December 2025

The Challenge Student disengagement is one of the most urgent issues facing schools. In some communities, attendance rates are falling, and students at risk of leaving education early face compounding disadvantages. For leaders, disengagement is not just an educational issue — it’s social, economic, and cultural. At Katherine High School, leaders recognised that tackling disengagement […]

The Patience of Change: Leadership for a World in Transition What does it take to lead when the world itself is changing form? When institutions are being remade, when time horizons stretch beyond the next quarter, and when complexity demands patience over speed — how must leadership evolve? In the fifth episode of The Future

Australia is living through a moment of profound transition. Across the country, people are navigating overlapping disruptions — environmental shocks, social fragmentation, institutional distrust, and economic precarity. We are in a period where old systems are breaking down while new ones remain uncertain and unfinished. Against this backdrop, the recent Transforming Systems Forum, co-hosted with

The Menzies Leadership Foundation is delighted to announce Elly Hanrahan as the 2026 Menzies Youth Board Observer, following a competitive and rigorous selection process. This initiative, now in its second year, builds on the success of the inaugural appointment of Dr Thi Kim (Julie) Dao, the 2025 Youth Board Observer. We thank Dr. Thi Kim

Indigenous women across the Kimberley — and increasingly across Northern Australia — are not just building businesses. They are building futures. A powerful transformation is underway, led by Indigenous women themselves: women redefining what economic participation, leadership, and community strength look like on Country. Since 2020, the Menzies Leadership Foundation has been honoured to walk

Australia is entering an era defined by uncertainty, interdependence and accelerating change.   Climate instability, technological disruption, global tensions and profound social fragmentation are reshaping every sector — demanding leadership capable not of controlling complexity, but of navigating it.  In this moment, the ANU Leadership & Complexity Lab, supported by the Menzies Leadership Foundation, has emerged

By Sarah Jenkins, Menzies Leadership Foundation AI will not replace leaders — but leaders who cannot govern AI responsibly will be replaced by those who can.  Artificial intelligence is reshaping societies, economies and institutions faster than most leaders can absorb. From automated decision-making to personalised learning systems, AI is now embedded in everyday life. Yet

Youth leadership in Australia is experiencing a quiet but profound transformation. As global systems strain under the weight of escalating complexity — what many now describe as a “polycrisis” — young Australians are not simply observing from the sidelines. They are stepping forward with clarity, conviction, and purpose. Few organisations embody this shift more powerfully

The Challenge While school improvement often focuses on resources, curriculum, or structures, research shows that a hidden factor may be even more powerful: collective efficacy. This is the belief among educators that, together, they can positively impact student outcomes. Yet, until recently, collective efficacy was almost impossible to measure. Leaders knew culture mattered, but they

Finding the Middle Ground: Rediscovering Our Shared Responsibility In a world marked by polarisation and fragmentation, how do we rediscover the space between us — the middle ground where shared purpose and collective action can flourish? In the fourth episode of The Future of Leadership Development, host Dr Toby Newstead is joined by Jack Manning