Building and sustaining civic space requires more than advocacy, it depends on how civil society tells its stories. In an era shaped by information overload, misinformation, digital risk, and shrinking freedoms, narratives play a critical role in shaping public understanding and strengthening collective action.
These ideas were explored during the CIVICUS-Asia Centre’s co-convening of Building Pro-Civic Space Narratives: Communicators for Civic Action, held from 21 to 24 April 2026 in Ibis Riverside Hotel Bangkok, Thailand. The convening brought together 14 representatives from the Asian civil society organisations, communicators, and activists to strengthen their narrative strategies and amplify grassroots voices, drawn from South Asia, Southeast Asia and Far East Asia.
Asia Centre as the local convener and organiser of the event in Thailand, collaborated with CIVICUS, in engaging the 14 representatives for a three-and-a-half-day on-site workshop. Before the start of the workshop, discussions and inputs were provided over a period of 3 months by Nipuna Kumbalathara, Director of Communications, and Tanya Lupuwana, Communications Officer – Narratives and Networks at CIVICUS. The event was facilitated by Rubens Filho, the Co-founder, CEO & Director of Spells, and Upekkha, Senior Facilitator and Consultant at Abracademy.
Day 1, with the “Ignite” theme focused on grounding and connection. Participants began by recognising existing strengths within their communities, building trust, and creating a shared sense of purpose. This foundation emphasised that effective narratives must be rooted in authenticity and collective experience.
On Day 2, with the “Explore” theme, participants engaged more deeply with the emotional and structural challenges shaping civic space. The sessions created space to acknowledge fear, grief, and uncertainty, while reinforcing the importance of solidarity and shared understanding.
Day three, Create, marked a shift towards action through storytelling and narrative-building. Participants explored new ways to communicate civic issues, focusing on approaches that are people-centred, relatable, and capable of reaching wider audiences. During the panel session, Asia Centre’s Programme Manager, Mr. Sanjay Gathia, highlighted the importance of understanding the digital landscape and strengthening online safety and security for civic communicators. He noted that digital platforms, if not adequately protected, can be exploited for misinformation and disinformation, and emphasised practical steps that civil society actors can take to safeguard their digital presence.
On the final day, the “Connect”, emphasised sustaining efforts beyond the convening. Discussions focused on strengthening connections among participants and identifying ways to continue collaboration and exchange across the region, with Asia Centre contributing to conversations on maintaining regional linkages.
Overall the key outcomes of the convening were that: a.) the participants felt more connected and strengthened in their relationships; b.) developed increased capacity to craft compelling counter-narratives through storytelling and narrative building; c.) the collective storytelling facilitated them to amplify civic issues of grassroots voices making it more people-centred and relatable; d.) strengthen their collective action to shape public understanding of issues; and, e.) develop pro-civic space narratives in protecting civic space from harmful information.
This convening enables Asia Centre to connect with other Asian regional fellow-communicators in fostering collective action and building pro-civic space narratives and build broader regional engagements in the future.
