Mapping the Intergenerational Triangle
Research Insights to Intergenerational Leadership Practice
Not mentorship. Not hierarchy. Shared power. Shared leadership. Intergenerational YWCA.
Across a world shaped by persistent injustice, urgent crises, and shrinking civic space, women, young women, and girls are rising—together. As the World YWCA moves boldly toward Goal 2035—where 100 million young women and girls transform power structures to create justice, gender equality, and a world free from violence and war—we know that how we lead is as
important as what we do. That future demands a shift: from transactional leadership to transformational, intergenerational leadership (IGL).
This report presents the findings of a global, co-created research journey by World YWCA and One Future Collective to lay the groundwork for a tool that enables feminist civil society organisations to practice, assess, and strengthen intergenerational leadership in all its richness and complexity.
At its core, IGL is not about age—it’s about agency, shared power, and accountability across generations. It resists the binary of ‘young’ and ‘old’, and instead cultivates leadership as a collective ecosystem—rooted in mutuality, co-creation, and a redistribution of power. It celebrates what happens when generations lead with each other, not just after or in place of one
another. This work is not new to the YWCA movement. Rooted in over a century of global leadership, the commitment to intergenerational leadership was renewed and reaffirmed at the World YWCA Council meetings in 2011 (Zurich) and 2015 (Bangkok)—moments that shaped our recent Strategic Frameworks (2020-2023) and (2024-2027) and clarified the centrality of intergenerational leadership to our collective vision for transformation.
The process of developing this tool began with an extensive literature review followed by a landscape analysis of existing models of intergenerational leadership. Guided by the Feminist Consultation Methodology, this research engaged over 100 participants from across the globe through surveys, focus groups, interviews, and a co-design lab. What emerged was clear: IGL is already alive in stories, struggles, and spaces—but it is often informal, unrecognised, or unsupported. There is a hunger for tangible tools, shared language, and intentional practices that make IGL real and sustainable in organisational settings. This guide is not exhaustive. It reflects YWCA’s rooted expertise and those most aligned with our intergenerational practice. As
it is used globally, we will continue to build on this research—expanding voices, models, and perspectives across sectors and identities.
Read the literature review and research report here.