Leadership Unleashed: Shaping a New Era of Global Citizenship

A decade in the making

Last week marked the successful culmination of a journey that began a decade ago. During my tenure as COO of Aga Khan Foundation Canada , my CEO, Khalil Shariff, initiated a pivotal conversation with me. The discussion revolved around the creation of a mechanism to engage mid-career Canadian leaders eager to enhance their understanding of Canada’s role in the global arena. We hypothesized that a significant number of such leaders were keen to connect with efforts aimed at positively impacting humanity by improving the quality of life worldwide, yet they were unsure of how to proceed. Moreover, we believed these leaders were in search of a community of like-minded individuals. Our hypothesis was supported by the number of leaders we had successfully engaged in our flagship initiatives, the World Partnership Walk and World Partnership Golf, spanning several decades. Furthermore, the organization has consistently offered a successful international development fellowship targeting promising Canadians under the age of 30.

The idea of assisting leaders who identified as global citizens in developing their global awareness and forging a network with others who shared their aspirations was profoundly motivating. We undertook numerous steps to validate our hypothesis. Over the years, our experiments assumed various forms and yielded positive outcomes, though none achieved widespread adoption.

Slight detour

In late 2018, the concept of leadership coaching captivated me, following insights from Martha Maznevski , a professor of organizational behavior and leadership at 加拿大西安大略大学 - 毅伟商学院 . She discussed her innovative approach of integrating coaching with executive education to aid Canadian leaders in navigating the complexities and challenges of the contemporary world. This led me to transition from my role at AKFC and embark on a new venture in leadership coaching and facilitation, inspired by the enthusiasm Khalil had instilled in me years prior.

Paths Converge

The convergence of these paths occurred in 2022. Khalil, alongside a former colleague, Sofia Jadavji , informed me that Global Affairs Canada | Affaires mondiales Canada had sanctioned a mandate to devise and pilot a leadership program tailored for practicing and aspiring global citizens. An RFP (Request for Proposal) was issued for learning design consultants, inviting me to submit an application. I secured the contract in collaboration with an adult education consultant, Anushay Irfan Khan , to jointly design the program. After weeks of comprehensive primary and secondary research, leadership consultations, and working sessions, we crafted a multi-day program. The following is the manifesto we collectively established:

AKFC Global Leadership Program Manifesto

New geopolitical, economic, technological, social, and climate forces are causing rapid and far-reaching changes in Canada and around the world, with significant consequences for the quality of life of people across the globe.

What are Canada’s and Canadians’ role(s) in steering a path through these forces? Can we muster the ethical imagination, intellectual insight, and practical ingenuity to exercise a distinctive global leadership role at this pivotal time?

The AKFC Global Leadership Program brings together Canadian mid-career professionals from across sectors to explore the forces shaping our world and connect with others committed to a more peaceful, prosperous, and pluralist world for all.?

The Pilot Program

Over several months of diligent preparation, led by Sofia, we meticulously crafted a curriculum, selected faculty members, defined a cohort profile, and extended invitations to the most outstanding Canadian leaders from diverse sectors including corporate Canada, civil society, education, and healthcare. These individuals represent the vast geographic diversity of Canada and bring a wealth of multicultural and varied life experiences to the table. In the week of March 4th, we initiated the pilot program, uniting these 36 distinguished participants.

I am profoundly thankful for the opportunity to serve as a group coach, program facilitator, and the faculty for the leadership module. It was an honor to work alongside a remarkable team of faculty members, Rohinton Medhora , Nathalie Sirois, Charlene Bearhead, Fatema Z. Sumar , Rohma Labeeb addressing a wide array of subjects such as Pluralism, Indigenous Issues, Global Politics and Diplomacy, The 4th Industrial Revolution (AI and The Global Knowledge Economy), Accelerating Entrepreneurship in marginalized communities, and Global Development.

We were joined by special guest speakers: AKDN leaders joining live and virtual from East Africa, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan, members of the Diplomatic Corps, academic, indigenous and government leaders. On day 1, after Khalil's opening remarks, I lead an ice breaker, empowered the participants to formulate a community statement and establish personal goals for themselves, we were off on our journey.

The Community Statement

The AKFC Global Leadership community embodies inclusivity, respect, and open-minded dialogue within a space of safety and bravery, fostering curiosity and collaboration. We embrace challenges, prioritize meaningful connections, and maintain an environment of humility, honesty, and optimism. This nurtures a culture of exploration and intentional action, ensuring every member feels empowered to contribute and grow.

The engagement, eagerness to learn, intellectual stamina, and capacity for navigating challenging discussions demonstrated by the participants far surpassed our expectations. Within just a few days, I had the privilege of witnessing individuals, initially strangers to one another, transform into a unified community of professionals. They are now ready to support each other in addressing global challenges with hope and optimism. The potential for growth and evolution within this community, and among its members, fills me with anticipation.

We are confronted with a stark reality today and in the foreseeable future, a challenge that many ordinary individuals might hesitate to face. However, the participants of this program are far from ordinary.

We intend to refine the program, enhancing its offerings, with the hope of introducing an improved version in the near future.