InterGenerate Global: Gathering Heads, Hearts, and Hands of Every Generation Around the World

registration now open!

Join us for our 2026 Online conference, Feb. 24 (25 Aus). See times below. We are extending the wonderful theme of our 2025 In-person Conference to literally hold out our hands around the world - InterGenerate Global: Gathering Heads, Hearts, and Hands of Every Generation Around the World. We are inviting people from around the world (YOU!) to attend and join us - to participate in a community of support, resources, stories, connections. We will have engaging speakers and resources, along with connection points and worship to extend the theme already begun last June. We will be partnering with our affiliates, InterGenerate UK, InterGenerate Australia, and InterGenerate Toronto. As always, we will focus on facilitating connection between the academic and the practical, but also to make connections between ministries, context, and friends. We hope you will plan to join us. Questions? Reach out to intergenerate.ig@gmail.com

Our Keynote Speaker

Josh Packard, PhD - “The Future Is Listening: Faithful Futures and the Shape of the Church Ahead”

What if the most important skill for the future of the church is not better programming, clearer theology, or stronger leadership, but deeper listening?

 Drawing on research from Future of Faith and his new book, Faithful Futures, sociologist Josh Packard explores how faith actually takes root across generations today. Communities that practice deep, relational listening see stronger intergenerational bonds, greater resilience, and more durable forms of belief.

 This keynote frames effective ministry through the lens of Sacred Listening Practices. Rather than treating generations as problems to solve or audiences to manage, Packard shows how listening functions as a formative practice that rebuilds trust, transmits values, and creates space for faith to grow across age, experience, and difference. The future of the church will belong to communities that know how to listen well to everyone: to younger people, to elders, and to one another.

 This talk offers research-grounded insight and practical implications for faith communities committed to intergenerational connection, vitality, and hope.

Generational Panel Discussion - Hosted by the IYS Youth Story Project

Host: Rev. Dr. Larry Green - Come listen to a generational panel engage in discussions about mutuality, empathetic listening, and how we can work together to gather hearts, heads, hands of every generation.

Breakout Speakers

Note - We have 10 Fantastic Breakout Speakers from around the world. Please stay tuned for a complete list with Titles and Descriptions by January 20.

BREAKOUT  #1 - Rev. Tammy Preston, “Heads, Hearts, Hands: a Process to Help Change Mindsets Towards Being Together” Description: The process of connecting heads, hearts and hands is a Biblical and practical sequence of moving soiled communities toward being more connected and wholsitic. As we unpack these words we will see how these key phrases draw us together and help us engage across all ages in lifelong formation as one.

Bio: Tammy Preston was the founding pastor of an Intergenerational faith community in Australia for 18 years and a founding member of Intergenerate Australia/New Zealand. Tammy is a trained teacher, has a degree in theology, is currently doing her Ph.D. in Intergenerational ministry at Cardiff University in Wales. She has written two books and contributed to 4 other books in the area of Intergenerational ministry. Tammy speaks and teaches regularly throughout Australia, NZ, USA, Lebanon, UK, Asia and Cambodia. Seeing the “family of God” be empowered to grow and walk the lifelong journey of faith together is something she is passionate about.

BREAKOUT #3 - Dr. R. Drew Smith, “Western Christianity, Racialized Futurism, and Generational Visions of Earthly Destiny” Description: The presentation explores racialized Christian thought and practice and ways these racializations extend into eschatological visions of God’s future for humanity. Drawing upon popularly acclaimed end times and futurist constructs pertaining to the culmination of earthly history (including Tim LaHaye’s premillennialist eschatology and Octavia Butler’s afrofuturism), the presentation compares inclusivist and exclusivist visions of divine intentions for humanity within the temporal realm. The presentation also explores racial and generational alignments with these competing visions, borrowing on existing survey data on American religious attitudes and trends.

Bio: R. Drew Smith is a political scientist and clergyman, currently serving as the Henry L. Hillman Professor of Urban Ministry at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. In addition, he is co-convener of the Transatlantic Roundtable on Religion and Race, a network of scholars and community leaders focusing on intersections of religion, race, and social life. He has taught and lectured in many countries, especially within Africa where he served twice as a Fulbright Professor and more recently as a University of South Africa research professor. He has published widely on religion and public life issues.

Breakout 7: Stephanie Fritz, “Bridging the Gap Between Home & Church: Nurturing Faith in Every Space”

Description: This Breakout explores how churches can equip parents and caregivers to integrate faith into daily life. Based on research from GenOn Christian Parenting Project, it highlights the importance of intergenerational faith formation and aligning church teachings with home practices. Takeaways include frameworks for home-based faith formation, curated resources, and a renewed vision for intergenerational ministry.

 Bio: Stephanie is the Project Director for Threads Within for GenOn Ministries. She has worked in congregational ministries and at the national level in the Presbyterian Church USA for 20 years. In the local church, she served in children and youth ministries as well as the Director of Faith Formation and Mission in downtown Denver. She served as the manager for the Office of Christian Formation in the PCUSA. This work supported church leaders in age and stage ministries and had a large focus on intergenerational ministries. Stephanie and her husband are empty-nest nomads who live in their RV as they travel the USA.

BREAKOUT #8 - Paola Montes-Roldan, “Intergenerational and Bilingual: A Taste of Eternity in a Small Group” Description: This presentation will explore the experience of an intergenerational, bilingual small group in the Chicagoland area. Group participants include ages 5-50+ who are mostly a mix of anglo and first, second and third generation latino.

Bio: Paola is a wife and mother of two. She is a home educator and minister of the Missionary Church USA. Her interest in intergenerational formation was sparked by the experience of serving as associate pastor overseeing discipleship in an immigrant community, and of becoming a mother. 

Breakout 9: Tina Clark, “From Multi-Generational to Inter-Generational: Seeing Worship with Fresh Eyes”

Description: Many faith communities include people of all ages, yet generations often remain in separate lanes—worshiping together but rarely building deep, authentic relationships across age groups. Moving from multi-generational presence to inter-generational community takes intention and fresh ways of seeing. This Breakout draws on insights from anthropology and education to introduce ethnography and non-evaluative observation—practices that help us notice what’s happening in worship without judgment, uncover patterns we might miss, and imagine new possibilities for connection. We’ll begin with worship and reflection, then try a hands-on seating chart exercise to map where different generations sit in your sanctuary. You’ll learn how descriptive, non-judgmental note-taking—used by educators and anthropologists alike—can be applied to worship to reveal where intergenerational interaction is thriving and where it’s absent. Together, we’ll explore practical examples, share insights from the field, and consider how these tools might work in your own setting. Come ready to observe, reflect, and reimagine worship in ways that bring all generations closer together.

Bio: God called Tina Clark to his side at a very young age, and she's worked in ministry with children, youth, and their families for many years, currently serving as Director of Children, Youth, and Family Ministry at the Church of the Ascension in Denver, CO. She is the author of Arts Camp: A Creative, Customizable Alternative to Vacation Bible School and Beyond, of a novel, Little Gods on Earth, and of a not-yet-published children's book about God in creation. She serves on the design team for VTS' Roots and Wings Fellowship Program, which will help congregations of all sizes build and nurture intergenerational worship and community.

Registration Fees

$49 Individual Registration

$39 Student Rate - Any Student from any institution, whether High School, University, or Doctoral Candidate.

$99 Church/Ministry Rate - All people in your ministry can attend, and access all the recordings afterward. After registering, send a list of names and emails to include to send our Welcome Packet to at intergenerate.ig@gmail.com

All participants will have access to all our recordings which should include Keynote from Josh Packard, 10 Breakout Sessions, and the IYS Generational Panel.

Refund Policy: Because all registrants will receive access to all recordings, we will not be issuing refunds for registrations.

 conference Schedule

All times listed here in Pacific Time - See below for your time zone with a customized time. NOTE: Links will be sent to registrants the day before the conference. All 12 Sessions will be recorded and available to those who register.

10:15-11:00 OPTIONAL Pre-Meet/Gather/Coffee & Tea/Discuss/Collaborate/Network/Affinity Groups/Vendors

11:00-12:10 Main Session 1 - Dr. Josh Packard - “The Future Is Listening: Faithful Futures and the Shape of the Church Ahead”

12:10-12:15 BREAK

12:15-12:55 Breakout A (5 Options - See List of Breakout Speakers)

12:55-1:05 BREAK

1:05-1:45 Breakout B (5 Options - See List of Breakout Speakers)

1:45-1:50 BREAK

1:50-2:30 Main Session #2

2:30-3:15 OPTIONAL - Post-Meet/Gather/Coffee & Tea/Discuss/Collaborate/Network/Affinity Groups/Vendors

Time Zones!

Are we missing your time zone? Let us know at intergenerate.ig@gmail.com and we will make you a personalized Time Zone Chart for this Conference. ALL Time Zones are welcome!

Vendors

InterGenerate thanks our Vendors for supporting and resourcing our community. Please check out our Online Vendor and Resource Hub that will open on the Day of the Conference to access resources from our Vendors, Speakers, and InterGenerate Community.