Climate Leadership Accelerator: Into the Arena

Deepen your understanding of the systems creating the climate crisis and develop a framework for your own climate action.

Start Date:
September 11, 2025
-
November 12, 2025
Duration:
10 weeks
Format:
2-day in person retreat, followed by weekly 3-hour online sessions
Pillars
Nature & Environment
Business & Economics
Equality & Democracy

Whether you're new to climate leadership or deep along your journey, this accelerator builds the confidence, connections, and concrete action plans you need to lead meaningful change in your spheres of influence.

Join business leaders, policy makers, climate scientists and changemakers for 10 weeks of transformative, systems-based learning. Next cohort starts 11th September, with limited places available. Secure your place.

What you'll learn

Over 10 weeks, you'll develop the leadership toolkit that climate leaders use to navigate complexity and drive real change:

  • Your Climate Action Plan - Develop a strategic framework that defines your own or your organisation's unique contribution to shaping a resilient and sustainable future.
  • A Curated Network of Leaders - Connect with people across arts, science, business and policy
  • Navigate Complex Climate Systems - Understand how biodiversity, our energy systems, political economy, and social justice issues interconnect
  • Brave Conversation Skills - Build the interpersonal literacy and confidence to engage with a wide range of perspectives on climate change
  • Transformative Storytelling Capacities - Learn essential communication skills to impact change
  • Embodied Leadership Presence - Develop the inner resilience to stay centred while facing our climate reality

Who is this program for?

Whether you're new to climate leadership or have expertise but want to broaden your influence, this program supports you to integrate climate action into your work and life. This program is for you if you're:

  • Wanting to understand how climate intersects with your industry
  • Working in climate but looking for community or to strengthen your systemic impact
  • A leader who needs to communicate climate issues to non-scientific audiences, or groups traditional disengaged on climate issues
  • Someone with climate expertise and ideas but lacking confidence to expand your influence
  • Anyone ready to step into the arena of strategic and generative action

Recent participants include WWF researchers, renewable energy consultants, artists, young leaders, sustainable finance professionals, policy advisors, social entrepreneurs, and business sustainability leaders.

“I have been determined to transition my passion for this space to my work, but have come up with many reasons why I wasn't equipped to. This course has given me the information, the inspiration and the impetus and confidence to move forward with that transition.”

- Jeanine Bribosia, Into the Arena participant

A Transformational Climate Leadership Experience

  • Format: Live virtual sessions, expert mentorship, peer collaboration, plus a two-day in-person retreat
  • Time Commitment: 4-6 hours per week including sessions, reading, and group work

Throughout our 10 weeks together, you'll explore the climate crisis through an integrated curriculum that weaves systems thinking with interpersonal and leadership development, which practically weaves together in your personalised climate action plan.

Climate Leadership Program Curriculum

Systems Understanding

Mapping Our Climate Challenges
  • Deep dive into interconnected climate systems: including food, farming, energy and information ecosystems
  • Understand biodiversity, energy transition, and our political economy
  • Find which areas you can leverage the most transformational change for a hopeful future
  • Discover and engage with regenerative economics and frameworks for the Next Economy

Leadership Development

Building Capacity to Step Into the Arena
  • Refine your unique leadership style and capacities
  • Learn emotional and relational literacy to support your action confidence
  • Practice brave conversation techniques to navigate diverse perspectives
  • Develop your storytelling skills for impact
  • Deepen your ability to lead in crisis with confidence for your families and communities

Strategic Action

Turning Wisdom Into Action
  • Connect with and find inspiration from speakers about their climate leadership journeys and action
  • Workshop your personalised climate action framework with your peers and mentors
  • Build a strong network of committed individuals and discover new opportunities for collaboration

Download the brochure to explore the full program curriculum.

Our Guides & Mentors

Your Into the Arena journey is guided experts at the intersection of business and climate: 

Designer note: event will appear here on the published site.
Designer note: event will appear here on the published site.
Designer note: event will appear here on the published site.
Designer note: event will appear here on the published site.

Pip Wheaton

Planet & climate problem solver, systems thinker and facilitator

Pip Wheaton
Planet & climate problem solver, systems thinker and facilitator

Richie Merzian

International Director, Smart Energy Council

Richie Merzian
International Director, Smart Energy Council

Claire O'Rourke

The Sunrise Project

World-class guest speakers & advisors

Through this program, you'll hear from world-leading climate experts, including:

  • Climate Scientists translating research into actionable insights
  • Policy Experts navigating the intersection of politics and climate action
  • Business Leaders driving sustainable transformation
  • Community Organisers building grassroots climate movements
  • Communications Specialists making complex science accessible

Amanda McKenzie

CEO, Climate Council

Ed Coper

Author, Facts & Other Lies

Ronni Kahn

Founder, Oz Harvest 

Emma Bacon

CEO, Sweltering Cities

Lesley Hughes

IPCC Scientist

Libby Davidson

Non-Executive Director, Sustainability Leader

Libby Davidson
Non-Executive Director, Sustainability Leader

Arielle Gamble

GROUNDSWELL Co-founder & CEO

Arielle Gamble
GROUNDSWELL Co-founder & CEO

Richie Merzain

International Affairs Manager, Smart Energy Council

Richie Merzain
International Affairs Manager, Smart Energy Council

Marc Light

Principal, The King David School, Melbourne

Marc Light
Principal, The King David School, Melbourne

Anna Rose

CEO Environmental Leadership Australia

Anna Rose
CEO Environmental Leadership Australia

John Blackburn

Chair, IIERA and Co-Founder, ASLCG

John Blackburn
Chair, IIERA and Co-Founder, ASLCG

Eleanor Gammell

Creative Director, Curator, Investor

Eleanor Gammell
Creative Director, Curator, Investor

Eleanor is a curator of immersive experiences, bringing people together to explore the ideas defining our time.

Eleanor is the Executive & Creative Director of TEDxSydney, most recently co-curated the Forest Economics Congress with MONA (Museum of Old and New Art, Tasmania) and designed the Climate Leadership Accelerator for Small Giants Academy.

She was previously the Head of Programs at Small Giants Academy, co-creating deep impact learning journeys including the Mastery of Business and Empathy, Impact Safaris to Israel and Palestine (conflict & innovation), Bhutan (GNH & systems of measurement) and the Tarkine Rainforest (regeneration of people and place), as well as various courses exploring the interplay of wisdom and action required to meet global challenges.

Prior to this, Eleanor was the Managing Director of The School of Life Australia, a platform exploring emotional intelligence through philosophy, anthropology and culture, staging ambitious public programming with interdisciplinary thought leaders across the country.

Eleanor co-founded First Light to contribute to the growing global community investing in climate responses. She is a board director for Groundswell Giving and co-chair of the Atelier Council at the Art Gallery of New South Wales.

Hasmukh Chand

Climate Energy, Policy and Politics, Climate Network

Hasmukh Chand
Climate Energy, Policy and Politics, Climate Network

Damon Gameau

Storyteller & Filmmaker: That Sugar Film (2014), 2040 (2019) and Regenerating Australia (2022)

Damon Gameau
Storyteller & Filmmaker: That Sugar Film (2014), 2040 (2019) and Regenerating Australia (2022)

Lille Madden

First Nations Director at GROUNDSWELL

Lille Madden
First Nations Director at GROUNDSWELL

Tim Flannery

Campaigner & author

Paul Hawken

Founder, Project Drawdown

Anjali Sharma

Young climate activist

Bill McKibben

Author and activist

Dr Vandana Shiva

Author, Environmental activist, and President of Navdanya International

Dr Vandana Shiva
Author, Environmental activist, and President of Navdanya International

Dr Vandana Shiva is an Indian scholar, environmental activist and food sovereignty advocate. This is an extract from her 2018 report, The Future of Our Daily Bread: Regeneration or Collapse. Read her Dumbo Feather conversation here.

Ready to transform your climate leadership?

This 10-week intensive program includes an in-person retreat, live online sessions, expert mentorship, ongoing fellowship, and lifetime access to our climate leader network.

Program Investment: $4,960 + GST

What's Included:

  • Transformative 2-day in-person retreat
  • 9 weeks of live virtual sessions with climate experts
  • Mentorship and coaching
  • Small cohort experience (maximum 23 participants)
  • Personalised climate action framework development
  • Lifetime fellowship access and ongoing network
  • All program materials and resources

Concession Rates Available:

  • B Corps: $4,464 + GST
  • NFPs, Registered Charities, First Nations People: $3,968 + GST
  • Partial scholarships based on financial need

Monthly payment plans available

*Note: Accommodation and travel for retreat weekend not included

Before the Climate Leadership Accelerator I thought my problem was lacking opportunity. Now I realise it was lacking imagination. This program gifted me the vision, tools, connections and hope to dream new possibilities into life, and for that it has been life changing.”

– Kayla Robertson

Supporting partners

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FAQs and Details

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Ready to Step Into the Arena?

Climate leadership has never been more critical. The question isn't whether you're ready - it's whether you're willing to begin.

Next cohort starts September 11th, with limited spots remaining.

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena." — Theodore Roosevelt

Invest in Your Team's Climate Leadership

Sponsor your employees to join our Climate Leadership Fellowship and build organisational resilience for a rapidly changing world. Corporate sponsorship includes:

  • Individual employee participation in full program
  • Organisational integration planning
  • Custom climate action framework for your business context
  • Ongoing fellowship network access

Download the brochure to learn more, or book a chat with us to learn more about Into the Arena for your organisation.

Nature & Environment
Business & Economics
Equality & Democracy