There are five key elements of a successful Bellagio convening:
- Strategic Alignment and Charitable Purpose: The Rockefeller Foundation was established to promote the well-being of humanity throughout the world and strives to make opportunity universal and sustainable. We prioritize convenings that are thematically aligned with The Rockefeller Foundation’s broader priorities and that demonstrate a clear charitable purpose.
- Path to Impact: Bellagio Center convenings successfully drive change because they have clearly defined pathways to impact. We prioritize convenings whose outcomes are positioned to achieve long-term, measurable progress towards a stated goal or solution that can drive a breakthrough in a field, system, institution, or discourse.
- Solution Demand: Bellagio Center convenings should focus on solutions that show clear signs of potential buy-in from the stakeholders and partners required for success.
- Engaged Participants: Bellagio Center convenings bring together a varied group of participants who represent the stakeholders needed to accomplish the work’s long-term goals. Participants should be involved in achieving these goals and actively engaged in post-convening actions. Note: Bellagio Center convenings are capped at 21 or 22 participants, depending on the facility. Read more about our facilities and accommodations.
- Clear and Timely Purpose: Bellagio Center convenings catalyze action. They are typically held at a pivot point that maximizes their ability to strengthen and drive adoption of an in-demand solution. Convenings may achieve this by engaging broad perspectives to explore a new phase of work, aligning on and deepening commitments to a solution, building additional partnerships, or mobilizing new resources to scale a tested solution.
- Execution Capacity: Bellagio Center convenings take work! Organizing teams must be well prepared to fully plan, resource, and execute the convening itself, and they must be positioned to support sustained post-convening progress. Please note that The Rockefeller Foundation supports convening teams with modest travel support for eligible participants, ground transportation from Milan to the Bellagio Center, a dedicated convening lead on-site, and strategic convening design advisory services and resources.
The Convening Evaluation Process
The deadline to complete the pre-application questionnaire and begin the Expression of Interest process is Wednesday, May 28, 2025, by 5:00 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time. Expressions of Interest are evaluated bi-annually based on the quarter requested for the convening to take place, and they will be evaluated using the criteria detailed above.
A subset of applicants will be invited to submit a full application and share additional details about their proposed convening in either July (for convenings to be held in Q1 or Q2 of 2026) or December (for convenings to be held in Q3 or Q4 of 2026). Full applications will be reviewed in depth by The Rockefeller Foundation’s staff, and finalists will be invited to an interview regarding their convening proposal.
Final decisions are made approximately four to six months in advance of the dates we have available at the Bellagio Center.
For any further questions, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions page.