The Prefiguring Futures Lab John W. Mack Fellowship

We are thrilled to be offering the Prefiguring Futures Lab John W. Mack Fellowship. Created for Los Angeles area organizers—including those working in advocacy, campaigning, healing, and cultural strategy—the Lab is a rigorous, sacred, and liberatory learning space for people working across the L.A. area (and surrounding counties) to advance transformational change. At a time when communities are carrying the weight of the fires’ aftermath, continued ICE raids, and other aspects of systemic oppression, the Lab also seeks to be a nourishing space—one where participants can replenish themselves while practicing together toward collective freedom. The Lab invites those who are committed to building liberated futures to be in intentional practice together.

This offering grows from over six years of deep collaboration with the Weingart Foundation through the John W. Mack Movement Building Fellowship. The fellowship is a space that centers the experiences of Black, Indigenous, and people of color to deepen their capacity for liberating transformation, nourish relationships across movements and the region, cross-pollinate effective strategies and practices, and transform the being and doing necessary for liberation. It is also rooted in Change Elemental’s longstanding Lab practices, which hold space for experimentation, embodied learning, political imagination, and collective care. Learn more about the Mack Fellows and our previous Lab offerings here.

The Fellowship Lab Experience

This year-long experience will bring together 16 leaders advancing liberation and sovereignty through community organizing—including action research, cultural strategies, and healing support—from across the Los Angeles area for learning and practice.

Areas of Inquiry & Practice

“Leading from LANDS [liberation and sovereignty], multiple ways of knowing, energetics —fresh and grounded BIPOC theory with an acknowledgment of spirit—led to personal breakthroughs for me.”

– Lab Participant (June 2024)

A Theory of Transformation: Connecting to and deepening our pathways and portals to the next world now through:

LANDS (Liberation AND Sovereignty): Fellows will cultivate shared historic and current power analyses and engage in healing practices through connection with the land, movement, ceremony, and kin(ship) with all sentience.
Complexity: Fellows will learn what moving interdependently in uncertain and chaotic terrain requires of them from real examples and by exploring how they can draw on this knowledge for powerbuilding in their various roles.
Shared Leadership and Power: Through practices like engaging power over, with, and within, and embracing generative conflict, Fellows deepen their leadership power and purpose in ways that are both grounding and regenerative.
Multiple Ways of Knowing: Fellows are invited to integrate and embrace cultural, ancestral, and embodied wisdom as guides, supporting connection with their inner wisdom and collective power.
Inner Work: Moving with purpose, source, and the sacred is at the core of tending to the being necessary for liberating change. Fellows engage in somatic, breath, creative, and contemplative practices that nourish and generate new possibilities from the inside out.
Praxis: Experimentation design and practice supports fellows in strategically moving forward in emergence by offering a lightweight approach to iterative applied learning. By putting the skills and strategies from the Lab into immediate use in fellows’ leadership, organizations, networks, and movements, transformative change is possible.

Through inquiry, connection, experimentation, and (re)membering, we seed and nourish the relational roots necessary for interdependent, thriving movements.

Who This Lab is For

The Fellowship is designed for people rooted in the Los Angeles area who have been steadily advancing liberatory change through community organizing—including advocacy, healing, cultural strategy, and resourcing movements.

We are seeking leaders who are committed to deepening liberatory transformation to meet this moment (and the next), building community and connections that can advance justice-oriented change.

The fellowship is an immersive experience for people who have moved into a leadership/supervisory role at their organization and/or movement-building networks within the past three years and have been working towards collective liberation for five years or more.

See more details below.

Application Process

TThis is a year-long Lab journey designed for those who are ready to explore, experiment, and co-create liberatory futures together.

Our application process is an invitation to share more about who you are, what you’re carrying, and what you’re longing for in your work and leadership. We’re seeking people who are curious, courageous, and committed to learning in community.

While we honor the work and gifts of leaders across California and the country, this Lab is specifically for those living and/or working in one of the following five counties:

Los Angeles County
Orange County
San Bernardino County
Riverside County
Ventura County

Applications are now open and include a short form, reflection prompts, a space to name any access needs you have, and a place to ask questions. We encourage applications from individuals rooted in frontline communities, networks, or organizations in the greater Los Angeles area. A select number of applicants will be invited to interview for the Lab.

Application Process Timeline

September 2025: Applications open
October 2, 2025: Applications close
October 2025: Application review period
November 2025: Interviews with selected finalists
December 2025: Fellows selected

The Details

Gatherings, Learning Sessions, & More

The Lab will unfold over a year through a blend of in-person and virtual components designed to foster deep connection, shared learning, and ongoing practice. Participants will gather in person three times for immersive convenings, and between these gatherings, we’ll stay in close community through virtual learning days and one-on-one coaching sessions that support reflection, integration, and application. This rhythm enables sustained momentum while also allowing for spaciousness, adaptability, and emergence.

The dates for our sessions are outlined below. We expect fellows to attend all sessions. The in-person gatherings will take place in the L.A. area.

February 18, 2026 – Orientation (Half-Day Virtual)
March 16-20, 2026 – 1st Retreat (In-person)
May 14, 2026 – Learning Day (Half-Day Virtual)
July 20-24, 2026 – 2nd Retreat: (In-person)
August 19, 2026 – Learning Day (Half-Day Virtual)
Oct 6-9, 2026 – 3rd Retreat (In-person)

Coaching

Each fellow will receive 15 hours of one-on-one virtual leadership coaching with a certified coach from our coaching pool. This coaching provides confidential, personalized support to help fellows align their values with action, navigate complexity, and deepen their leadership.

Coaching is integrated with the Lab’s content and practices, reinforcing learning and supporting transformation across both individual and collective levels.

Accessibility

We take accessibility seriously and are committed to creating a space where everyone can participate as fully as possible. We’ll work with each fellow to develop individualized plans that accommodate their unique access needs, including but not limited to food and environmental allergies, as well as mobility, sensory, and safety considerations.

This Lab will be held in English. We recognize this as a limitation and are continuing to explore how to fund future offerings that weave language justice more fully.

Safety & Care Practices

We hold the health and well-being of our fellows and their communities with deep care. In advance of each in-person gathering, we will share up-to-date COVID protocols based on current public health guidance, venue requirements, and the needs of the group. This may include testing before arrival, optional or required masking indoors, and ventilation or outdoor meeting options where possible.

If you have specific health or safety concerns or needs, we’ll work with you to develop a plan that supports your full participation and balances the group’s needs as well.

Retreat Accommodations

The Lab includes room and board for all in-person retreats. All sleeping spaces will be private, and bathrooms will be gender-inclusive. We can’t guarantee exclusive use of retreat venues.

Stipend

Each fellow will receive an $8,000 stipend, disbursed in two payments over the course of the Lab. This stipend is provided to the individual fellow (not their organization) to support their participation and is contingent on full engagement.

Info Session

Join us on Thursday, September 18, 2025, from 11:00 AM–12:00 PM PST for a virtual information session about the Prefiguring Futures Lab John W. Mack Fellowship.

In this session, you’ll:

Hear about the fellowship’s vision, structure, and program details
Learn what to expect from the application and selection process
Ask questions in an open Q&A forum
Connect with alumni who will share their experiences and learnings

This is a great opportunity to hear more about the Fellowship from us and alumni. Register here.