Systems Leadership Sandbox Training: Expression of Interest

Overview:
The Family and Community Support Services (FCSS) Advisory Board is excited to announce that the FCSS/United Way Partnership Grant Program has been expanded to provide training for local leaders in our community who are committed to building stronger organizations, deepen partnerships and finding collaborative solutions to the complex challenges facing our community. In 2027, we will be sponsoring up to five local leaders and changemakers to participate in the Systems Leadership Sandbox training, an intensive nine-day training that is offered over four months through Mount Royal University. This investment will help strengthen the capacity of local leaders to address complex community challenges through collaboration, innovation and systems thinking. By developing a network of skilled community leaders who share a common language and mind-set, we are creating long-term community impact, building strong partnerships and helping ensure local issues are addressed proactively rather than reactively.

What is Systems Leadership Sandbox Training:
Community challenges are interconnected and cannot be solved by one organization alone. The Systems Leadership Sandbox equips community leaders with the mindset, tools and relationships needed to address complex challenges and create lasting systems change. It is a professional learning experience that builds capacity to more effectively and meaningfully lead, enact and mobilize systems-level change. Through experiential learning, systems thinking tools, case studies, reflection and cross-sector collaboration, participants learn to map systems, build relationships, identify leverage points, and mobilize collective action – approaches that can be applied within both organizations and across the broader community. Participants come away with a stronger foundation and new tools in applying systems thinking approaches in their own practice, as well as deepened relationships with others wrestling with time sensitive, systemic injustices impacting our communities.

Benefits:
After participating in the Sandbox, participants will have:
• Expanded knowledge and confidence in applying systems thinking tools and approaches,
• A clearer sense of their role and responsibility as a leader in systems change, and
• A renewed sense of hope and possibility to work in complexity

To learn more visit: Systems Leadership Sandbox | MRU

Training dates:
The dates for the 2027 Systems Leadership Sandbox Training have not been confirmed. The training consists of nine full days (9am-4pm) that are typically offered on Fridays during the spring (March – June). The training is only offered in-person and is held at the Trico Changemakers Studio at Mount Royal University.

Who should apply:
To be eligible to apply for the Systems Leadership Sandbox training you must be a community leader and/or changemaker from a local non-profit social organization that serves Cochrane and West Rocky View County residents, and:
• Your organization is working on solving complex social challenges.
• You have a passion for understanding broad systems change and are eager to move beyond addressing systems to addressing root causes of complex social issues.
• You want to increase collaboration and strengthen partnerships with other local service providers.

As spaces are limited, interested individuals are invited to complete this Expression of Interest form.

Submission Deadline:
The deadline to submit your Expression of Interest is September 20, 2026. The FCSS Advisory Board will review the Expression of Interest submissions in the fall of 2026 and will notify participants in December 2026 if they have been selected to participate.