Fifth Cohort of our PREVENT Leadership Training Closes with Inspiration and a Strong Community of Circular Changemakers

In November, the PREVENT Waste Alliance successfully concluded the fifth cohort of its Leadership Training for Circular Economy Changemakers, marking a productive close to the year.

Over the course of five days, 13 members of the network convened to examine what it means to lead in complex and rapidly evolving circular systems. Participants came from all over the world: Cameroon, France, Denmark, India, USA, Albania, Netherlands, Mexico, Colombia, Ghana, Nepal, Poland, South Africa, and Viet Nam!

The programme covered a range of key themes, including:

• self-leadership, personal drivers, and resilience;

• group dynamics and unconscious bias;

• organisational change and navigating complexity;

• and approaches to leading collaboration across global and diverse value chains.

A notable feature of this year’s cohort was a visit to the Circular Valley Forum, where participants engaged with innovators, practitioners, and thought leaders contributing to the circular transition in Germany and internationally.

PREVENT extends its appreciation to all participants—Ayamba Achare Elvis, Manon Assier, Apoorva Arya, Daniel Reid, Kristjana Omeri, Iara Beekma Reis, Jimena Duarte, Maxwell Odonkor, Narayan Niraula, Piotr Barczak, Sally-Anne Käsner, Tam Phan Hanh, and Saroj Badgujar—for their active engagement throughout the programme. Their openness to share experiences, challenge assumptions, and co-create solutions played a central role in shaping the week.

Special thanks are also due to trainers Ann-Christin Berger and Christoffer Brick, as well as Como Consult GmbH, whose facilitation and guidance contributed significantly to the learning process.

Closing the year with such an engaged group underscores the importance of leadership development in advancing the circular economy. PREVENT looks forward to building on this momentum in 2026.