Key leadership skills that advance the career of sustainability professionals

12th June 2019

A new cohort of sustainability professionals have developed skills and knowledge they need to deliver change in their organisations through the Emerging Leaders Programme 2018 - 2019 that was concluded this month.

The five day sessions provided the chance for delegates to share experiences and explore solutions to ‘live’ projects, considering how they can overcome barriers and come to a successful outcome.

Programme delegate, Tim Allen, Sustainability Coordinator at Sheffield University said: 
"It's wonderful to meet the same group of people - facing similar challenges - month in, month out. The networking helps build solidarity and helps with grappling with the leadership and change management concepts. The action learning sets are a wonderful idea and the varied activities were well balanced between theory and practice, between a range of speakers, and between listening and discussion."

Another delegate, Špela Raposa, Environment Resources Manager at The University of Strathclyde, added: 
"Overall, the programme helped strengthen my project planning, influencing and management skills, but also the ability to evaluate personal strengths and weaknesses. I think it’s a great tool for personal development and goals, especially for those who are just starting out on their sustainability leadership journey"

The programme was run by facilitators from University of Worcester - Katy Boom (Director of Sustainability), Gill Slater (Director of Personal and Organisational Development) and from Coventry University - Selina Fletcher (Sustainability Manager) with the help of experts from industry that made it relevant to the sector. 

Reflecting on how the programme was received by the delegates, the facilitators said: 
"The energy brought to the programme from the delegates was excellent and the new contacts that have been made through Emerging Leaders will hopefully continue way after the end of this year’s programme.

We are looking forward to continuing to evolve the programme and provide key skills and know-how to emerging leaders working in the sustainability field in . Our experts from industry make the programme relevant to any sector and we look forward welcoming our new cohort next year!"

We are currently finalising the details for the next programme and will share more information in due course. 

Who should attend?

The EAUC Emerging Leaders Programme is for sustainability professionals perhaps new in roles, and/or with mandates to lead on organsation-wide campus-wide behaviour change. Often they have little or no ‘formal line management’ authority and may well work at levels in the hierarchy where the ability to influence those at more senior levels is an important requirement. More experienced sustainability leaders with an interest in developing their careers with a sustainability leaders standard qualification should also attend.

ENDS