Leadership for a Thriving Future

Leadership for a thriving future

Sign up to our webinar to discuss the leadership insights, Tuesday 13 May 2025. 15:30–16:45 BST. This will be a collaborative session to listen, reflect, and connect on the leadership we need to create a thriving future for young people.

Two project partners at a Big Change event

Introduction

This is a story about the leadership we need, for the future we want: leadership from people committed to rethinking and reshaping systems so that all young people can thrive.

It is a celebration - of the diverse leaders from across generations who are showing the way, and an invitation - to anyone who wants to develop their own leadership or support it in others. We invite you:

As individuals - explore the insights and reflect on your own leadership journey.
With others - start a conversation to share your own perspectives on leadership.
As organisations - think about how you can support and celebrate a different kind of leader and leadership.

About this research

The story has been created by Big Change and eight incredible partners. It draws on their collective wisdom, the insights of over 30 leaders worldwide, and on wider evidence. It includes personal narratives, raw reflections and diverse perspectives that are woven together to bring insights and ideas to life.

Leadership is both an act in a moment and a lifelong journey. Whatever your age and experience, whether you are leading in a formal role, or as a changemaker, activist, or social entrepreneur, we hope this story challenges and inspires you.

Download a summary Download the full report

You can explore the full story of this research on this page. It is not a complete guide or toolkit, but is designed to provoke reflection, conversation, and action. Reflection questions, short leader stories and resources are included at the end of each section.

Part 1 - Why

Explores why we need a different kind of leadership that shapes a future in which all young people thrive.

PART 1

Part 2 - What

Looks at what we mean by leadership as a practice, which goes beyond titles, positions, and hierarchies.

PART 2

Part 3 - How

Explores how leadership develops through four key dimensions: purpose, agency, relationships, and growth.

PART 3

Leaders

Find out more about the 30 leaders from the UK and around the world who contributed their insights and experiences.

MEET THE LEADERS

Partners

Find out more about the eight incredible partners Big Change collaborated with on this research.

MEET THE PARTNERS

Part 1 - Why: Leadership to shape the future, with and for young people

The future we will get depends on the kind of leadership we have. To challenge the status quo and shift systems in ways that last, we need to recognise and support a different kind of leadership: leadership that may already exist in the people and places we overlook.

It will take leaders from across generations, acting individually and collectively, to shape a future where all young people thrive.

It’s time to find, support and connect the leaders who embody this future - those who share the vision and bring it to life in how they act today.

Leadership is about rethinking and reshaping systems

Lasting change happens through the choices and actions of many. Yet dominant ideas about leadership – what it is and who gets to do it – set clear dividing lines between those who have control and those who don’t. Between those who get to decide, and those who deal with the impact of those decisions.

If we want future systems that are different from the ones we have today – more sustainable, inclusive, adaptive – we need to invest in leaders who can imagine them and leadership that brings them about. We need more leaders who don’t just manage what exists, they create something new, even when the forces around them are trying to keep things the same. Leaders who push for changes to systems that go beyond the surface and last over time: deep shifts to the purpose of systems, sharing power, and greater collaboration, experimentation, and learning.

Creating a hopeful future in which all young people thrive

Committing to a hopeful vision for the future means not just fixing what is broken but rewriting the narrative entirely. And this requires leaders who are willing to address an uncomfortable truth: not only are things not working well enough, many young people are experiencing harm because the systems meant to support them are falling short.

When thriving is the goal, it means taking a holistic view of who young people are, what they want and need, and how and where they live. Young people can thrive when they have a sense of purpose and agency in their lives, strong relationships to support them, and opportunities to learn and grow.

Leading and acting together across generations

Prevailing models say leadership is an individual pursuit - a job to be done by those at the top. But what if leadership isn’t about standing apart, but moving together? What if it emerges in the spaces that connect individuals to a collective: in the trust they build, the risks they take together, and the shared purpose that propels them forward?

The leadership we need happens for and with young people. As many young people feel let down by and disconnected from the “leaders”, institutions and systems shaping their lives, leadership must become a shared endeavour that builds greater connections and cohesion. When younger and older people lead together, they don’t only combine their insight, ideas and expertise - they model an inclusive future as they create bridges between different places, communities, and generations.

The phrase that always got thrown at me was, ‘You are the future, you’re going to solve all the problems in the world’. It really rubbed me the wrong way. Don’t put that all on my shoulders, it’s an unfair burden to say one generation is responsible for solving problems that existed before we were born. I’ve learned to say thank you, but let’s build this thing together.
Jordan Bowman, What Young Leaders Want — And Don’t Want — From Older Allies

Part 1 - Questions, stories, & resources

What hopeful narratives or stories of the future inspire you? How do/could you share them with others?
If you imagined an “ecosystem of support” around a young person you know, what would it look like? What kind of leaders and leadership could bring it about?
How do we balance the requirements of managing our way out of old systems whilst helping new ones emerge? Can you think of an example of this in your own work?

The radical imagination is not just about understanding how power works, or dreaming up blueprints for a new society, though these are important (especially if we do them together). Instead, it’s about transforming our social lives and relationships, transforming who and what we imagine are valuable, and transforming ourselves.
Alex Khasnabish & Max Haiven, Lessons From Social Movements: Six Notes on the Radical Imagination

An awful lot of formal leadership structures are not about leadership at all. They're about management - management of the status-quo. We need to create the space and support for both.
James Pope, HeadsUp4Hts

We need a rich sense of what we’re building and the nature of the world we want to create, coupled with the ability to let go of what we think we know. Leadership is creating the conditions for collective radical redesign, beyond simply expressing expertise to feel good. This demands rigorous experimentation, alongside the belief that past experience can be more of a problem than a benefit.
Lee Sears, BTS Spark

It can quite quickly become hopeless when you think about changing the entire system. It’s very rare for entire systems to change. But you can, you can change the system simply by being in it. And I think that's quite a motivating thought.
Ed Fidoe, London Interdisciplinary School

The reason I started this work was my own struggle with mental health in a high-pressure education system. Seeing others face the same challenges, I recognised it as a systemic issue - one that demands systemic action.
Andrew Speight, Emoco

Many young people have had their dreams stripped away by systemic failures. Leaders must nurture these dreams, offering opportunities and scaffolding for young people to reclaim agency and imagine new possibilities.
Whetuu Nathan, Teach for All

Leadership is not confined to formal positions but emerges through acts of empathy, care, and collective action.
Lilitha Buti, YouthxYouth

If you're trying to fix the world alone, it's an impossible challenge – but if you build a tribe where everyone is solving different parts of the problem, that's how real change happens.
Jaiden Corfield, CORF Consulting and Big Change

It's so important to collaborate with communities and partners and especially young people. By backing young people, backing their ideas, I really think that we're going to pave the way for a better future. We've got to listen, we've got to be curious, we've got to be brave, we've got to be open minded.
Holly Branson, Virgin, Virgin Unite and Big Change

Part 2 - What: Leadership is a living practice

Leadership isn’t a title, a natural talent, or a rare trait reserved for a select few - it’s something you can build, practice, and embody. Leadership occurs every day in small, unnoticed moments and through bold, visible actions.

It’s the young person who refuses to accept ‘that’s just the way things are’, the teacher who disrupts patterns of oppression, the colleague who rallies others to fix what’s broken, and the manager who knows when to step back and make space for others.

Leadership should not be about who you are, but about what you do; a consistent practice you attend to and develop over time.

Leadership is not a title, a position, or a fixed identity

Conventional leadership myths value visibility over substance. But the kind of leadership we need more of emerges in unexpected places, through acts of resistance, resilience, and service. Leadership doesn’t require permission, a degree, or a title. It happens in quiet moments of courage, in unseen decisions, and in the ability to keep going when systems are built to resist change.

If leadership is happening all the time, why do so many struggle to see themselves as leaders? Many societal structures are built to preserve power and privilege rather than acknowledge and grow different kinds of leaders. Those who step forward to challenge these structures - especially those who are most marginalised - often face resistance because their leadership disrupts existing power dynamics. For those leaders who do hold formal positions of power, their obligation is to help create the conditions for leadership to grow.

Leadership is an infinite resource

Traditional leadership models treat power as a zero-sum game - if one person leads, another must follow. But leadership isn’t scarce and it doesn’t run out. Power expands when it is shared. Instead of hoarding power, great leaders create more of it. They make things happen, but not through dominance or control. Leadership is mobilising over waiting, connection over control, and courage over comfort.

The idea that leadership belongs to a select few is not just outdated, it’s dangerous. It locks people out, upholds broken systems, and keeps the future small. For leadership to expand to different people and places, we need to address the barriers that suppress and hold people back. Instead of asking, ‘Who is the leader?’ we should be asking, 'How do we create systems that cultivate and sustain leadership, rather than concentrate it?’

Leaders evolve through challenge, context, & community

Great leaders continuously evolve by learning, unlearning, and adapting as their contexts shift. What works today might not work tomorrow. Leaders who stay the same limit themselves and their impact. Leadership requires a commitment to continuous self-examination - challenging outdated assumptions, questioning inherited systems, and having the humility to recognise when letting go of power is the most transformative action.

This kind of leadership is hard and needs to be intentionally supported. For leaders to sustain themselves and their work, deepen their learning, and navigate complexity, they need spaces for reflection and connection. Being part of a community of peers and allies, with time to step outside immediate pressures, can help leaders realign with their purpose, and draw energy, encouragement and insight from others. They also need practical tools and skills that strengthen their ability to lead relationally - to listen deeply, build agency in others, and hold conflict.

Leadership can come from anywhere, anywhere in the system, and it's quite often the act of either helping people or themselves face a difficult truth. And then mobilising others to take action.
Dan Farag, The Young Foundation

Part 2 - Questions, Stories & Resources

What unhelpful myths about leadership have you held onto, and how could you rewrite them?
What would it look like to recognise, value and support leadership wherever it emerged, rather than only where we expect to find it?
What is the boldest, loudest moment of leadership you can remember? What is the most quietly impactful moment of leadership that left an impression on you? What did you learn from each?

I wish leadership didn’t exist… not the action, but the label. The first paradigm shift for me was from leadership as a noun to leadership as a verb. The exercise of leadership, as opposed to you are a leader, which implies that maybe someone else is not. Changing lives should just be something we do as humanity - not something reserved for the chosen few.
Franco Mosso, EnseñaPerú

Leadership is often shaped by lived experience - by those who have faced struggle, reclaimed their power, and now use it to drive change. But leadership is also about those who listen, stand in solidarity, and work to reshape systems together.
Romana Shaikh, Weaving Wholeness

Leaders often find their power in the struggles they've faced - pain, trauma, and hard-earned resilience. The real challenge isn’t just recognizing that power but using it with purpose. Leadership isn’t always comfortable; it demands the courage to confront difficult truths, push institutions to face what they’d rather ignore, and stand firm when change feels inconvenient or uneasy.
Dan Farag, The Young Foundation

Race, disability, class, and gender shape access to leadership opportunities. We need to push harder on the structural barriers that prevent young people from stepping into leadership roles , ensuring these challenges aren’t just acknowledged but actively confronted. This includes investing more in enabling and supporting youth leadership.
Mehran Mokri, YouthLeads UK

As a young person, I used to think leadership looked like having lots of power, now I think it’s more about connecting the dots between people and being able to serve others. It’s about seeing yourself as equal to the people you work with and peppering what you do with passion, optimism and kindness.
Zhahla Mohamed, Student and Youth Consultant, Big Change

Leadership is a commitment to a path - to show up in a way that's supportive for yourself and others, and to learn how to take responsibility for the whole. To be a good leader is to know when not to lead - to know when to be still and when to be in action.
jae spencer-keyse, Radical Reimagination

The foundations that we’re standing on have to be continuously evaluated, rebuilt, patched, and remade. Because we’re always dealing with different contexts, we’re changing as people, so we must re-evaluate who we are, why we’re doing it, and where we’re willing to let go of power.
Gregg Behr, The Grable Foundation and Remake Learning

There's lots of training and development available for the “above the water line stuff”, but what's the development for the more relational and emotional dimensions of leading change? It's quite hard to talk about realising an emerging future or talking about transformational change, if we're not really prepared to engage with the things that ultimately affect people's behaviour.
Kenneth Hogg, Scottish Government

Part 3 - How leadership develops: purpose, agency, relationships, and growth

Through our collaborative enquiry we explored four dimensions that reveal how we can lead into a thriving future, with and for young people. Leadership deepens and expands as leaders develop across all four dimensions: purpose, agency, relationships and growth.

Leaders work on themselves and channel their self-awareness into bold, shared action.

Future systems that are sustainable, inclusive and adaptive will emerge through the interwoven efforts of leaders from across generations who bring purpose, agency, relationships, and growth into motion.

Explore the four dimensions of leadership