Since March 2024, I’ve been part of the Greater London Authority’s final Civic Futures Fellowship cohort – one of 30 fellows selected from 140 applications across London.

The Civic Futures Fellowship brings together people from across London’s civil society and local government to explore how we can collectively build a better future for our city. It’s a unique space for learning, reflection, and experimentation in civic leadership.

As we wrapped up our last fellowship workshop last week, I wanted to finally share this experience.

We started as strangers from wildly different backgrounds – people from government and local authorities, charity leaders, community organisers, artists – all united by our commitment to social change. We’ve laughed together, challenged each other, and sometimes sat in uncomfortable silences as we grappled with complex questions about ourselves and our communities.

Together, we had open talks about our work and purpose, reflected on ourselves through 360 reviews, worked with coaches to think deeper about our goals, and learned about our roles in making change in complex systems. The most valuable parts of the fellowship were this community of fellows we created and the connections we now share.

Since December, I’ve been working with my brilliant teammates on “Connecting Care”, a project exploring how people in London give and receive care. We’re using creative ways to help people share their care experiences, hoping to find gaps and connections in our care systems. We’re still working on this project and will share more in the coming weeks.

I kept this journey off LinkedIn until now because it was still unfolding. I’m grateful for this experience facilitated by the GLA, the Young Foundation and Koreo, and the friends I’ve made along the way.

Special thanks to my Connecting Care teammates: Amardeep Gill, Anna Trichkine. Alisa Ruzavina. Camelia Muldermans, Indy Sira, Mandish Kalsi