Video Address to the CoNGO Regional Committee in Asia-Pacific (RCAP)
Video Address to the CoNGO Regional Committee in Asia-Pacific (RCAP)
Peter Preziosi
CoNGO President’s Message
April 22, 2026 | 10:15 PM Eastern Time | Virtual
Distinguished colleagues, friends, and partners across the Asia-Pacific region,
I would like to begin with a story — not about one person, but about how leadership is born when people choose to build together.
When the new CoNGO Board was elected, the world around us already felt unsettled. Multilateralism was under strain. Trust in institutions was wavering. And the United Nations itself was grappling with very real challenges — including the painful reality that some Member States are not paying their assessed contributions, weakening the UN’s ability to deliver on peace, development, humanitarian action, and human rights. At the same time, civil society was being asked — once again — to do more with less.
In our first conversations as a new Board, we did not begin with structures or procedures. Instead, we asked a more fundamental question: How do we stay connected — authentically, transparently, and across regions — when the forces around us are pulling people apart?
What emerged was not a single initiative, but a shared commitment. A commitment to move from one-way communication to interactive dialogue. From fragmented information to shared learning. From silos to community.
It was from this spirit that ideas such as a CoNGO Learning Academy began to take shape — not as an abstract platform, but as a living, participatory space where members can strengthen skills, exchange experience, and better navigate the UN system together. At a moment when multilateralism is under attack, we are choosing to invest intentionally in the very capacities that make multilateralism work.
As I step into this role as President, I want to pause and share how I approach leadership — because leadership, to me, is not about position, but about posture.
I lead with humility, because no single organization — and certainly no single individual — holds all the answers to today’s interconnected challenges. I lead with transparency, because trust is the currency of collaboration. And I lead with compassion, because civil society is powered by people who show up every day for communities under pressure, often without recognition and often without sufficient resources.
Throughout my career, I have learned that listening must come before leading. That clarity matters more than control. And that the strongest organizations are those where people feel seen, heard, and invited to contribute.
These values shape how I intend to serve CoNGO — with the Board, through our Substantive Committees, and in close partnership with our Regional Committees, including this vital Asia-Pacific community.
As I shared during our 28th General Assembly, CoNGO stands at a crossroads — and so does multilateralism itself. Retreat is not an option. Renewal is our calling.
Civil society participation at the United Nations is not a courtesy; it is a necessity. Without the insights of communities and without on-the-ground implementation experience, the global goals risk becoming global slogans.
This is why I have framed our work around three commitments: Convene. Communicate. Collaborate.
To convene means strengthening forums like RCAP so they remain inclusive, participatory, and relevant — spaces where Asia-Pacific NGOs can exchange experience, build partnerships, and speak with a stronger collective voice.
To communicate means modernizing how we listen and how we share — not simply broadcasting information, but creating shared calendars, interactive briefings, and feedback loops that allow learning to flow across regions and generations.
To collaborate means moving deliberately from intention to action — through joint policy inputs, shared learning opportunities, and practical capacity-building that enables NGOs of all sizes to engage meaningfully with UN processes.
RCAP embodies what regional cooperation can and should look like: grounded, inclusive, and forward-looking. Covering the entire Asia- Pacific region, RCAP plays a unique role in connecting NGOs with UN bodies such as ESCAP, while also strengthening cooperation among civil society organizations themselves.
The theme of your 2026 meeting — “Transformative, Equitable, Innovative and Coordinated Actions for the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda for a Sustainable Future for All” — could not be more timely.
The Sustainable Development Goals under review this year — water and sanitation, energy, infrastructure and innovation, cities and human settlements, and SDG 17 on partnerships — remind us that global progress is never abstract. It depends on regional leadership and local implementation. Asia-Pacific NGOs are not observers of the 2030 Agenda; you are its architects and implementers.
RCAP meetings, annual general gatherings, and Steering Committee leadership are not administrative necessities. They are expressions of regional solidarity — and they are how civil society turns shared values into shared action.
One of the areas I am particularly excited about is our growing commitment to shared learning.
The CoNGO Learning Academy is about democratizing access to knowledge: helping NGOs understand UN processes, strengthen advocacy, measure impact, and exchange practical solutions. At its core, it is about leveling the playing field so that smaller and under-resourced organizations can navigate the system with confidence.
Learning, in this moment, is not a luxury — it is a form of resilience. It equips us to respond thoughtfully to geopolitical uncertainty, funding constraints, digital transformation, and emerging challenges such as climate change and the ethical use of artificial intelligence.
As countries turn inward and media ecosystems become more state-driven, the ability to tell our stories clearly and credibly becomes critically important. Storytelling helps explain our contributions, articulate our values, advance the SDGs, and demonstrate how civil society often provides a safety net where governments fall short or need support.
As the CoNGO Board advanced the Learning Academy, we made a deliberate commitment to learning content that strengthens storytelling skills and deepens understanding of global citizenship. Global citizenship reminds us that today’s complex challenges cannot be solved in isolation — they require thoughtful collaboration, shared responsibility, and innovation across borders.
Let me be clear: CoNGO remains unwavering in its support for the United Nations and for multilateralism.
Yes, the UN faces serious challenges — financial, political, and operational. But abandoning multilateralism does not solve these problems; it compounds them. The answer is not disengagement, but reform with participation. Not silence, but principled voice.
Civil society has always served as the moral compass of multilateral cooperation. At this moment in history, that role is more essential than ever.
Friends and colleagues of RCAP,
The future of multilateralism will not be decided in conference rooms alone. It will be shaped by communities, regions, and networks like yours — by those who choose cooperation over division, learning over isolation, and hope over despair.
As President of CoNGO, I pledge to walk this journey with you — listening, supporting, and working together to ensure that civil society remains a vital force at the United Nations.
Let us define this present with clarity. Let us secure a shared future with purpose. And let us reaffirm — together — that multilateralism, grounded in people and partnerships, is not only worth defending, but worth strengthening.
In the months ahead, I hope RCAP will continue to be a place where ideas are tested, partnerships are forged, and regional experience shapes global solutions.
Thank you for your leadership, your commitment, and your trust. I am honored to serve alongside you.
CoNGO INTERNATIONAL SECRETARIAT
CoNGO New York | T: +1 917 355 8238 | E: president@ngocongo.org
CoNGO Geneva | PostBox 50 | 1211 Geneva 20 , Switzerland | T: +41 22 301 1000 | F: +41 22 301 2000 | E: firstvp@ngocongo.org
CoNGO Vienna | Obere Donaustrasse 43/1/15 A-1020 Vienna, Austria | E: secondvp@ngocongo.org
Peter Preziosi is the President of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations and the President and CEO of TruMerit. This was a Presidential address delivered remotely to the CoNGO Regional Committee in Asia-Pacific (RCAP) during their meeting held on April 22, 2026, at Siam University in Bangkok, Thailand.
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