by sally hussey
‘Practitioners are often advocating for the very practice that depletes them.’
Community engagement, as a profession, is marked by deep contradictions. Practitioners are asked to enable influence in systems that often resist it. They are expected to foster care, facilitate connection, and demonstrate neutrality, even while operating within rigid institutional frameworks. And too often, they find themselves advocating for the very practice that depletes them.
This notion has resonated deeply. It captures the emotional and structural weight that many in the field carry. The new ebook, The Underbelly of Engagement: The Unspoken Realities of Community Engagement Practice, gives language to this quiet strain in the profession and to offer a space where practitioners might see their unspoken realities reflected.
The title emerged as a deliberate provocation. ‘Underbelly’ – in its etymological sense – refers not to the sensationalised meaning it has acquired over time, but to vulnerability: the soft underside usually hidden from view. It’s a word that calls for honesty, and it became the central frame through which the entire project took shape. The structure of the ebook was equally intentional. Rather than a conventional narrative, I chose to frame the work as a conversation. In dialogue with Max Hardy, an expert practitioner known for his work in co-design and deliberative engagement, I adopted the interview format to hold space for contradiction, complexity, and reflection – much like the practice of engagement itself. The interview format also draws from a tradition central to critical publishing, that serves as a source of lived experience, critical reflection, and the co-construction of knowledge between interviewer and participant, where interviews were not merely a tool for extracting answers and opinion, but a space for holding ideas in motion.
Built around a dialogue between a practitioner with decades of insight, experience and expertise and a thought leader with deep knowledge in researching engagement practice, this exchange anchors the book. But, while the conversation is central, the conceptual structure was shaped to support a broader, reflective inquiry across the sector. Additional voices – Nick Fleming (strategic advisor), Eleanor Loudon (impact consultant), and Michelle Weston (consultant) – were included not as a panel, but to punctuate key tensions. The editorial and structural approach was intentional; the flow of conversation, shaped around selected themes, was curated to reflect both the limits and the possibilities of engagement practice.
The ebook surfaces five key tensions:
- Engagement is often performative. Too often, it’s used to validate pre-made decisions. That breeds disillusionment, for communities and practitioners alike.
- Burnout is structural. This isn’t about individual resilience. It’s about systems that extract care while resisting influence.
- Professionalising engagement brings risk. Recognition matters, but not at the cost of responsiveness and humility.
- There is a theoretical gap. Without critical frameworks, engagement can become procedural rather than transformative.
- Vulnerability matters. ‘Underbelly’ invites us to name the things we’ve edited out.
Indeed, mental health impacts of working in community engagement are beginning to receive more attention – community engagement specialist and author, Becky Hirst’s podcast series being one such space. However, this ebook offers something specific: space. Space for reflection. Space for discomfort. Space to confront exhaustion without apology. And space to reimagine engagement from a place of care, honesty, and criticality. It also draws on my broader body of research at the intersection of engagement, power, and policy, including contributions to Engagement Institute’s Thought Leadership Series, that puts key questions to the sector to invite critical reflection on practice.
This isn’t a guidebook. It’s a reflective tool. And it’s just the beginning of a necessary and ongoing conversation, especially for practitioners who may be holding these tensions quietly.
The Underbelly of Engagement: The Unspoken Realities of Community Engagement Practice is free to download here.
Plus, keep an eye out for the soon to be released podcast with Sally and Max!
Author bio
Sally Hussey is a thought leader and subject matter expert with decades of expertise across research and policy. She has collaborated with world-leading experts to examine fundamental challenges facing communities and her authored work has been cited in numerous publications and policy-making contexts in Australia and internationally. Sally inaugurated IAP2A’s Thought Leadership Series with her most recent report launched at Australian Federal Parliament. Author and regular contributor to policy publications, Sally is recognised by the Who’s Who of Australian Women.
