In August 2025, the Aspen Institute’s Alliance for Social Trust, in partnership with Allstate, launched a new webinar series: Trust in Practice: Building Local Trust from the Ground Up, bringing together community leaders, practitioners, corporate partners, and researchers to explore how trust is not just an ideal, but a practice. From grassroots efforts to cross-sector collaborations, these conversations lift up real-world examples of how trust is being built, repaired, and sustained.
The first session in the series is called Beyond Labels: What Trust Looks Like in Practice, and took place on Thursday, August 21 via Zoom Webinar.
Across the country, trust is being built in ways that are quiet but powerful—through dialogue circles in libraries, youth programs in schools, faith-based organizing, civic engagement campaigns, and local economic development efforts. While the language and settings may differ, the heart of the work is the same: building relationships rooted in trust that lead to collective action and lasting impact.
The conversation featured three leaders who are putting trust into practice. They shared how they build and sustain trust in their work, what it takes to navigate complexity with integrity, and the principles and practices that can inspire similar efforts elsewhere.
Featured Speakers:
Katie Baxter, Chief Impact Officer, Interfaith America
Dr. Uché Blackstock, Author, Founder & CEO, Advancing Health Equity
Raj Jayadev, Co-Founder, Silicon Valley De-Bug
Moderator: Olajumoke “Jummy” Banjo, Senior Director, Alliance for Social Trust
