Clore Leadership announces five projects selected for Roots and Reach: Global Leadership in Action
Clore Leadership is delighted to announce the five projects that have been selected for the Roots and Reach: Global Leadership in Action programme, funded by the British Council.
Following a competitive selection process, the chosen initiatives stood out for their creativity, strong local relevance, and potential for meaningful and lasting impact. They each demonstrate clear alignment with the programme’s aims and themes, and together represent a rich mix of geographies, approaches, and leadership practices.
Roots and Reach supports Clore Leadership’s International Alumni to design and deliver community-rooted projects that connect cultural practice with global perspectives. The programme provides resources, mentorship, and peer learning, enabling leaders to strengthen their leadership skills while making a difference in their home contexts.
The five selected projects are:
- Manal Ataya, Sharjah Museums Authority, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
Project title: Leadership & Wellbeing: A Micro-Series
The Leadership and Wellbeing programme, led by Dr. Louise Lambert and co-facilitated by Manal Ataya, is a women-only initiative designed to enhance emotional literacy, strengthen stress management, and foster healthier workplace dynamics.
Over the course of three months, participants will engage in a series of interactive sessions that explore happiness, emotional regulation, relational patterns, and the power of art as a therapeutic tool. The programme will also incorporate art therapy workshops, offering creative avenues for participants to process emotions and reduce stress. The safe and supportive environment will enable women to share and reflect on their wellbeing, while addressing workplace challenges that impact leadership effectiveness.
Through pre- and post-assessments, the programme will measure its impact, equipping participants with practical tools and resources to enhance their professional performance, interpersonal relationships, and overall wellbeing. The programme can host up to 30 participants in onsite or online formats.
- Vicky Fung, Every Life is a Song Limited with Susanna Chung & Wiki Lo, Hong Kong
Project title: Coaching for Cultural Leadership in Hong Kong
Coaching for Cultural Leadership in Hong Kong is an initiative by Clore Fellows Susanna Chung, Vicky Fung, and Wan Ki Lo, aimed at empowering mid-career cultural leaders through transformative coaching practices. This project introduces coaching as a vital leadership tool to build resilience and help the sector navigate challenges in an evolving creative landscape. A one-day workshop will introduce coaching as a leadership practice, supported by a Chinese-language workbook tailored to Hong Kong’s cultural context. A Community Sharing and Networking Day fosters cross-sector dialogue and peer learning that builds a more supportive leadership community in Hong Kong. This pilot also serves as a research basis for evaluating coaching practices in Hong Kong, with potential for future expansion.
Deepti Navaratna, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bengaluru, India
Project title: Indian Cultural Diplomacy Leadership & Advocacy Group: Culturati
Deepti proposes establishing Culturati, a research and advocacy group to address leadership gaps in India’s cultural diplomacy. India’s current framework suffers from institutional fragmentation, limited civic participation, and weak integration of cultural policy with foreign policy. Culturati will create an inclusive platform bringing together artists, policymakers, and scholars to generate policy-relevant knowledge, connect cultural diplomacy with the creative economy, and strengthen India’s international cultural presence. Anchored at NIAS, the initiative will deliver a cultural diplomacy research monitor, three annual conclaves, and a policy brief in collaboration with the Ministry of External Affairs, fostering leadership in reimagining India’s global cultural engagement.
- Amayah Pelegrin, The Field Società Cooperativa, Trieste, Italy
Project title: Cultural Power
Bringing together cultural leaders in Trieste (north-east Italy) for three leadership development days, Cultural Power aims to share best practice and build capacity for place-based and culturally-led climate action to flourish locally. Hosted by the Museum of the Bora, the programme will take place in the context of the GO2025 Capital of Culture and the launch of Italy’s first national report on cultural climate action. Amayah will aim to network cultural leaders with potential collaborators from the civil and public sectors, share knowledge and build skills around place-based climate action, engage with policymakers, and articulate how culture can drive social and ecological transition.
- Anurupa Roy, Katkatha Puppet Arts Trust, New Delhi, India
Project title: Jugaad – Mapping Socially Engaged Arts Practice for Future Leadership in India
Socially Engaged Art/Art for Social Change/Applied Art is a political/social practice widely unmapped and often misunderstood within the wider Indian cultural landscape. A nation that is more familiar with ‘traditional heritage arts practices’ and gallery/museum-led practices, those leading in an SEA landscape are often dispersed, isolated and unseen and, due to the vastness of the country, unable to travel to see and learn from one another’s leadership journeys.
They will work accessibly through digital practice to collaboratively map leaders (current and emergent), understand practice needs, give skills and network them together for a stronger SEA sector leadership in India with global reach.
Through a pan-India online offer (webinars, pecha kuchas, mentoring, workshops), they will bring leaders together to contextualise their practice, network, map challenges/solutions, and create vital systems for knowledge-share and care, promoting resilience.
Clore Leadership will support the delivery of these proposals between now and March 2026.
This programme is kindly funded by the British Council.
Find out more about the Roots and Reach programme.
