Partnerships, and their accompanying networks, are now presented as an essential ingredient for fair SDG implementation, to mirror the participatory spirit in which the Goals were created. But what happens in practice? Network analysis reveals how development ‘partners’ may in fact informally depart from established rules and relationships, with the end result that networks may amplify the very disparities of power they were intended to reduce. In this podcast, Moira Faul argues that with a better understanding of how partnership works, network members could rewire relationships for more inclusion, and ultimately better policy and practice solutions.