Applications are now open for the Broadbent Institute’s 2025 Emerging Leaders Program!
Application deadline: January 9, 2026
The Program
The Emerging Leaders Program, launched by the Broadbent Institute in 2023, is a training initiative designed to develop early to mid-career organizers and leaders committed to creating a fairer and more inclusive society. The ten-month program equips Emerging Leaders with the skills, mentorship, and networks needed to prepare for Director-level responsibilities.
Program Objectives
The goal of the Broadbent Institute’s Emerging Leaders Program is to provide leaders working for systemic change with:
- Hands-on training
- Expert guidance
- Collaborative learning opportunities
- A curriculum focused on equity
With these tools, Emerging Leaders increase their skills and capacity around progressive policies and projects. Skill development includes but is not limited to:
- Effective team leadership and communication skills
- Successful methods for organizing advocacy campaigns
- Government relations, both as insider and outsider
- How to engage effectively with stakeholders, consult and build consensus in communities
- Digital, social and traditional media best practices for communicating ideas and fostering public interest and support
As one of the final projects founder Ed Broadbent supported before his passing in January 2024, the program seeks to shape the next generation of progressive leadership as a part of his legacy for the future of the fight for justice and equality.
Program Structure
Emerging Leaders are provided with ongoing mentorship and networking opportunities by the Broadbent Institute throughout the nine-month program, which runs from March to November each year.
In-person programming will take place at both the 2026 Progress Summit, March 4-6 in Ottawa, as well as the 2026 Progress Gala, November in Toronto. At each event, the Emerging Leaders will be exposed to existing best practices and will also participate in specialized training through an in-depth all-day leadership workshop where they will learn hands-on tools to further develop their leadership skills and networks.
In addition to these in-person events, the program includes highly curated monthly virtual programming in the form of workshops, panels, and Q&A sessions with experienced facilitators who are dedicated to supporting the development of progressive leadership in Canada.
Each Emerging Leader will also be carefully matched with a dedicated mentor. Over the course of six monthly meetings, mentors will provide guidance and support, foster learning and development, and help mentees build professional relationships and networks.
The expected time commitment for this program, including training sessions and mentorship meetings, is 3 to 4 hours each month, plus attendance at the 2026 Progress Summit and 2026 Progress Gala.
Organizational Sponsorship
While the Broadbent Institute covers participation costs for all selected Emerging Leaders, we encourage applicants to explore whether their employer or organization can sponsor their participation. Organizational sponsorship helps sustain and grow the program, ensuring more leaders across Canada can benefit in future years.
Participation in the Emerging Leaders Program is valued at $5,400, which covers:
- Travel, accommodation, and meals for in-person programming
- Facilitator and mentorship honorariums
- Coordination, support, and execution of all program components
Organizational sponsorships of an emerging leader can be full ($5400) or partial ($2000) sponsorship.
For other program sponsorship opportunities, please see the Broadbent Institute’s 2026 Signature Sponsorships Package.
Who Should Apply?
Each year, the Broadbent Institute’s Emerging Leaders Program brings together a select group of community-minded leaders from across Canada who are committed to a more just, inclusive, green and equitable society and who are actively working for positive change in their communities.
An Emerging Leader is an individual who is in the early to mid-stages of their career, showing strong potential for leadership as well as a clear understanding of and commitment to social democratic values. Emerging Leaders are selected for this non-partisan program based on the work they are doing to make a positive impact on society and how skilling up will help build capacity around progressive policy priorities in Canada.
Current policy priorities include:
- Climate Action (examples: emissions reduction, natural resources, environmental protection, Just Transition, Green New Deal)
- Decommodification (examples: healthcare, housing, education, care work, public ownership, financialization)
- Empowering Workers (examples: labour movement, economics for the working-class, immigration)
- Rights & Democracy (examples: human rights, Truth and Reconciliation, democratic reform, social democracy)
- Science & Tech for All (examples: digital rights, internet sovereignty, clean tech, tech industry, public innovation, science industries, extreme environment resource extraction)
We welcome participants from diverse backgrounds and encourage applications from historically underrepresented communities, including Indigenous peoples, racialized individuals, LGBTQ2S+ individuals, and people with disabilities.
Application deadline: January 9, 2026