Further, Faster programme for leaders

Further, Faster began with energy and a shared commitment to truth-telling. The first session laid a vital foundation — exploring the core concepts of race, racialisation, and racism, while beginning to challenge how white supremacy shows up in our sector, our systems, and ourselves.

The cohort examined race as a social construct, whiteness as a political tool, and the structures that uphold racial inequity — including capitalism, imperialism, patriarchy and ableism. The participants interrogated language, deconstructed assumptions, and reclaimed intersectionality as a radical analysis of power — not just a list of identities.

They  also began building a collective learning culture: one grounded in liberation, joy, realness and anti-oppression.

Participants were invited to step into vulnerability, curiosity and reflection.

The tone was honest, courageous, and committed to real change. This is the groundwork for transformative leadership — and we’re building it together.

Session two of Further, Faster took us deeper — into ourselves, our stories, and our power.

The cohort  unpacked how positionality shapes our experiences and decisions as leaders, and how our different relationships to power influence the ways we show up in anti-racism work. Through personal reflection and group dialogue, the cohort explored how power moves — not as a fixed force, but as something dynamic, relational and full of potential.

From understanding the forms of power — over, under, with, and within — to reimagining our leadership through the lenses of solidarity and accountability, we began to challenge the idea of ‘shifting power’ as a transactional goal and embraced it as a deeper, relational practice.

We’re not just talking about anti-racism. We’re practicing it — through connection, courage, and the will to transform.

In session three of Further, Faster, we interrogated the deeper structures that shape our sector — philanthropy, funding, and the colonial legacies that continue to influence how power and resources are distributed in civil society.

The group examined the concept of the charity industrial complex — the ways in which traditional charity and philanthropy can replicate the very systems of white supremacy, extraction, and control they claim to challenge.

Turning toward creativity as a form of truth-telling, participants were invited to reflect on the piece “White Supremacy Culture – Still Here” and choose one of its many features — from perfectionism to paternalism to urgency — and create a piece of art expressing how that feature shows up in their lives or leadership.

This session pushed us to question what we’ve normalised, and to reflect on how even well-intentioned systems can uphold racial injustice. It reminded us that dismantling white supremacy culture is not only about policies — it’s about imagination, expression, and courage.

In session four of Further, Faster, the cohort turned inward — examining how white supremacy culture shows up not only in our organisations, but also in our leadership behaviours and decision-making.

The group explored the Four I’s of Racism through the lens of our workplace structures and systems and reflected on how characteristics of white supremacy culture — perfectionism, urgency, fear of open conflict, power hoarding and more — can subtly and pervasively shape our approaches to leadership and change.

This session wasn’t just theoretical. It was personal. Through group dialogue and artistic reflection, the cohort began to name how these dynamics show up in ourselves and our teams — and what it will take to unlearn and rebuild in more liberatory ways.

Optional readings offered a deeper dive into the themes of resistance, critique of EDI, and the role of language and power in the sector — providing both inspiration and challenge.

This session reminded us that transformation requires honesty, imagination, and disruption. And that real change starts with how we lead.

The fifth Further, Faster session opened with honesty, warmth and a powerful shift in energy. What began with a feeling of weight and some, ended with renewed purpose — a reminder of the possibility that emerges when people come together with intention.

The cohort explored the challenges of doing anti-racism work within the structures of the charity sector and the opportunities to weave anti-oppressive practice into how we lead. Transformation isn’t a fixed identity, it’s a continual practice — shaped not just by what we do, but how we do it.

Participants were invited to reflect deeply on where their organisations sit on the Continuum of Transformation, assess their spheres of power, and consider their own role in the movement for racial justice. With buddy pairings, readings, and exercises ahead, this was a moment to stretch, reflect and build momentum between sessions.