Announcing Cohort Six of the Social Impact Fellowship: A Holistic and Collaborative Learning Journey for our Largest Cohort Yet

Mar 27

Social Impact Hub is thrilled to launch the sixth cohort of the Social Impact Fellowship, our largest cohort to date! We welcome over 70 ambitious Fellows into our network of purpose-driven individuals growing and scaling their impact.

Off the back of a prosperous two cohorts in 2023, supporting 125 individuals on their impact journeys, we are excited to announce our biggest cohort yet! We have enrolled an incredible cohort of 70 changemakers who will spend the next three months upskilling and networking in the pursuit of greater impact.

Cohort as a Repository: Fostering Collaboration and Learning

The makeup of a cohort is what lifts the program to new heights, as it is the diverse perspectives, experiences and skills Fellows bring that fosters a rich culture of collaboration and peer-learning. With 55% of its members boasting over 16 years of professional experience, the cohort represents a rich repository of knowledge and expertise, offering invaluable mentorship and guidance to those at the onset of their careers. We have enjoyed watching the connections made through the Fellowship continue far beyond the program, with Fellowship alumni collaborating in the impact space, regularly socialising, and others continuing mentoring relationships with our Professional Impact Network consultants.

A Holistic Approach to Learning and Impact

The Fellowship is designed to take a holistic and multifaceted approach to learning. With 2+ interactive masterclasses per week, Fellows quickly take these learnings from the world of theory and are able to apply them to real life. In the projects component of the program, fellows work with real social enterprises seeking support to further solidify their knowledge and gain hands-on experience. There is also ample opportunity for self-exploration and individual growth through mentoring and self-development sessions. These experiences are designed to expand a Fellow's capacity to make positive change, from the inside out.

Fellows will graduate with a robust library of approaches, methods, and skills they can apply to growing and scaling their impact, as well as an expanded support-network of impact professionals and changemakers.

Mentor Spotlight: Get to Know Andrew Tyndale and Lisa Cotton

Experienced mentors are available to support and guide Fellows on their journey. Drawing on their own experiences exploring their pathways to impact, they help Fellows translate skills, build their network and navigate the impact space with confidence. Current mentors include:

Andrew Tyndale, Chief Investments and Assets Officer, Wesley Mission & Professional Impact Network consultant, Social Impact Hub. Andrew is an investment professional passionate about supporting the impact ecosystem, with over 35 years of investment banking and funds management experience. Since 2009, Andrew has been focused on supporting the social sector through Impact Property in areas such as affordable housing and aged care. Highly skilled in investment readiness, business development, capital raising and strategic planning, Andrew also brings significant experience in social finance, fundraising and governance to the social sector. He has advised major foundations and governments on using investment capital to achieve greater outcomes and address challenging global problems. Andrew has held numerous commercial and not-for-profit board roles, as well as been extensively involved in international aid organisations. Andrew holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) and is a Fulbright Professional Scholar. Andrew is passionate about the Fellowship, saying:

“If you want to work in impact investing, or think you have what it takes to build a social enterprise, this is the program to help you achieve your goals. It’s a pleasure working with the Fellows and sharing my experience in impact investing with them.”

Lisa Cotton, former CEO and Co-Founder of The Funding Network, Chair of the Kennards Hire Foundation, Non-Executive Director of Campbell Page, Non-Executive Director of the Australian Sports Foundation and Professional Impact Network consultant at Social Impact Hub. Lisa’s career as CEO, Chair, non-executive director, and at management level in commerce, social enterprise, impact investment, trade and tourism spans more than 30 years, including 17 years governance board practice. She is deeply passionate about passionate about helping enterprises develop growth plans, anticipate change, re-position strategy and build capabilities. Much of her work has emphasised collaboration and stakeholder engagement. For the past 20 years, Lisa has worked at the forefront of philanthropy and social innovation with particular skills in strategy, advocacy, communications, capital raising and governance. Read about Lisa’s thoughts on the importance of mentoring.

Strategic Partnerships to Increase Access to Education

We are committed to expanding capability and capacity for impact in our ecosystem. This means ensuring that finance is not a barrier to participating, providing a number of scholarships each year. It was fantastic to again partner with the Australian Leadership Hub (ALH), offering five scholarships to the not-for-profit community. Checkout the winners. One of the successful applicants, Sandy McKiernan, CEO of Youth Affairs Council of WA said:

“I am looking forward to the collective knowledge and experiences from my fellow participants in the Social Impact Fellowship – being immersed with others who are doing good things is always inspiring.”

We are so thankful to have the opportunity to collaborate with ALH again, and reduce the barriers of entry for leaders, supporting the sector for maximum impact.

All in all, this upcoming cohort is shaping up to be a very exciting iteration of the Fellowship. We are looking forward to watching this new cohort grow and flourish along their Fellowship journey. We wish them resilience and courage in stepping out of their comfort zone and challenging themselves, and can guarantee that they will graduate with a new sense of confidence and motivation to make their vision for social impact a reality.