Community Capacity Building

Leadership from lived experience

What we do

The Changemakers Collective develops leaders across the Empowerment Ecosystem. We support community members, grassroots initiatives, organisations, businesses and partner organisations that share our commitment to community-led change.

Our work focuses on:

  • Building governance and decision-making skills

  • Strengthening facilitation, advocacy and community leadership

  • Providing mentoring, structured learning and peer support

  • Creating opportunities for people to take on real leadership roles through projects, governance and, where possible, paid employment

Leadership development is woven throughout the Empowerment Ecosystem. Rather than treating leadership as a separate program, we create opportunities for people to learn by contributing to real projects, making real decisions and taking on increasing responsibility over time.

The Changemakers Collective supports people with lived experience of social challenges to build the skills, confidence and experience needed to participate in decision-making, program delivery and governance. This includes preparing people to take on leadership roles that influence priorities, direct resources and shape the systems that affect their communities.

Why this matters

The best decisions are made when professional expertise and community knowledge are brought together. People from the communities most affected by the social challenges being addressed bring knowledge that cannot be gained through qualifications or professional training alone. Their understanding of local priorities, cultural context, community strengths and the realities of everyday life is essential to designing services, policies and systems that are relevant, effective and accountable.

Despite this, people from these communities continue to face significant structural barriers to leadership. Traditional pathways into governance, management and decision-making often rely on opportunities, networks, qualifications and career experiences that are not equally accessible to everyone. As a result, many people with the knowledge, commitment and lived experience needed to strengthen leadership remain underrepresented in positions where important decisions are made.

Changemakers Collective exists to create stronger pathways into leadership. Through mentoring, professional learning and real leadership experience, we support people from communities with lived experience of the social challenges being addressed to develop the skills, confidence and experience needed to take on meaningful leadership roles and help shape the systems that affect their communities.

Leadership through Community Governance Councils

Community Governance Councils (CGCs) are the leadership structure of Empowerment Ecosystems.

Made up of community members, each Council provides strategic direction for its local Empowerment Ecosystem and helps ensure the work remains accountable to the communities it serves.

Each Council is responsible for:

  • Setting priorities for local initiatives

  • Making decisions about programs and partnerships

  • Ensuring the work reflects community values and priorities

  • Overseeing shared goals and collective responsibilities

To support this, Council members receive ongoing mentoring, professional learning and peer support. Leadership is developed over time through real responsibility, practical experience and continuous learning.

Community Governance Councils place community members at the centre of decision-making, ensuring leadership grows from within the communities the Empowerment Ecosystem exists to serve.

Our Offerings

Intercultural and Participatory Social Action Professional and Organisational Learning

IPSA helps organisations strengthen the way they work with the communities they serve, through methodologies for intercultural and participatory social action, innovation and research.

Grounded in the Collective Inheritance Framework, IPSA provides professional learning, organisational development and strategic advice to help organisations strengthen participation, intercultural practice and community leadership across planning, governance, service design, implementation and evaluation.

IPSA also develops the professional standards, learning pathways and accreditation process that support organisations to continuously improve the way they work with communities.

Community Cred
Micro-credentials

Community Cred offers flexible, work-integrated microcredentials for individuals and teams wanting to build practical skills in community engagement, facilitation, co-design, leadership and social innovation.

Whether you're an aspiring changemaker, an early career practitioner or an experienced professional, Community Cred helps you develop practical skills that can be applied immediately in your work.

Community Cred microcredentials align with the IPSA learning pathway and can be completed individually or as part of a broader organisational learning journey.

Emerging Changemakers
Internships and Placements

Community Workforce Partnerships
Lived Experience Workforce Coordination

Emerging Changemakers is a structured leadership program for people who are ready to step into community leadership.

Participants combine hands-on community projects with mentoring, leadership development and practical experience, building the confidence and skills needed to contribute to governance, program delivery and community decision-making.

The program is open to community members, young people, students and emerging leaders, and is also available as a university placement program.

Many organisations want to employ or engage people from the communities they serve but lack the time, resources or specialist support needed to do so effectively.

We partner with governments, councils, community organisations, educational institutions and businesses to recruit, train, mentor and supervise community practitioners and emerging leaders working on education, youth and community initiatives.

By providing the support structures around community practitioners, we help organisations strengthen community participation while creating meaningful employment and leadership opportunities for people from the communities most affected by the issues being addressed.

Get Involved

The Changemakers Collective is open to individuals and organisations who want to strengthen community leadership and create more meaningful opportunities for people to shape the decisions that affect their communities.

You might be:

  • A community member ready to take on a leadership role

  • A student looking for practical leadership experience or a university placement

  • A practitioner wanting to strengthen your skills through Community Cred

  • An organisation interested in IPSA Professional & Organisational Learning

  • A council, government agency, university or community organisation looking to partner with us on projects or workforce development

Wherever you're starting, we'd love to explore how we can work together.

📩 Contact us to learn more or discuss a partnership.