From Our Blog
How one city became a global force for good
By Akhtar Badshah
Akhtar Badshah is an expert on social impact, philanthropy, CSR and international development, an author and artist. He is the co-founder of Purpose Mindset, founder and Chief Catalyst of Catalytic Innovators Group, a consulting practice focused on accelerating social impact through catalytic innovation. He is a Distinguished Practitioner at the University of Washington, School of Business (Bothell Campus) and Evans School of Public Policy and Governance. He also is a faculty lead at START Center at the Department of Public Health and has served on the Global Washington board since 2008.
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Sometimes, it begins with the vision of one person who sees possibility where others see fragmentation.
I met Bill Clapp in the early 2000s when we launched the Digital Partners Foundation. He invited me to the early gatherings of Global Partnerships—an effort he helped shape, inspired in part by Muhammad Yunus and the growing momentum around microfinance in Central America.
Even then, Bill was deeply committed to international development and to the idea that each of us has a role to play in helping people lift themselves out of poverty. He was not only a business leader, but a civic leader—someone who saw responsibility and opportunity as inseparable.
He also understood something important about Seattle at that moment in time. With the rise of the Gates Foundation, he anticipated that many individuals from Microsoft and beyond would be inspired to contribute—either by launching their own initiatives or supporting organizations already advancing development work around the world.
When I later joined Microsoft to lead its philanthropy efforts, Bill and I often spoke about how Seattle was emerging as a global hub for international development. Institutions such as PATH, World Vision, World Concern, the University of Washington, and the Gates Foundation had created a powerful ecosystem. Out of those conversations—with leaders across philanthropy, academia, and civic life, including Bill Gates Sr.—Global Washington was born.
Global Washington had a simple but powerful charter: to bring together the international development community across Washington State. It created a network that connected organizations large and small—foundations, nonprofits, companies, and academic institutions—to convene, collaborate, share ideas, and advocate. It became a place where global voices could meet, where visitors from around the world could engage with a local community, and where those seeking to get involved could find a starting point.
For 16 years, first under Bill’s leadership and then through the continued stewardship of committed leaders, Global Washington provided a space where people could show up—where the flame of internationalism was kept alive. Through its work, it elevated innovative ideas, amplified smaller organizations, and strengthened the collective voice of a community committed to global development.
Now, that chapter is coming to a close. The world around us has changed rapidly—especially in how we convene, connect, and collaborate. New platforms and global networks now offer expanded ways to engage. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Global Washington embraced this shift, opening its convenings to participants from around the world. And yet, even as those possibilities expanded, the ground beneath the organization shifted. The gutting of U.S. foreign assistance in 2025 hit GlobalWA’s members hard and ultimately made continued operations impossible.
I am proud that the Board chose to wind down thoughtfully and responsibly, ensuring that its work would not end, but rather seed new ideas and inspire the next generation of leaders—the next “Bills”—to carry this vision forward.
Not long ago, we saw images of Earth transmitted from Artemis missions—our small, shared planet suspended in space, without visible boundaries or divisions. It was a powerful reminder that we are all in this together.
Global Washington as an organization may come to an end, but its spirit—of unity, shared humanity, and collective responsibility—will endure. And somewhere, the next visionary will step forward to make the case for international development once again.
Some ideas outlive institutions.
The work of building a more just, interconnected world goes on—and the next generation of leaders will carry it forward.
Thank you for being part of this journey.
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