Global leadership programme to be run from Uppsala
Uppsala University has been commissioned to implement a new global leadership programme in sustainable development, Leadership for Transformative Change. During the period 2023–2025, 60 leaders from around the world will be offered a place in the programme.
Uppsala University. Photo: Mikael Wallerstedt
In fierce competition with seven other higher education institutions, Uppsala University has been commissioned to implement the programme. A consortium created in 2019 serves as the foundation for the leadership programme. In addition to Uppsala University, the consortium consists of Karolinska Institutet, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), SALAR International and Business Sweden.
“Working to change a society is very complex. It requires collaboration and co-creation between many different actors who do not have power over each other. Being a driving force for societal change towards a more sustainable society is rarely easy. That is why this programme offers a platform where experiences can be exchanged and wisdom can be built in collaboration over national and sectoral boundaries,” says Klas Palm, programme director and researcher at Uppsala University.
Open to all sectors of society
The leadership programme will be open to participants from all sectors of society in low, middle and high-income countries. It is aimed at people in leadership positions with ambitions to work on sustainable development within their organisations. The content of the programme will be designed in collaboration with the participants and the aim is to contribute to transformative societal development in the participants' countries.
“We will work with individuals. But we hope to achieve change within a group, within an organisation, within a sector of society and, by extension, whole communities. Changes in the form of increased drive and increased capacity to transform towards more sustainable societies,” says Klas Palm.
Starting in August 2023
His immediate task now, together with the others in the consortium, is to communicate the existence of this training initiative.
“We are communicating through our own contacts and those of the programme's funders internationally and in Sweden. Among other things, we are reaching out to Swedish embassies in countries where Sweden provides aid, so that these embassies can communicate the offer further in their networks.”
In January 2023, the application period for the first round of the leadership programme will open, for 20 leaders from around the world. The programme will be offered on a part-time basis (20 percent) for 12 months and is scheduled to start in August 2023.
Most of the training will be distance learning, but all participants will also gather for two physical meetings (one of which will be in Sweden). The programme will be free of charge for participants.
Annica Hulth
Global leadership programme
- Sida, the Swedish Institute and Vinnova are the funders and commissioners of the programme.
- The leadership programme will open its first call for participants in January 2023, and two further calls are planned up to 2025. The programme is aimed at individuals in leadership positions with the potential to contribute to sustainable societal transformation, and may also include participants from Sweden with global perspectives.
- The programme is a way to engage more societal actors in the work to achieve the global goals (2030 Agenda). The breadth of partner countries is made possible by the fact that the programme is co-funded by the three agencies.