From Ideas to Action: Public Policy Takes Center Stage at Goodwill Connect

By Laura Walling, Vice President of Government Affairs, Goodwill Industries International, Inc.

Everything’s bigger in Texas, and Goodwill’s most recent conference was no exception. With more than 1,000 attendees and an exhibit hall featuring over 70 sponsors and vendors, Goodwill Connect 2026 brought the Goodwill network together for four days of learning, connection and ideas that can be put into action. This year’s event also integrated the Sustainability Summit, connecting conversations about workforce development, sustainability and Goodwill’s next 125 years.

Public policy was an important part of the conversation. Three sessions gave Goodwill leaders and advocates an opportunity to explore how changes in government and policy could shape our mission, and how local organizations can respond:

• Advocacy that Moves the Needle: Defining and Driving Your Policy Priorities focused on identifying the issues that matter most locally and translating organizational priorities into a focused advocacy agenda.
• The Shifting Policy Landscape: EPR, Reuse, and Workforce Development examined extended producer responsibility policy developments affecting Goodwill’s sustainability, reuse and workforce missions.
• Power, Policy and Possibility: The Midterm Elections and the Road Ahead looked at how the changing political landscape creates new opportunities to build relationships with policymakers and advance Goodwill priorities.

As Goodwill begins its next 125 years, these conversations reinforced a simple message: policy can shape our ability to serve communities, and Goodwill has an important voice in shaping policy. Advocacy starts with knowing what matters to your organization, telling the Goodwill story effectively and building relationships before you need them.

The conference concluded with a fitting challenge, Forward Together: Turning Ideas Into Action. For advocates, that means taking the energy and ideas from Houston home and putting them to work with local, state and federal policymakers