On 16th September 2025, we held the second communities of practice in a series exploring the complexities of developing and maintaining resilience within the development space. Natalie Cunningham, Senior Lecturer in Leadership for Development at GDI, facilitated the sessions alongside Louisa Hann, Research Communications Officer, and we were joined by a diverse group of academics and practitioners.

Following last month’s discussions on the challenges of developing personal resilience, our recent sessions explored the ways in which organisational toxicity can impact practitioners’ mental health and productivity, as well as the knock-on effects for the wider development sector. Natalie kicked off the session with some stark statistics from a recent Gallup survey of the global workplace. Across all sectors, only a third of employees feel that they are thriving at work and beyond, while employee engagement is waning. As participants affirmed throughout the session, the development sector is well-acquainted with such dynamics, with many practitioners experiencing a state of burnout and disengagement in recent years.

 

What does toxicity look like within development organisations?

While we cannot attribute this lack of engagement to any single factor, organisational dysfunction and lack of employee support represent a vital part of the puzzle. Toxicity within organisations can manifest as problems such as a lack of communication, disregard for team morale, poor or non-existent career development, structural disorganisation, and a competitive or blame-oriented culture. Perhaps unsurprisingly, employees working in such hostile and dysfunctional environments can struggle to stay motivated and productive – demonstrating how organisations can impact one’s personal resilience.

 

How can organisations change for the better?

After introducing these ideas to participants, Natalie prompted them to discuss how organisations can combat toxicity, build resilience, and help employees thrive. One of the key themes to emerge during these discussions was the importance of adaptability among organisational leaders. Today’s development landscape is subject to volatile political and economic headwinds, leaving employees to juggle a variety of complex issues. Adaptability and a willingness to shape organisational culture around employees’ needs and aspirations can help them weather such difficulties and prevent disillusionment.

Participants also linked this idea to the importance of effective communication and clarity of purpose. Aligning tasks with a wider purpose can help employees stay focused on their objectives and appreciate the positive difference they’re making on the world – in spite of difficulties and obstacles. Similarly, ensuring lines of communications remain open at all times can support employees to speak up when sensitive issues arise.

Participants agreed that there is no single approach or cure-all that can transform organisational culture. Rather, positive and sustainable change requires a kind of systemic thinking that takes multiple issues into account simultaneously. Such issues will differ according to the context within which teams are working, so open and honest conversation is vital for ascertaining and overcoming difficult problems.

 

Balancing hope with the realities of discomfort

While providing employees with a motivating and positive vision can help them stay focused and underline the value in their work, problems and setbacks represent an inevitability for anyone working within development. During the community of practice, we noted the psychological benefits of recognising and sitting with negativity. While hopeful messages and a positive culture play a role in supporting employees during turbulent times, failure to acknowledge people’s negative feelings can make them feel unheard and isolated.

 

The role psychological safety plays in successful organisations

Voicing one’s worries and negative feelings in the workplace is easier said than done. As Natalie and the participants underlined throughout the communities of practice, admitting one’s vulnerability requires psychological safety – a concept explored in depth by scholar Amy Edmonson. Organisations that promote psychological safety tend to establish clear norms and expectations in the workplace, actively ask for employee input, and respond productively and without judgement to problems raised. In so doing, they can prevent some of the toxic tendencies to which organisations are susceptible, especially during tough times, while ensuring team members feel able to seek help or support from senior leaders.

Participants agreed that establishing such norms can be tricky, requiring a significant number of people within an organisation to reflect on their working practices and make space for difficult conversations. As one participant put it, we need to encourage a critical mass of people to start thinking about resilience and burnout if we want to tackle the problem head-on. For many of our participants, communities of practice represent a good place to start.

 

Join our next session to discuss the complexities of hope

We touched on the complex role hope plays in combatting organisational toxicity within our latest communities of practice. However, we only scratched the surface, and will be discussing the topic in more depth during our next sessions taking place on Tuesday, 21st October at 8am and 2pm BST. Please do join us whether or not you’ve attended a community of practice before. For more information about the format of our sessions, read our recent blog here.

Sign up for the 8am session.

Sign up for the 2pm session.

Photo by Dom J.

Note:  This article gives the views of the author/academic featured and does not necessarily represent the views of the Global Development Institute as a whole.

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