Sustainability Leadership Skills: Future Leaders Programme

Do you want to be a leader of sustainable change? Do you see 'business-as-usual' as needing to shift course? Do you want to unlock your skills alongside passionate, like-minded people on an innovative journey? Then join our 10-week Sustainability Leadership Skills Programme to develop your knowledge, skills and confidence as a sustainability leader and professional.

"It will help you to consider the actions you can take in your working life and personal life. It will offer frameworks and tools that will enable you to understand both the challenges we face and the solutions that we can bring, with an optimism for the future, but an honest reflection of where we currently are. You will connect with lots of interesting individuals from many walks of life. It will challenge you in a healthy way, to get out of your comfort zone." Previous Course Participant

At Change Agents UK, we have over 25 years of expertise and experience supporting recruitment & employment for sustainability professionals and delivering impactful training opportunities to those looking to increase their impact. The Sustainability Leadership Skills Programme (SLSP) is the flagship course for our charity, collating the core skills and insight to unlock your focused potential and increase capacity to deliver a low-carbon, resilient and equitable future. Join over 200 participants who are part of our SLSP family, to take your next steps as a sustainability leader.

This Programme is for you if you want to...

• Gain transformative skills necessary to become an effective sustainability change agent
• Unlock confidence and feel empowered to own your career and create impact
• Help define your next best move to realise aims on your ‘sustainability journey’
• Develop your values-led, purposeful career
• Deepen your understanding and connection to a holistic model of sustainability
• Work 1-to-1 with an expert team to realise your aspirations
• Be part of a diverse, inspiring cohort and grow your professional sustainability network.

What will you get?

• Access to 10 live workshop sessions with our expert Education Team
• An extensive online library of exercises and resources to support your learning
• Career mentorship from our experienced Change Agents team
• A like-minded community and professional networking
• A certificate to showcase your newfound skillset and boost employability
• Free student membership for the Chartered Institute of Wastes Management (CIWM) – your first step to becoming a Chartered Environmentalist

"I am incredibly happy to have completed this program. It has been an amazing 3 months looking back at what Change Agents UK have offered us. I felt supported in all the training and the lecture notes were clearly explained. Thank you once again." Previous Course Participant

What skills will I build?

Over 10 weeks, we’ll cover the transformational sustainability skills that form our Sustainability Leadership 'wheel' and are critical for success as a sustainability professional. Each skill will be supported by a live session alongside a collection of additional activities and resources to support your personal and professional development on our online portal. An online forum space is offered for you to maximise networking with the other change agents taking part, alongside 1-to-1 support sessions with our team to gain the most out of the course.

We will cover four modules:

1. Foundations of Sustainability

Skills & Values | Environmental Sustainability | People & Planet

Setting the scene for the sustainability landscape that we work and live in. We'll identify the key concepts and principles of environmental and social sustainability, and recognise our own contribution through our own skills and interests.

2. Framing the Future

Systemic Thinking | Ethics, Decisions & Culture | Creativity & Future-Thinking

We can’t achieve a sustainable future if we can’t envision it. In module 2, we explore different perspectives to broaden and enhance our solutions. Contributing to the creation of a more sustainable organisation and future is not simply a checklist of actions but a lens through which we see the world and make decisions.We also look at the critical role of culture in shaping what success means, and set our own standards to measure against.

3. Collaborating for Change

Responsible Project Management | Inclusive Communication

We can have an impact as an individual, but our impact is far more effective working with others. In this module, we explore how we can collaborate to manage projects responsibly, and connect with others using nature as an inspiration to foster community-grown solutions. Boost your confidence and tailor your communication skills specifically towards sustainability and start to build your own pathway as a sustainability leader.

4. Leadership and Action

Resilience in Change | Sustainability Leadership

We’ve explored our plans: now we put them into action. To do so, we must consider how to build resilient practices that support us and others to work sustainably and not burn out. Alongside this, we will recognize our own journey as a sustainability leader ready to thrive in the green transition.

Sustainability Leadership Journey Package

You have access to 1.5 hours of 1-to-1 support with a member of the Change Agents team during your journey on the course. You can also upgrade to our Sustainability Leadership Journey Package to receive:

1-hour one-to-one support per month exclusively for participants of our Sustainability Leaderships Skills Programme, over a 3 or 6 month period. These enhanced sessions will enable you to best embed the course learning into your next steps. We offer a mix of coaching and mentoring to support you to courageously and holistically further your leadership journey. Sessions are with our experienced team members to feed your growth, creativity and action. Depending on your needs you might stay with one member of the team for the duration of the package or you can choose to have sessions with different subject experts.

Read more about the skills sessions on our website.

“This was a brilliant programme that delved into many aspects of sustainability work, which I will continue to put into practice in my current role” Previous Course Participant

The agenda

Every Thursday morning our experienced Education Officers will lead a new interactive live session which will cover each aspect of our Leadership Wheel in turn. These are highly collaborative and discussion-led, including time for you to network with other Leaders on the Programme.

The sessions are scheduled on Wednesdays 10am - 12pm UK time. The full agenda is:

• Skills & Values | 8 Oct
• Environmental Sustainability| 15 Oct
• People & Planet| 22 Oct
• Systemic Thinking| 29 Oct
• Ethics, Decisions & Culture| 5 Nov
• Creativity & Future-Thinking| 19 Nov
• Responsible Project Management| 26 Nov
• Inclusive Communication| 3 Dec
• Resilience in Change | 10 Dec
• Sustainability Leadership| 17 Dec

You will gain access to our online portal and its collection of additional activities and resources to support your personal and professional development. Optional networking sessions are also offered plus an online forum space for you to maximise networking with the other change agents taking part.

To receive certification, you must attend 80% of the course live and catch up on any missed sessions via recordings and demonstration of learning.

Who is this Programme for?

This Programme is suitable for any emerging leader. Whether at an early-stage in their career, transitioning between sectors, studying or simply wanting to upskill – if this feels relevant for you, sign up and let’s begin!

Alumni from the Programme have entered a range of roles in the sustainability industry. We will support you as best as we can to ensure this experience is not only incredible for skills-building, but career-building too.

This course is designed for self-funded individuals and is offered at a heavily subsidised price to ensure widened access to professional development in sustainability skills. We also provide corporate packages to organisations who want to offer this programme to any of their staff and/or students as a graduate programme or as part of their professional development and training. If you are being funded via your place of work or study, please contact us for more details about this route by emailing contact@changeagents.org.uk

Sustainability Leadership Access Scheme

If you are reading this course and thinking “This is perfect for me!” but you are currently unemployed or in financially difficult circumstances, then our Access Scheme may be for you. Here, we offer a limited number of spots each year on a free or ‘Pay What You Can’ basis.

If this is relevant to you, please find out more on our website. And apply to the access scheme here.

Who are Change Agents UK?

We are a charity and non-profit, and have been educating, inspiring and empowering people for over 25 years through our interactive skills workshops, supported learning courses, and bespoke trainings. We embed our experience and knowledge of sustainability in the workplace to provide you with the insider scoop from employers, sectors and as practitioners ourselves. We also connect talented individuals with purposeful careers in sustainability through our sustainability recruitment services to support you as part of our powerful network of inspiring change agents. To find out more about us and other training opportunities, please visit our website.