As we move into the quieter summer period, many of us have a little more time to pause, reconnect and reflect.

The first half of this year, our 70th anniversary year, has been one of steady progress across People to People International. Much of this work has already appeared on our website and social media, but this feels like a good moment to bring some of the highlights together in one place.

None of it has happened because of one person or one office. Almost everything achieved this year has been delivered by volunteers: committed chapter leaders, active members and partners who continue to believe that understanding between people matters. That deserves saying plainly, and with gratitude.

Building a stronger organisation

PTPI 2.0 is no longer just a name. The Strategic Rebuild Framework for 2026 to 2028 has been published and is shaping priorities through to our 80th year in 2035. It continues to develop through consultation with members and the General Assembly rather than being handed down from the centre.

Financial transparency has taken a visible step forward. For the first time in many years, members have received clearer financial reporting alongside an honest appeal for support, and a full mid-year financial summary has been prepared for the General Assembly, recognising that PTPI's rebuilding depends directly on its membership community.

More members are registering through our membership portal, making it easier to maintain records, renew memberships and support PTPI directly. Our Romania-based technical team continues to strengthen the website and digital infrastructure behind the network. Quiet improvements like these rarely make news, but they are what a durable organisation is built on.

Safeguarding policies and insurance arrangements for programmes involving minors are actively being worked on ahead of expanded school partnerships. New operational tools and guidance are being prepared to make chapter leadership simpler and better supported, and work with university MBA students on long-term organisational sustainability begins later this year.

Connecting across borders again

If one theme defines the first half of 2026, it is this: international friendships are becoming active again after several quieter years.

Warsaw, June 2026

A PTPI gathering in Warsaw brought together members from Belgium, Germany, Poland and Greater Phoenix in the United States. Walking a city that rebuilt itself stone by stone, participants were reminded of what PTPI has always believed: that understanding a culture is a step toward understanding the people who carry it. Local student hosts contributed meaningfully to the experience, and we hope to see them again as future members.

Greater Phoenix in Lithuania and Poland

The Warsaw gathering was part of a wider journey by PTPI Greater Phoenix members through Vilnius, Krakow, Warsaw and Poznan. In Vilnius, Chapter President Ruth Allen reconnected with her own family heritage. In Krakow, time with friends Dominika and Marek was joined by a moving visit to Auschwitz, a reminder of why the work of understanding matters. In Poznan, dinner with their friend Roman rounded off a journey that renewed friendships in every city.

Germany: friends old and new

Mike and Mary Hermida spent two weeks in Germany in June, meeting PTPI members along the way. In Berlin, long-time friends including Hans-Dieter and Hannelore joined them for an afternoon of stories, laughter and memories shared across decades.

Denmark to Japan

PTPI Denmark's Gunild recently returned from an 18-day friendship journey to Japan with ten members, showing that chapter-to-chapter connections continue to flourish across continents. Denmark's travel calendar does not stop there: an Albania trip and a Gambia visit are both planned for the second half of the year.

Marrakesh

Earlier in the year, friends also took part in a successful gathering in Marrakesh, Morocco. Organised through a partner rather than as a PTPI-branded event, it nonetheless created exactly the cultural and social connections we exist for, and a PTPI-affiliated repeat is being considered for 2027.

That is the core purpose of PTPI, and it is visibly alive.

Our chapters are making a difference

The clearest evidence that PTPI is alive is found in its chapters. A few examples from the first half of the year show the breadth of what is happening:

• PTPI Delaware celebrated 40 years as a chapter while continuing its long-standing support for livelihoods and community development in Togo.
• PTPI Estonia delivered European projects across media literacy, digital resilience and inclusion, including a Triple WellBeing session with the Global Education Network in June - steadily strengthening PTPI's reputation well beyond its own network.
• PTPI Greater Phoenix continued its Potluck Adventures cultural series at home while its members travelled through Lithuania and Poland.
• PTPI Berlin holds monthly lunches with modest but committed attendance and runs time witness programmes connecting communities with historical and contemporary civic themes.
• PTPI Denmark runs a regular members' dinner series for those who prefer not to travel, alongside its international friendship journeys.
• In Kenya, our climate education programme, now in its seventh year, expanded environmental education and tree planting, with more than 5,000 learners reached to date.
• PTPI Korea Headquarters continues its cultural and educational activity.
• In Taiwan, we have welcomed renewed communication from members in Tainan.
• PTPI Kansas City opened nominations for World Citizen of the Year alongside its ongoing sponsorship activities.
• In Switzerland, preparations continue for the international PTPI gathering in Interlaken this October.

Young people remain at the centre

Everything PTPI is rebuilding points toward the next generation. The Youth Mobility Programme continues its careful, partnership-led rebuild, with safeguarding readiness placed deliberately before scale. Student engagement through schools, Erasmus partnerships and universities is a growing focus, with ideas ranging from pop-up events and country study evenings to student ambassador programmes now under development across the network. The student hosts who welcomed our members in Warsaw are a glimpse of what that future looks like.

We were also proud to see one of our own young leaders step forward in public life. Blinera Gashi, whom many members met at the PTPI conference in Skopje, stood as a candidate for the Parliament of Kosovo in June. Regardless of political affiliation or outcome, PTPI believes healthy societies depend on citizens willing to participate, and we are especially encouraged when young people bring their energy and commitment into public service.

Growing partnerships

Rather than rebuilding a large central organisation, PTPI is increasingly acting as a trusted connector, bringing together experienced partners, local communities and international opportunities. This is one of the defining changes of PTPI 2.0.

Work continues with Cerca Abroad, Africa Our Home, The Asia Institute, universities, European partners, and climate and community organisations. Each partnership extends what a small, disciplined coordination centre can achieve on its own.

Sharing knowledge

Throughout the year we have continued to expand our website with news, chapter stories, reflections and practical resources, creating a growing archive of the work taking place across our network. A year ago, much of this simply did not exist.

Our first Ubuntu Circle, held on 20 June, brought together members from Germany, Denmark, the USA, Belgium and Romania for an informal conversation, including several people we had not seen or heard from for some time. There was no fixed agenda and no resolutions - just the honest, curious exchange PTPI was founded to create. It reminded us that rebuilding relationships is just as important as rebuilding programmes. Further Circles will follow.

If you have not visited ptpi.network recently, you may be surprised by how much is waiting there: webinars, media literacy resources, digital resilience work, community conversations, reflective essays and chapter stories.

Looking ahead

The second half of 2026 gives us plenty to anticipate:

• The international PTPI gathering in Interlaken, Switzerland this October.
• PTPI Denmark's journeys to Albania and to Gambia, the latter alongside a beekeeping expert.
• Continued Youth Mobility pilot activity through our partnership-led approach.
• Chapter development and new operational support for local leaders.
• Safeguarding and insurance arrangements moving toward implementation ahead of expanded school partnerships.
• Work with university MBA students on PTPI's long-term sustainability, beginning in the final quarter of the year.
• Additional digital community events, including further Ubuntu Circles.
• A possible PTPI-affiliated gathering in Marrakesh in 2027.
• General Assembly priorities and the steady rebuilding work that rarely makes headlines but makes everything else possible.

The network in numbers