Our Data and Impact Manager, Anna McLaurin was invited to speak on a panel at the Partnerships for Local Action & Community Empowerment (PLACE) summit in Brisbane, June 2026. The summit brought together people from across Australia working in place-based change to explore a deceptively simple question: how do we understand and measure the impact of place-based approaches?
Read Anna's reflection on the summit here.
One of the most valuable things I did was sit with different people at each session. Attendees included philanthropists, community organisations, researchers, government representatives and practitioners working closely with communities. It quickly became clear that while many of us use similar language, we often bring different assumptions, experiences and priorities to the conversation.
A recurring theme throughout the summit was the challenge of measuring impact. Many participants argued that the place-based sector needs greater consistency in how it measures and demonstrates outcomes. Others questioned whether a single framework could capture the complexity of local contexts and community-led change.
I found myself somewhere in the middle. I can see the value of shared measures for accountability and investment, but I also left wondering whether we always mean the same thing when we talk about concepts such as place-based, community voice and impact. The discussions reinforced that measurement is never neutral. What we choose to count shapes what we pay attention to, and what we value. At MPF we prioritise what our community partners choose to count. They instinctively know what matters, so we take their lead.
The summit also highlighted several tools and resources that could strengthen how organisations use data and evidence. Not everyone needs to be a data specialist, but organisations benefit from people who are data curious, data aware and data literate - people ask thoughtful questions and understand both the strengths and limitations of data.
I left Brisbane encouraged, challenged and, in a positive way, unresolved. The summit did not give me definitive answers about place-based impact. Instead, it sharpened my questions and reinforced the importance of being clear about MPF's role: supporting, connecting and learning alongside our partners while remaining grounded in the communities they serve.
Perhaps the greatest opportunity is not finding the perfect measurement framework, but continuing to learn across places, value community knowledge and remain open to what the evidence asks us to question, improve and change.