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Dive deeper into the origin story and applications of the Capacity Compass in our blog article

Mapping and cultivating inner capacities for lasting change

The Capacity Compass serves as a bridge between the richness of academic research and the demands of everyday practice. It gives clear language to capacity development, which is often left vague but is foundational to success.

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The model maps the terrain of human potential across 16 individual and 12 collective capacities.

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At its heart lie the guiding principles of life-affirmation and self-renewal, emphasising a commitment to sustaining life and fostering ongoing transformation for a more just, compassionate, and regenerative future.

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Who is it for?

Leaders, teams and organisations navigating complex change processes and seeking to deepen their understanding of the human core of their work
Professionals involved in personal development, team and organisational learning, behavioral change, and designing and evaluating capacity-building programs

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What’s included?

A comprehensive model of human capacities across individual and collective levels.
Academically-proven indicators to measure each capacity.
Guidance on using the model to create your own Compass.

Access

The Capacity Compass is openly licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0). You are free to use, adapt, and build upon it—provided you credit Unity Effect and share any derivative works under the same open license.

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Working with Unity Effect's Capacity Compass helped us identify the capacities and capabilities we truly wanted to measure for the Bopa DiPeo fellowship. Jannik supported us in creating customized assessments for each fellow and the fellowship as a whole. He has an incredible way of making complex content clear and accessible and linking theory with practice.

Elsa Henderson Capacity Compass

Elsa Henderson

Co-Founder, Circle Generation

Our approach

Our approach is holistic and practical. We support you in applying the Capacity Compass to:

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Define the capacities that bring your organisational values and strategy to life.
Design meaningful assessments for your work culture (e.g. performance reviews) and capacity-building programs.
Inform your Theory of Change with the foundational capacities needed to drive lasting, meaningful impact
Foster participatory learning spaces that help individuals and teams thrive amidst challenges.

We got you covered

Ready to strengthen the human core of your work?

Dive deeper into the origin story and applications of the Capacity Compass in our blog article

Read the blog article

Let's work together to implement a tailored capacity development and evaluation framework for your organisation or program

Reach out to us

Book a free consultation to discuss your specific individual, team, or organisational development needs with us

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Past Projects

Kofi Annan Foundation

Design and facilitation of online and in-person modules for the Kofi Annan Changemakers Initiative

Since 2022, Unity Effect has worked with the foundation to design, facilitate and evaluate their Changemakers Initiative: a year-long program that brings together 12 selected young changemakers.

> Read more

Joachim Herz Foundation

Future Skills Journey

In collaboration with the Joachim Herz Foundation, we designed and implemented the Future Skills Journey: an impact-oriented training format for alumni of the Joachim Herz Foundation's Azubi-Kolleg and Azubi USA programs.

> Read more

Unity Effect

Purpose Journey

Aound 40 participants joined our Purpose Journey: a six-week deep-dive into personal purpose and values, reconnecting with inspiration and finding clarity for the path ahead.

> Read more

Curious to see more of our work?

Check out our portfolio to see all past projects.

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Blog

Our Resources

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5 min read

Leading change from the inside out: Evaluating the impact of our Purpose Journey

In this article we share the insights we gained from evaluating the impact of our Purpose Journey, including the underlying conditions for creating safe & transformative online spaces, the surprises waiting inside and making decisions and taking action in connection with yourself.

Category

5 min read

Introducing the Capacity Compass: A practical framework for capacity development

The Capacity Compass is built on a simple yet powerful idea: thriving individuals, teams, and systems are built upon a set of foundational human capacities. Drawing on foundational work in systems thinking, complexity science, psychology, and insights from contemplative and indigenous knowledge traditions, the Compass identifies 28 core capacities across individual and collective levels. It provides a shared language for the essential human and relational qualities needed for regenerative impact.

Category

5 min read

Future Skills Journey: A practice ground for self-agency and connection - for us and our future

“I am more aware of what I am capable of.” Reading this comment from a participant makes my heart swell with joy after completing our 5-week Future Skills Journey with the Joachim Herz Foundation and 20 young adults. We're excited to share the results, experiences, and impact evaluation from this transformative program.

Category

5 min read

Regenerative Signal: A journey of evaluation, recognition & learning

Traditional evaluation often misses what truly matters: the relational, emergent changes that signal real transformation. Regenerative Signal is a learning journey that reimagines evaluation as a living practice, helping organisations measure meaningful impact through our open-source Impact Garden framework. Combining live workshops, self-paced learning, and practical tools, we support leaders and change-makers to bridge the gap between the change they create and the impact they can communicate.