ABOUT THE ENGAGING ASSOCIATIONS FORUM
A Peer Community for Leaders Shaping What Comes Next
The Engaging Associations Forum is a peer-powered community for executives, senior leaders and event professionals responsible for guiding organisations, communities and industries through change.
We create candid, deliberately designed spaces where leaders can challenge assumptions, exchange perspectives and decide what deserves attention next.
OUR MISSION
To create meaningful spaces where association and not-for-profit leaders connect, learn and grow together, strengthening their leadership, their organizations and the communities they serve.
OUR VISION
A future where association and not-for-profit leaders have the clarity, courage and community to build stronger organizations and create lasting impact.
OUR VALUES
What We Stand For
01
Leaders Need Leaders.
Leadership should not happen in isolation.
02
Lead Beyond Today.
Strong leadership prepares an organization for what comes next.
03
Challenge the Familiar.
Progress requires the courage to question assumptions and consider what could be different.
04
Turn Insight Into Action.
Ideas matter when they influence what happens next.
05
Build What Outlasts You.
The strongest leaders build organizations, cultures and communities capable of thriving beyond their tenure.
OUR JOURNEY
Built on One Simple Belief: Leaders Need Leaders
Since 2013, that belief has shaped every EAF gathering, conversation and connection.
2013
A Bold Idea Takes Shape
After attending one too many “same-old” conferences, Meagan Rockett and Doreen Ashton Wagner set out to create something different: a Forum built around candid conversation, peer perspective and participation rather than one-way presentations.
The Engaging Associations Forum was born.
2014–2019
Growing the Community
The Forum grew into a trusted gathering for association executives across Canada who valued honest conversation, collaboration and creativity.
Year after year, leaders returned for the conversations, connections and opportunity to explore what was next for the association community.
2020–2024
A Time to Pause
As the world and the association landscape changed, the Forum paused.
That time reinforced something EAF had believed from the beginning: leaders need meaningful connection and the perspective of peers who understand the responsibility they carry.
2025
Reigniting the Conversation
EAF returned in 2025, bringing its legacy of candid conversation and collaboration into a new era of leadership.
The Forum once again brought leaders together to challenge assumptions, exchange perspectives and navigate a sector undergoing significant change.
2026 and Beyond
From Event to Community
Today, EAF is growing beyond an annual Forum into an enduring peer community.
Through the flagship Forum, focused experiences, Peer Forums and smaller gatherings, leaders have more opportunities to connect, learn and work through the choices shaping their organizations.
The format continues to evolve. The belief at the centre of EAF does not: leaders need leaders.
OUR APPROACH
Candid Peer Conversation, Structured for Progress
EAF gives leaders space to step out of reaction mode, challenge assumptions and work through consequential choices with peers who understand the responsibility they carry.
We don’t believe EAF needs to have every answer. The value comes from better questions, relevant perspectives, meaningful relationships and structured space to decide what deserves attention next.
Every EAF experience is designed to help you:
Connect Deeply
Build meaningful relationships with leaders who understand the challenges and responsibility of leadership.
Learn Differently
Participate in candid conversations and strategic work shaped around the issues leaders are actually facing.
Lead What’s Next
Leave with greater clarity, relevant perspective and a useful next decision.
WHAT WE TALK ABOUT
The Conversations Leaders Need to Have
EAF conversations are shaped around the strategic choices leaders are facing now, from governance, revenue and member experience to culture, events, leadership and what comes next.
Our eight pillars keep those conversations focused on the issues that strengthen leaders and the organizations they serve.
HOW WE BRING THE COMMUNITY TOGETHER
More Than an Annual Forum
EAF is an enduring peer community connected through experiences designed for conversation, learning and meaningful relationships.
Engaging Associations Forum
Our annual flagship experience, bringing the broader EAF community together to challenge assumptions, exchange perspectives and explore what deserves attention next.
Pillar Events
Focused experiences exploring the strategic leadership issues at the heart of EAF’s eight pillars.
Peer Forums
Curated small-group conversations where leaders can work through challenges, exchange perspective and support one another.
Signature Experiences
Dinners, workshops and connection-driven gatherings designed to deepen relationships and continue the conversation.
OUR PROMISE
Stronger Leaders Build Stronger Organizations and Stronger Legacies
EAF exists because leaders need leaders.
When leaders have space to gain perspective, challenge their thinking and learn alongside one another, they become better equipped to make the decisions their organizations need from them.
Stronger leaders build stronger organizations. Stronger organizations create lasting impact.
That is how leaders build legacy.
