Is your organisation joining CISU’s cosiest professional weekend?
Every year, CISU’s member organisations come together for a whole weekend at Askov Højskole. It is a chance to learn more about your own work, meet people you may otherwise only know from emails, and go home with new ideas, new connections and plenty of inspiration. And now, it is almost time for another weekend at the Højskole.
The future of civil society is created together
At CISU’s Højskole Weekend, member organisations meet to share experiences, challenge each other and find new ways forward together. If you choose to arrive already on Friday, the evening includes dinner, games, a music quiz and film screenings of films that CISU’s funding pools have helped bring to life.
It is a cosy way to kick off CISU’s Højskole – a weekend where CISU’s member organisations meet across organisations and areas of work to learn together, and where the professional and social sides are allowed to merge.
The opportunity to meet other people is exactly what comes up again and again when previous participants talk about the weekend. Nadjala Rahi and Tatiana Frineth from Tandsundhed uden Grænser, who have participated two years in a row, explain:
“In addition to the many interesting workshops and the opportunity to learn more about the development sector and CISU, the Højskole Weekend is a great opportunity to meet like-minded, engaged people who are passionate about what they do.”
And here, they touch on something central to the weekend: You do not go home with new knowledge alone. You also take new relationships home with you.
“It has been inspiring to hear about other people’s work, meet international guests and make new contacts, which, in addition to exchanging experiences, have also resulted in new project collaborations,” Nadjala Rahi and Tatiana Frineth say.
A helicopter view of everyday life
When you work in a member organisation, it can be difficult to find time to pause. There are projects, applications, partnerships, meetings, communication and everything else that keeps everyday life running. That is why it can be valuable to get away from the office and step into a Højskole Weekend where you do not have to set the agenda yourself.
That is how Nina Ottesen from Dreamtown described it after the 2025 Højskole Weekend:
“The Højskole Weekend is a much-needed helicopter – a place where you can lift yourself a little above everyday life and hear what others are doing and what is going on.”
That is also part of the idea behind the Højskole Weekend in 2026. This year’s theme is the role of Danish organisations in the partnerships of the future. What role should Danish organisations play in a world where civil society needs to be independent, diverse, locally rooted and globally connected? And how do we make sure that what Danish organisations bring into a partnership is actually experienced as relevant and meaningful by all parties? These are some of the questions participants will explore together.
Choose where you want to go deeper
On Saturday morning, you can hear CISU’s new Secretary General in conversation with political spokespersons. In the afternoon, you can choose between sessions such as Future Partnerships, Building Public Support for Your Work or a Walk and Talk with CISU’s leadership.
Later in the day, you can meet other participants at networking events, engage in dialogue with CISU’s board or meet the secretariat. On Sunday, the conversations continue with sessions including The Good Programme Partnership, Is Civil Society Critical Infrastructure? and Send the Communications Team to Couples Therapy.
If you feel like getting active, you can start Saturday morning with yoga or Sunday morning with a refreshing run. And if you prefer films and a quiet morning, there will also be a screening of Burning Voice.
You might arrive alone, but you quickly become part of something
One of the special things about the Højskole Weekend is the opportunity to meet people you normally only encounter through a screen. One participant may work with education in Nepal. Another with children and health. A third with climate, democracy or human rights. The organisations are different, but they share an interest in civil society and development.
Anne Mette Nordfalk from Skoleliv i Nepal has participated several times. For her, the professional input is an important reason to return:
“There are always interesting development-related topics, and you get some time to think – something you do not always have time for in a busy everyday life. At the same time, you meet other organisations and get inspiration from how they do things.”
Perhaps that is also why the Højskole Weekend does not feel like an ordinary course. There is room to ask the questions you do not necessarily get to ask during a webinar. To discover that another organisation is struggling with exactly the same challenge you have been wrestling with. Anne Mette Nordfalk continues:
“It is a space where you can really engage professionally with others.”
Of course, we are going to have some fun too
Even though this year’s theme is serious, the weekend does not have to be serious all the time.
On Saturday evening, Askov Højskole will be filled with music when BIOFONIA takes the audience on a breathtaking musical journey from the Amazon to Askov – a truly immersive concert experience.
After last year’s Højskole Weekend, CISU Chair Peter Horne Zartsdahl said:
“Because what is civil society if we do not meet, discuss things and put our crazy ideas on the table?”
Perhaps that is the best explanation of why you should join us.
So, are you coming?
CISU’s Højskole Weekend 2026 takes place 3–4 October at Askov Folk High School.
You can choose to arrive already on Friday 2 October and join the more informal start with dinner, films, games and a music quiz.
Registration includes accommodation, meals and the full professional programme. Participants arrange and pay for their own transport.
Sign-up deadline:
11. september 2026