The Future Shapers leadership program highlights how non-government organisations are creating impact from the Ambition.
The use of the Ambition and the 20 targets prompted participants in the program to elevate their gaze and to think not just beyond their own organisation, but also beyond their local community.
From the Future Shapers 2023 perspective, the Ambition highlighted the important role played by Ballarat, as a regional city centre, in servicing and facilitating growth across Western Victoria. What’s more, the Ambition reinforced to participants the actions they can take to support not only their community, but also the rural areas surrounding their city.
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The Committee for Ballarat’s Future Shapers leadership program supports up to 20 emerging leaders from across the Ballarat region each year – from all sectors and roles within the community. The program offers a journey of self-discovery and skills development, while tackling big issues and topics at a local, state, national and international level.
Now running for its 18th year and nearing 400 alumni, the Committee for Ballarat established the program to foster strong leadership in the region, recognising that strong leaders form a critical component of Ballarat’s future growth and development.
Future Shapers compels participants to elevate their gaze beyond their day-to-day, encouraging future leaders to adopt a broader perspective and increase their leadership capability.
To achieve this, the program challenges participants to shape their thinking and actions within the context of the broader Victorian Central Highlands regional partnership priorities. Throughout the program, participants develop a deeper understanding of these issues and opportunities, the networks and systems that might enable solutions, and what needs to be addressed at the local level to further these priorities.
Taking this elevation one step further, this year’s cohort also overlaid these regional priorities with a national lens by leveraging the Regionalisation Ambition 2032.
At the beginning of the program, participants were encouraged to deepen their understanding and reflect upon the Ambition, the Framework and the 20 targets. Groups of participants selected a topic area of focus and mapped the area of focus against the Ambition's targets. This helped to shape the final key themes for Future Shapers 2023 to explore local priorities and actions for the duration of their program:
- Jobs and Skills – Innovative solutions to securing skilled workforce in our region
- Sustainability - Fostering a sustainable future through renewable energy, waste management and the circular economy
- Liveability – Arts, Heritage and Culture: ingredients for social cohesion in a liveable city
- Liveability – Creating truly inclusive and connected cities
The Future Shapers of 2023 are now designing and delivering community projects to address these areas explored during the program. The projects include:
- BASIC (Building Accessible, Safe, Inclusive Communities), a program that showcases how small changes can make large differences for accessibility and inclusivity in the workplace and community
- An advocacy and awareness program to facilitate positive relations between employers and people exiting the prison system
- A ‘What does safety mean to you?’ campaign, shining a light on family violence through storytelling.
Want to learn more about the Future Shapers program? Visit their website, and hear from the Future Shapers Alumni in this video