Dear Changemakers around the world,
Here we are at the end of 2025. Looking back, for us, the year was marked by many firsts, moments that signalled new beginnings and opened doors we had been preparing to step through for some time.
We gathered in person as The Possibilists for the very first time. We launched new work around AI, opening conversations that felt both necessary and overdue. We finally gave The Facilitators a name, a home, and a clearer identity. We shared changemakers’ stories through film for the first time, allowing their voices and lived realities to be seen and felt in new ways.
And yet, 2025 was not only about stepping into the new. It was also about standing more firmly in what we already hold. Alongside these beginnings, we also deepened our practice and revisited how we make decisions and hold responsibility as an organisation. We found ourselves returning to questions of how we work, not just what we do, learning and relearning as we went.
So here it is, our end-of-year reflection as we experienced it, sitting in that tension between first steps and growing depth. We hope this offers a moment to pause, to notice what has taken shape, and to reflect on the journeys we continue to walk together.
ChangemakerXchange Community
Changemakers for the Planet
Early in the year, we welcomed a new wave of climate changemakers through Changemakers for the Planet. Between February and June, 35 new community members joined us from Sub-Saharan Africa and the USA & Canada, each bringing grounded action and local wisdom in response to the planetary crises we face.
Their onboarding marked a deepening of our collective responsibility to care for the people and planet.
ChangemakerXchange.AI
As the year progressed, a new chapter emerged with the launch of the ChangemakerXchange.AI programme. This global initiative supports young changemakers to navigate the world of AI, including both the opportunity and the promise, and the threats and risks.
Across Europe, Latin America, and MENA, 47 changemakers came together to explore possibilities of more human-centred approaches to technology, with the support of SAP and EY.
Ecosystem Events
Our presence within the wider ecosystem also continued to grow. This year, we supported changemakers to access opportunities, stipends, and visibility at ChangeNOW in Paris and COP30 in Belém.
These moments were not only about being seen, but about ensuring changemakers could show up fully, contribute meaningfully, and be recognised as vital actors within global conversations.
Changemakers for Democracy Film Series
Mid-year, storytelling took centre stage through the Changemakers for Democracy Film Series. Eight short films were released, each of which tells the work, values, and lived experiences of Changemakers for Democracy Fellows.
They all offered powerful reminders that democracy is not only shaped from the top down, but built and sustained from the ground up, through everyday action and participation.
ChangemakerXchange.AI Hub
Towards the end-of-year, our work around AI came into fuller expression with the launch of the ChangemakerXchange.AI Hub. Designed as a living resource, the Hub brings together our Policy and Manifesto, practical resources, and real-world case studies, equipping changemakers to navigate the AI landscape with intentionality, conscience, and integrity.
Capacity Building
Alongside these milestones, capacity building remained a steady source of support for our community members throughout the year.
We offered over 20 online sessions across themes such as leadership, fundraising, peer learning, and futures thinking, including the BAN Pathways for the Future programme, the Changemakers for Democracy Peer Learning Series, and a range of publicly accessible AI masterclasses.
Community Engagement
Amidst ongoing global challenges, we held spaces that centred listening, connection, and belonging. Through Community Consultancy and Focus Groups, we listened to our members’ perspectives, helping us learn, adapt, and grow together. Alongside this, Community Commons and Community Kindling offered spaces for changemakers to connect, reflect, make sense of complexity, and learn from one another, reminding us that change is sustained through human connection.
If you wish to connect with our community members, we invite you to explore our Changemakers Map.
In Memory of Alwaleed Abdeen
And yet, 2025 was not only a year of celebration. It was also a year marked by loss. We grieved the passing of one of our community members from Sudan, Alwaleed Abdeen. His loss was a painful reminder of the realities many changemakers live with, and of the fragility of life amidst conflict and injustice. We carry his memory with us, honouring his presence, his courage, and the impact he had on those around him and within his community.
We continue to stand alongside changemakers living in crisis through our Crisis Response initiative, gathering information on emerging needs, mobilising support where possible, and inviting our wider community to engage in ways that are thoughtful and meaningful.
The Facilitators
Launch of the new brand + website
In 2025, our facilitation work took on a clearer shape and stronger identity. In April, we launched a new brand and website for The Facilitators, marking an important evolution of the second pillar of our work.
This renewed identity responded to a growing interest and need for facilitation approaches that are more dynamic, innovative and participatory. It also reflected a belief we have long held, that facilitation is not just a method, but a vital practice for social change. As we often say, “facilitation = the software for social change.”
Facilitation Partnerships
Throughout the year, our facilitation work came to life through a range of partnerships. With the Bosch Alumni Network, we co-designed and delivered the Pathways for the Future Learning Series, convening leading voices at the intersection of social change, ecological wisdom, decolonial pathways, and systemic transformation.
In parallel, our collaboration with SOS Children’s Villages saw us serving as a high-level advisor on programme strategy and as a facilitation partner for the Eco Champions project. We also supported mentoring matches between SOS participants and members of the ChangemakerXchange community, strengthening cross-sector learning and connection.
Tailored Online Facilitation Trainings
Capacity building remained a core focus of this pillar. Over the course of the year, we delivered tailored online facilitation trainings for a range of partners.
For Porticus and Laudes Foundation, we ran two eight-session online facilitation training journeys for programme managers. We also designed and delivered shorter, customised facilitation courses for teams at Kersia and UiPath Foundation, responding to their specific organisational contexts and learning needs.
Facilitation Training & Ecosystem Building for Climate Leaders in Europe
In July, our work extended to a highly experiential facilitation and community building training for climate leaders in Europe. Supported by Fondazione Cariplo, this journey was designed to deepen facilitation skills while exploring how to spark collaboration, strengthen relationships, and energise climate movements across the region.
Alongside our training work, we continue to make our facilitation knowledge publicly accessible, sharing insights, tools, and reflections from our practice.
Community Stewards and The Facilitators Strategy Meeting
Throughout the year, we worked with a group of Community Stewards, experimenting with the Community Weaving Framework and collectively making sense of our growing community of facilitation practice.
In October, we invited the Community Stewards to bring their insights into The Facilitators Strategy Meeting, where they contributed to sharpening our vision, mission, theory of change, and strategic direction, grounding our future plans.
The Possibilists
Launch of The Possibilists Global Study & Report 2025
In 2025, The Possibilists continued to deepen its role as a global alliance working to improve conditions for young changemakers by translating their experiences into insights that can ultimately lead to systemic change.
Between March and June, we launched The Possibilists Global Study & Report 2025. This year, we took the study further by introducing an interactive, gamified approach powered by Play Verto, enabling us to gather richer, more nuanced insights from changemakers aged 14 to 35.
Launch of The Global AI Deep Dive 2025
Alongside the Global Report, we launched the Global AI Deep Dive 2025. This complementary study explored how changemakers are using AI in their work, as well as their concerns, hopes, and ethical considerations around these tools.
Updates from the Ecosystem
Throughout the year, we also continued to share updates from the ecosystem, curating and amplifying opportunities for changemakers worldwide.
Through our newsletters and social media channels, we highlighted funding opportunities, capacity-building programmes, reading materials, and fellowships, helping changemakers navigate an often fragmented support landscape.
Launch of The Possibilists Future Economy Study
Furthermore, between September and November, we began work on The Possibilists Future Economy Study, which explores how changemakers across Europe envision and contribute to a more sustainable and inclusive economic future.
The study centres changemakers’ roles, lived experiences, and challenges, while highlighting their contributions to economic transformation. The Future Economy Report will be released in 2026, with a sneak preview already available.
The Possibilists Gathering
After four years of virtual convenings, we hosted The Possibilists Gathering for the first time in person. In Berlin, 40 representatives from more than a dozen of the world’s leading youth-support organisations and Possibilists Council members came together to reimagine and co-create a future in which every young social innovator is meaningfully supported.
Some moments are hard to capture in words, but the feeling of being together and imagining what’s possible was just unmistakable.
Launch of The Possibilists Directory
To close the year, we launched a refreshed and improved The Possibilists Directory in December, with opportunities provided by Leaders of Today.
The updated page makes it easier for changemakers to discover live and time-bound opportunities that truly meet them where they are, connecting them with funding, programmes, and support aligned with their contexts and needs.
Thank you for taking the time to be here and to reflect on this year with us.
We are deeply grateful to the changemakers, partners, collaborators, and supporters who continue to walk alongside us. Your trust, your engagement, and the many ways you contribute make it possible for both new beginnings and deeper work to take shape.
As we move into the year ahead, we carry with us what this year has offered: the courage to begin, the patience to deepen, and the responsibility to keep learning how we show up for one another. We will continue to do our best to support inclusive communities where people connect, care, and take meaningful action for the wellbeing of people and planet.
With love and gratitude,
The ChangemakerXchange Team