# Sustaining learning and exchange across the ecosystem **URL:** https://grove.rainmatter.org/t/sustaining-learning-and-exchange-across-the-ecosystem/5320 **Category:** Collaboration **Created:** [October 27, 2026, 1:08pm UTC](https://grove.rainmatter.org/t/sustaining-learning-and-exchange-across-the-ecosystem/5320 "2026-10-27T13:08:12Z") **Posts on this page:** 1 **Page:** 1
### Author: ![Common\_Ground](https://grove.rainmatter.org/user_avatar/grove.rainmatter.org/common_ground/32/4643_2.png) [@Common\_Ground](https://grove.rainmatter.org/u/Common_Ground) #### Post date: [October 27, 2026, 1:08pm UTC](https://grove.rainmatter.org/t/sustaining-learning-and-exchange-across-the-ecosystem/5320/1 "2026-10-27T13:08:12Z")
During September 2026, Common Ground launched two dialogue series for system actors: one on the evolving planning landscape at the village and Panchayat levels, and the other on strengthening the rural economy, in partnership with Green Rural Economy (GRE). The objective is to ensure that important developments across sectors and systems are regularly deliberated upon, so that planning and action at the local level continue to be informed and inclusive. **From GPDP to VB-G RAM G: Making sense of the new planning landscape** In September, Common Ground launched a series titled ‘From GPDP to VB-G RAM G: Making sense of the new planning landscape,’ in collaboration with CoRE Stack. The session brought together civil society organisations and community networks to understand the evolving planning landscape – including various planning instruments such as the Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP), 16th Finance Commission (16FC) grants, and the Viksit Gram Panchayat Plan (VGPP). CoRE Stack facilitated the session on the practical planning flow for the VGPP, and the digital tools available in the system that can help communities and Panchayats plan more effectively. ![image](https://groveassets.rainmatter.org/original/2X/2/2afed2b868f6657dc5b3d60b5e3ac2007c229563.jpeg) The discussions highlighted how the 16FC guidelines and VB-G RAM G present significant opportunities for funding, but also introduce greater complexity and uncertainty at the grassroots level. Participants discussed the importance of strengthening community participation, local capacities, and ensuring convergence between Panchayati Raj Institutions and Community-Based Organisations to strengthen bottom-up planning. Immediate priorities identified were to test practical approaches in pilot Panchayats, capacity building, linking with Panchayat Advancement Indicators, and collaborations with government stakeholders during the October-January planning cycle. To complement the session, a suite of communication assets was developed and adapted for partners, to help cadre and field-level functionaries navigate the planning process. These include multilingual explainers and posters alongside explainer videos in English, Hindi, Kannada, and Odia. The assets aim to clarify key concepts, priorities and institutional linkages, and to support the practical application of digital tools at village level. Click here to view the session and download the resources: [Village Planning Support - GPDP and VB-G RAM G - Sep26 – Google Drive](https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1qjj8oNUvSKyk5C-35dNGuxbzWHAi1Ay0?usp=sharing) ![image](https://groveassets.rainmatter.org/original/2X/4/4d9dc79205e259e4401dbba9b9ea96253a4e672b.jpeg) **A Dialogue series on Strengthening the Rural Economy** In the same month, Common Ground launched a monthly dialogue series with Green Rural Economy (GRE) on strengthening the rural economy. It sits alongside Common Ground’s work on community institutions and market-enabling ecosystems, and gives partners a regular space to look at what a sustainable rural economy takes in practice. The first session introduced participants to the Gram Eco Entrepreneur Ecosystem (GramEEE) platform, built to provide an easier, multilingual way to seek and share solutions to the issues of the rural economy. The second session, held in October, focused on the place-based development approach that can be leveraged through the GramEEE platform. In the session, the GRE team walked partners through the place-based approach behind GramEEE. The idea is to start with a particular place and understand what it produces, what it consumes and what it brings in from outside, before thinking about enterprises. GRE shared the data they have gathered on around 111 places (ranging from villages to panchayats and blocks) across India. For one village in Odisha, with about 60 households, they showed how this data is turned into a chart of opportunities. The village exports ginger, for example, but imports synthetic manure despite keeping goats and sheep, and buys in dairy products such as butter, ghee and paneer. The opportunities that emerged included producing manure locally and setting up a local dairy processing centre, so that the money spent on imported dairy stays in the village. GRE also raised the possibility of making items like soap and shampoo locally, or setting up a flour mill (_atta chakki_), since households buy these from outside. ![image](https://groveassets.rainmatter.org/original/2X/7/7f0a99fd11d68a5c2f9fed98b62010bab9a5885d.webp) The team also showed partners how to use the platform: - Searching for existing solutions and schemes through Ask GRE. - Posting a need through Ask Help when no solution fits. - Viewing every partner’s posted needs on a shared needs map, so partners can reach out to each other directly. The session helped participants think through how ground-level issues and queries from local communities they engage with could be addressed through institutions and experts based in other parts of the country. The recording of the session is available here: > **[7th OCtober Place based approach on GramEEE.mp4](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aB827QLLBwnJn8Oe5mpFEaqjSYYU_als/view)** > > Google Drive file. Learn more about GramEEE: > **[GramEEE Consortium | Gram Eco Entrepreneur Ecosystem](https://grameee.org/)** > > GramEEE is a consortium for resilient, locally rooted rural economies built around local production, local consumption, and community-led enterprise.