Platforms, Power, and Purpose

In Part 2 of this two-part conversation, we shift our focus to Building Bridges as a platform: its role within Geneva’s global landscape, the challenges of multistakeholder governance, and the ethical tensions that arise when finance, diplomacy, and development intersect.

Karen Hitschke reflects on what it means to hold space for collaboration across sectors and worldviews, and how that work is being reshaped by shifting geopolitics, decentralised technologies, and rising global inequality.

We discuss:

• The evolving role of Switzerland and Geneva in sustainable finance

• The structure and long-term vision of Building Bridges

• The fine line between convening and influencing

• The power dynamics that shape development conversations

• The importance of staying anchored in values when working across asymmetries

This episode is about institutions, but also about intentionality, what it takes to build credibility in a world where trust is increasingly fragile.