©IDOS

Shaping Futures Academy

The Shaping Futures: African-European Network on Development and Sustainability Academy (Shaping Futures Academy), formerly known as the BMZ African-German Leadership Academy (African Academy) is a dialogue and training programme targeted at early to mid-career professionals from participating African, (Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, Senegal, Tunisia, Togo, and Zambia) and European (EU, EEA, and UK) countries. The Shaping Futures Academy aims to empower future leaders on both continents by bringing together like- minded peers to reflect on their roles in their respective communities and institutions and develop strategies on how they can induce or support change processes for a transformation to sustainability in the present and future contexts.

With diversity at its the core, the Shaping Futures Academy welcomes participants from a various sectors (civil society, academia and think tanks, public administration, business and media) to encourage transdisciplinarity and to promote networking and knowledge exchange.

The Shaping Futures Academy is hosted by the German Institute for Development and Sustainability (IDOS) and funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The programme is conducted in English.

The application period for the Shaping Futures Academy 2024 is closed.

Format and Content

The Shaping Futures Academy is grounded on three essential elements that contribute to capacity development: knowledge, action and leadership.

The knowledge element offers participants the space to exchange and jointly learn about the themes of governance and sustainability, on both a global and local level. In the academic modules, participants strengthen their analytical capabilities through engagement with different concepts and the direct interaction with diverse scientific and practice-oriented stakeholders. This includes encounters in discussions, workshops and site-visits to selected institutions.
The action elements offer participants the opportunity to combine and expand their knowledge and skills as well as to put them into practice. Working independently in small and changing group constellations, participants collectively develop mini-projects and assignments that allow them to connect their various expertise in diverse learning formats.
The leadership element focusses on developing individual and collective competencies, including strengthening dialogue skills, problem solving, exchanging perspectives, teamwork, reflecting on one’s values, and building strong and trustful relationships, which will also benefit the participants’ home institutions.

The programme, delivered in a block format, utilizes a range of training methods used to cultivate learning, including but not limited to facilitated sessions, workshops, open space and bar camp formats, presentations, discussions, excursions, expert interviews, and role-play. The Shaping Futures Academy works under the premise that knowledge acquisition is not passive but requires open and active engagement. Through collaborative peer learning, participants benefit from an exchange of different perspectives, hone their critical thinking skills, and develop shared values

The format of the Academy is based on the training concept developed in the frame of the MGG Academy.

Eligibility Criteria

The Shaping Futures Academy targets early to mid-career professionals from participating African (Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, Senegal, Tunisia, Togo and Zambia) and European (EU, EEA and UK) countries.

be a national or permanent resident of one of the participating countries
be 25 – 40 years old*
work on issues relevant for sustainable development and governance
have at least three years’ work experience (non-remunerated experience is also recognised)
have the support of their employer (written support required as part of application)
have a very good command of the English language (equivalent to B2 level of the CEFR)
be respectful of other cultures
be open to teamwork, reflection and a broad variety of working methods
have a valid passport (at the time of travel)

*older applicants, who have taken longer periods of parental leave, may be considered.

Shaping Futures Academy 2024

The Shaping Futures Academy 2024 will take place in a block format from 15 April to 22 November 2024. It combines three digital and two face-to-face modules in Germany and Ghana to create an innovative dialog programme. Here, you can find the schedule and the participants of the Academy 2024.

African-German Leadership Academy 2023

The third edition of the African Academy took place from 17 April to 15 July 2023. View the 2023 programme and participants.

African-German Leadership Academy 2022

The 2022 edition of the BMZ African-German Leadership Academy took place from April to June. The full schedule comprised a 10-week in-person phase in Germany - spent in Bonn and Berlin – preceded by a two- week part-time online preparatory phase. The joint work will be followed-up in online exchanges. An overview of the 2022 Academy schedule is available here.

View the list of participants of the African-German Leadership Academy 2022.