The goal of the Activate! Leadership and Public Innovation programme is to spark public innovation by charging up a network of young leaders in South Africa.

Are you between 20 – 29, have vision and are passionate about making a positive difference in South Africa and motivated to drive public innovation?  Do you have a track record of making things happen and being active in your community?  Do you want to be an active member of a national network of young leaders who are keen to go beyond being told what to do, into defining and mapping out their own future?  Yes!!  The Activate Programme which supports young leaders to hone their abilities and step up to tackle a range of challenges facing their communities around the country will provide you with the skills, tools and a network of like minded youth leaders.

What candidates will get out of joining the programme:

• Being part of a highly charged network of a passionate, innovative young people in SA all working together to drive public innovation and tackle the biggest challenges in the country.
• Participating in cutting edge training in innovation, problem-solving and leadership
• Access to inspiring mentors, and opportunities to further their own passions

Note that selection for the course includes the participants being funded for expenses associated with the compulsory workshops and study materials.

Seed funding will also be available for 50 of the first year projects.

The course is in the process of being registered as a 3 year Diploma course with the Dept of Education & Training. Chris Meintjies can answer specific questions about this at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Who is able to join the Activate Programme?

• Any South African between the ages of 20 and 29.
• Individuals who have demonstrated positive action within their community or organisation and willingness to serve and grow themselves  and the nation.
• They can be working or studying full time or part-time or unemployed.
• They need to be able to meet the time expectations.

Programme Overview

The Activate! programme is a combination of intensive residential training, ongoing action-based learning, and commitment to full participation in a national network of young leaders. The programme is designed to cover five key spheres that represent the core focus areas of the programme and also anchor every module and activity to a strong base that if well developed will provide Activators with skills, knowledge and experience.

In order to develop a well-connected and fired up network of young change makers, the programme needs to provide a strong foundation that includes:

My Identity: Young people who have a very strong sense of self.

Our Identity: Young people who have forged strong connections with each other and the ability to develop strong connections with others.

Leadership & Innovation Toolkit: Young people that have internalised a toolkit of pure innovation, project and team management, and leadership abilities.

Socio-political navigation: Young people that can better navigate the socio-political environment.

Activating ripples and waves of change: Charged up young people that can not only deliver ripples of change (symptomatic solutions to challenges faced by communities around South Africa) but also stimulate waves of change (systematic change, Activate! movements that impact on the bigger issues).

Training Plan - What is expected of participants should they be selected?

Activators must commit to attending all programme activities, and complete the associated home tasks; these include:

Attending residential training (27 days in total) delivered in modules over the course of one year to be held at 3 nodes (Cape Town, Durban and Jo’burg) to accommodate students form across the country:

• 2 x 9 day blocks
• 1 x 7 day block
• 1 x 2 day block
• 4-6 hours of additional work per week to complete assignments. Some assignments will require working in groups via social media and some they will complete on their own.

The course involves approximately 500 hours of work with the inclusion of all the home tasks.

To see the selection criteria Go to: http://www.activateleadership.co.za/selection-process/

For the application form Go To: http://www.activateleadership.co.za/application-form/

Please attach /upload a letter of recommendation from your organisation to your online application and a letter agreeing to release you to attend the training.

Please send on a duplicate of the letter of recommendation and letter of support to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it so that we can keep track.

For details of the course contents go to : http://www.activateleadership.co.za

Grab this opportunity and B the Change U want to see.

Kim Kruyshaar

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

076 454 8467

Environmental Consultant working for:

Chris Meintjies Programme Manager Activate Leadership & Public Innovation programme 2012.