A Day at the Common Ground Summit
At Common Ground Summit, each participant plays a vital role in co-creating the experience. Every voice is essential to the narrative we shape together! On stage conversations are only the prompts, designed to encourage us all to share our stories and discover deeper connection in the pursuit of mutual understanding. Deep conversations happen over shared meals, in round table discussions, panels, workshops and over joint experiences.
Panels and Workshops
Summit programming is designed as a connected whole, where each element plays a role in shaping the experience. Panels and workshops where leaders, creators and changemakers from across fields bring a depth of expertise and best practices, shared meals, walks, and activities work together to extend conversations beyond the stage and into shared time and practice.
Activities
Through art & music projects, lei making, fermenting, quilting, mixology or cooking , we explore the power of communal spaces and everyday creative practice – not just as sources of joy, rest, and beauty, but as vital grounds for connection, conversation, and cultural continuity. These spaces offer more than respite – they become places where memory lives, where stories are shared, and where the rhythms of community can be felt.
Field-Trips
Those excursions to our partners on island are dedicated to perpetuating and teaching the skills, knowledge, and practices of our kūpuna (ancestors) through the restoration, and protection of natural and cultural resources. Volunteer at an ancient fishpond, taro fields or a Kauai ahupua’a and help restore natural systems and resources while getting your hands and feet dirty in some of the most breathtaking places on our planet.
Morning Wellness
Join us for the awe-inspiring feeling of authentic connection through guided breathing exercises with gentle horses, meditate on a walk through a mahogany forest. learn a form of martial arts or methods of introspection through breathwork.
The Food
We believe in the power of food, the ingredients on a plate, techniques, customs and traditions adhered to, to connect us to ourselves and to others.
Prepare to indulge in three days of inspiring Island-to-Table meals that each tell a story of the Hawaiian food system with an artistic flair.
We source nearly all ingredients from local farms across Hawaii and gather a team of chefs, farmers, fishers and producers to curate tremendous quality, unusually fresh, unique dining experiences.
The Evenings
Pau Hana, fine dining, live music, immersive art, jam sessions by the bonfire, dancing and spending time with new friends are what evenings at the Common Ground Summit look like. The night before the official start 11/10 we’ll meet by the beach for some fresh caught sashimi, the last evening of the gathering we’ll create a celebratory dinner together.
The In-Between Moments
So much of what makes the Summit special happens not just on stage, but in the spaces in between. In the pauses, the shared meals, the quiet moments of making or walking together – that’s where connection deepens. Those in-between spaces remind us that building a more connected world isn’t just about what we say, but how we share, listen, and create together.
