From Engaging Humanity Through Education, to Engaging Coaching for Humanity and the Planet:

Since 2017, the Ignite Initiative has used the collective power of the ICF chapters’ pro bono projects to accelerate progress on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal #4 Education.

Now the Ignite Initiative is evolving to a new phase of this work in two key ways:

1. Who is eligible to coach: Participating ICF credentialed Coaches may include those with an ACC, PCC, or MCC.  ACC participants no longer need one prior ICF renewal.  Also ICF Chapters and ICF Members both can create Ignite projects. In the past, this was a chapter-only program.
2. What organizations are eligible as partners: To better respond to the current events of our world, the focus of a pro bono Ignite project can be on any one of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals.  Ignite projects will no longer be limited to SDG# 4 Education.

ICF Foundation Board member, Saima Butt, MCC, explains the change in focus. “Be open to an Ignite Project beyond SDG#4 in Education. Find yourself a leader who works in any one of the 17 SDG areas.  Look for where the greatest need is within your own communities that would have the greatest impact through coaching.  Look for a place where coaching would not necessarily have been available to the leaders of an NGO, charity or NFP organisations.  We are looking to scale up the productivity of these charitable organizations through the impact of coaching.”

Coaching in Ignite is now focused on creating a ripple effect and amplifying social impact.  For guidance on this work, the Ignite Road Map  and the Ignite Resource Suite of Tools are available at the ICF Foundation website. There you will find support on coaching in the social sector, strategies for moving the needle, and methods for collecting data to measure progress.

Functional Next Steps will include:

• Finding a partner with buy-in and matching priorities.
• Recruiting Coaches and Matching with Clients
• Locating useful tools and documents for managing the project.
• Accessing Agreement documents for use with stakeholders and clients
• Officially signing up a project with the ICF Foundation.

Are you ready to make a difference, to explore new horizons with Ignite?  Share your thoughts and questions in our comments section below, and let us know how can we support your efforts.