Basecamp

The world needs leaders who see deeply complex issues and embrace them. Leaders who can work collaboratively to overcome the entanglement of challenges at different levels and envision new possibilities for brighter futures. Leaders like you. 

Joining Basecamp means beginning a learning journey with a team of intrepid explorers, each pioneers in their own fields, coming together to discover new ways of creating change. World-class practitioners will be your guides, bringing a plethora of disciplines to meet the needs of any sector or learning style. 

Over the course of seven months, we will host you in facilitated workshops, peer learning, applied project-work, reflections, personal inquiry and coaching. At the School of System Change we believe that the most powerful learning experience exposes you to a broad range of tools, frameworks and approaches in order to help you to find your best way in.

Learn more about our multi-method approach to systems change learning.

"The School experience was nothing short of transformational and I highly recommend it to any leader who is seeking to understand the impact of their work on bigger systems in society."

Dr Narges Baniasadi, Basecamp alum

Founder & Executive Director, Emergence Program, Adjunct Professor at Stanford University

Basecamp is a 6-month part-time journey into the foundations of systems change practice. The course focuses on sharpening our understanding of systems change, using practical approaches to explore dynamics of change, and deepening our appreciation of how worldviews shape our thinking. Content is brought in by at least eight contributors: experienced practitioners from various backgrounds who introduce their frameworks, approaches and perspectives from complexity, systems thinking, futures, transitions, living systems and regenerative practices.

The facilitation team support strengthening your systemic practices and applying these to your challenges, in group work and through individual action learning. You will develop strategies for creating deep change with small interventions. You will learn about how to work differently with others, addressing equity, power and working with conflict as well as enabling collaboration. You will deepen your capacity for systems leadership. The whole process is underpinned by action inquiry, giving you insights into learning and evaluation for systems change. 

A core component of the programme is the opportunity to join a peer learning group to apply learning to a live challenge during the sessions. Challenges are sourced among the cohort with previous groups being formed around topics as diverse as understanding the role of research in advancing racial justice in the climate adaptation field and addressing healthcare professional burnout.

To ensure you are able to apply your learning to your context, we offer several coaching sessions throughout the Basecamp course. This can help you refine your inquiry questions, get guidance on which approaches might work best in your specific situation, and benefit from personal support as you develop your systems leadership qualities.

Learning outcomes

Through this course you will learn to:

• understand systems change as a process & an outcome
• navigate a variety of systemic change framings and approaches
• apply different tools and methods to complex challenges
• see how change happens over time, and at different levels
• see patterns and connections, applied to complex challenges 
• see value in engaging with multiple perspectives

As much as you will come away with systems change learning, you’ll also emerge from the experience as changed people - adopting new mindsets, worldviews and approaches to solving problems. And last but not least, you’ll have developed relationships with other like-minded changemakers and belong to a community of practice.

How we host

At the School, we believe there is no one 'right' way of doing systems change work, and embrace both multiple methodologies and multiple ways of learning. So we host our Basecamp course with a variety of different formats and ways of engaging with content.

Our experienced facilitators host the cohort throughout the whole process, helping you navigate the wealth of perspectives and practical knowledge and tools shared by our contributors. They also support group work and offer coaching sessions.

All sessions will take place on Zoom. Basecamp is designed to be as experiential and social as possible using our years of experience of facilitating online. We ensure sessions are interactive and allow for plenty of small group discussions in breakout rooms. There will be regular breaks as well as some activities to take off-screen, reflective time and invitations to join us in movement to help sustain our energy levels throughout.

We have an online learning platform where pre-reads, session recordings and content are all housed in one place, and an online communication space dedicated to each cohort for live conversation.

Facilitators

Producer

We are always evolving our content to bring you the cutting-edge of systems change. Contributors for this programme are being finalised. Please see some of our contributors and facilitators from previous editions:

Is Basecamp for me?

Basecamp is the course for you if:

• You are looking to really dive into systems change and develop your practice through learning multiple methods and approaches from across the field
• You are interested in working towards a more just, equitable and regenerative future
• You are ready to dive into the unknown, challenge your assumptions, and commit to the work required to get the most out of the course
• You have a role with potential to effect change (including in roles of non-traditional leadership, but with scope of influence) - an ability to put your learning into practice
• You have a baseline understanding of the many complex environmental, political and socio-economic challenges facing our world today
• You have a live challenge to explore and tackle through the course (or several options, this does not have to be fleshed out!)

If you are looking for a shorter introduction to systems change, our Delta course might be just right for you.

Who else will be on the course?

Mirroring system change principles in our cohort, we aim for a group of 15-20 people, representing:

• A wide diversity of worldviews, lived experience, and perspectives
• A range of professional contexts - including business, non-profit, government, philanthropy, and other enablers of change
• A variety of complex challenges in sustainability and social change

We seek to create safe and brave spaces for participants from different backgrounds and lived experience to engage in learning together. We acknowledge the power and responsibility we hold in our role as a convenor and learning provider, placing multiple ways of knowing and awareness of difference as fundamental design principles in our programmes.

Read more about our commitment and journey around equity and difference.

Accessibility

If you will need additional support for your wellbeing or access needs, then please let the team know as soon as possible, so we can factor this into our session design. You can let us know in the application form or email us at [email protected] - we are happy to arrange a call to discuss how we can support your learning. The course producer will also be on hand throughout the course if you have any questions or concerns to raise. 

• Information sessions
• Application deadline: Thursday 27 March 2025 at 12:00 GMT

Course dates

May-July 2025

• Course kick-off: 7-8 May 2025
• Intensive sessions: 12-15 May 2025
• Fieldwork check-in (1): 2 June 2025
• Fieldwork check-in (2): 30 June 2025
• Mid-term gathering: 23-24 July 2025
• Ongoing: Fieldwork in self-organised teams & coaching

August-October 2025

• Navigation guide check-in: 4 August 2025
• Navigation guide check-in: 18 August 2025
• Intensive sessions: 8-11 September 2025
• Navigation guide check-in: 22 September 2025
• Navigation guide check-in: 6 October 2025
• Closing session: 30 October 2025
• Ongoing: Individual action inquiry & coaching

Online learning cohort time will total around 70 hours over the seven months, with some intensive sessions over several consecutive days, and regular short sessions inbetween.

Timing

All online sessions will be held within 09:00-17:30 BST/GMT / 10:00-18:30 CE(S)T. All fieldwork check-ins and navigation guide check-ins will run for 90 minutes.

You can view exact session times here.

Participants must commit to participating in all of the online sessions and contributing constructively to peer group learning, as much as possible. You can join from anywhere in the world, so long as you can attend the times listed above.

Check your time zone

If the course dates don't work for you, express your interest in Basecamp and we'll email you when we are accepting applications to join the next cohort.

How much time will I need to commit outside of sessions?

We typically recommend around 3-5 hours per week between intensive sessions. Please note that this includes group work organised with your team, as well as your coaching sessions, on top of time you spend taking the content into your work or even mulling it over in the shower! We give this estimation as a rough guide so you know what to expect - this is very much a “the more you put in, the more you get out” situation. 

A note on intensive sessions

To get the most out of this experience, we ask you to do everything you can to arrange your schedule so you can be fully present for all sessions. Please note that this is to support the learning experience of your fellow participants, as well as your own. There is a space to let us know about clashes in your diary in the application form. 

The School of System Change is continually working to improve the financial accessibility of our courses. For this course we offer three rates, and ask that you select the one that fits your financial situation. It is our hope that those able to afford the higher fees help us cover costs and support others to access the discounted rates.

Full rate: £7500 GBP
For people in countries with strong economies, larger organisations and well-paid professionals. Your registration will help support others to participate.

Middle rate: £5250 GBP
For people in countries with moderate economies, small organisations (fewer than 10 employees) and individuals.

Discounted rate: £3750 GBP
For people in need of financial assistance to support their learning. Only a few discounted rate slots are allocated to each cohort.

We can offer you a payment plan for Basecamp 2024. Please select this option in your application or contact [email protected] for more details.

Please join the Basecamp team for an information session:

• Tue 21 January 2025, 10:00-10:50 GMT / 11:00-11:50 CET

Complete our application form by Thursday 27 March 2025 at 12:00 GMT. It usually takes about 30-40 minutes. You can save your progress as you go and will be emailed a copy of your answers to keep at the end.

Apply today

If the course dates don't work for you, express your interest in Basecamp and we'll email you when we are accepting applications to join the next cohort.

Are you interested in speaking with one of our team to answer any specific questions you may have? Please send us an email at [email protected]. We're looking forward to hearing from you!

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