnerable narratives on canvas.
Managing Stress and Burnout
Prof. Dr. Mahjabeen Haque
Professor of Psychology, University of Dhaka
Clinical and psychological tools for changemakers and frontline leaders to identify burnout triggers, establish boundaries, and maintain emotional equilibrium.
Transforming Ecological Harm to Ecological Wellbeing
Professor Kamal Chowdhury
Narrative & Clinical Psychologist, University of Dhaka
A narrative and experiential process helping delegates navigate ecological grief, climate anxiety, and transform loss into active collective resilience.
My Dream City
Arham Ul Haque Chowdhury
Architect, Environmentalist & Living Heritage Advocate
Collaborative urban design lab reimagining cities with green corridors, water retention, and cultural spaces centered on human health.
Puppet Making for Healing
Khalid Hasan Rumi & Team
Master Puppeteer & Creative Facilitator
Hands-on puppetry lab where participants craft characters to externalize complex thoughts, communicate playful feelings, and ignite joy.
Creative Story-Making
Fareh Zeba
Visual Artist & Creative Mentor
Expressive storytelling lab blending sketch, words, and metaphor to build personal and communal resilience narratives in intimate circles.
Dance Therapy
Anandita Khan
Dance Movement Therapist & Performing Artist
Somatic movement and dance therapy unlocking physical tension, grounding the nervous system, and celebrating bodily freedom in a safe space.
Music Therapy
Smurna Akhi Bagchi
Music Therapist & Vocal Practitioner
Vocal toning, singing bowls, and classical melodic resonance to relieve cognitive exhaustion, quiet mental chatter, and foster inner peace.
Social Emotional Learning
Prof. S.M. Dr. Arifuzzaman
Executive Coach & Leadership Mentor
Evidence-based emotional regulation frameworks, active listening tools, and empathetic communication practices for team leadership.
Leading with Wellness
Quazi M. Ahmed
Leadership & Wellness Coach
Executive coaching strategies for embedding psychological safety, humane work cadences, and compassionate culture into institutions.
Monolog on Vulnerability & Healing
Kizzy Tahnin
Creative Writer & Spoken Narrative Artist
Creative spoken narrative exploring emotional safety, human vulnerability, and the restorative power of personal truth on the plenary stage.
From Lived Experience to Climate Justice
Sohanur Rahman
Coordinator, YouthNet for Climate Justice
Firsthand youth testimony linking climate distress in vulnerable riverine delta communities to collective action and environmental justice.
Beyond the Headline: Journalism with Humanity
Shahanaz Shermin
Investigative & Human Rights Journalist
Ethical media storytelling, bearing witness to collective trauma with compassion, and fostering journalistic practices that promote healing.
Play with Clay & Sensory Grounding
Local Artisans & Potters
Master Potters
Tactile earth engagement in the courtyard—rolling, pinching, and sculpting natural clay without performance pressure to release stress.
Meet the Speakers
Encounter the thought leaders, somatic healers, environmental activists, artists, and institutional champions guiding the dialogues, plenaries, and workshops at Hearth Summit Bangladesh 2026.
Glimpses of Warmth & Community
Quiet reflections, shared smiles, creative hands, and restorative breath from across our wellbeing summits in Bangladesh.
Innovation for Wellbeing Foundation
Guided by deep empathy and an enduring commitment to human dignity, the Innovation for Wellbeing Foundation (IWF) has walked alongside communities across Bangladesh since 2015. With gentle care and transformative practices, IWF nurtures mental wellbeing, social harmony, and collective resilience as foundational pillars of a flourishing society.
Today, that mission embraces our shared ecology—recognizing that the peace in our minds and bodies is intimately bound to the living health of our rivers, trees, air, and neighborhoods.
In partnership with The Wellbeing Project as our global partner, IWF serves as the dedicated country host for the HEARTH Summit in Bangladesh—creating a welcoming sanctuary where changemakers from every walk of life can rest, reconnect, and heal together.
Take Your Place at Hearth Summit Bangladesh 2026
Step into a compassionate space to rest, reflect, and reimagine. Join an openhearted community of changemakers, artists, and healers at British Council Bangladesh to cultivate lasting wellbeing for ourselves and our living earth.