Positive Leadership: The Science of Meaningful Impact - from the Self, to Teams, to Organizations. A weekly online course for those aspiring to create a positive impact in the world. 15 sessions between 1 September and 17 November 2026, Tuesdays.
Democratic Resilience & Human Rights Law in Times of Global Crises: Block seminar from 5 to 10 October 2026 in Berlin
Global Challenges through a Berlin Lens. Ten online sessions from October to November, and a five-day on-site program in Berlin (7-11 December).
Grow your impact. From Berlin to the world.
Interdisciplinary courses. A city rich in history and shaped by change. Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin brings together tomorrow's leaders to tackle the challenges that define our era.
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin invites professionals and students from around the world to join our exciting courses at the intersection of leadership, democracy, and global transformation.
Berlin’s oldest university is offering an unforgettable learning experience: Interdisciplinary studies, in online, blended and on-site formats.
Developed in the Humboldtian tradition of uniting knowledge with experience, each course combines academic depth with expert speakers and real-world case studies. You will work alongside a diverse international cohort of peers who share your drive to understand the world and make an impact in it.
Receive a certificate from one of Europe's most prestigious universities — and take ideas home that last.
Positive Leadership: The Science of Meaningful Impact - from the Self, to Teams, to Organizations
A weekly online course for those aspiring to create a positive impact in the world
What do the founder of The Body Shop, the former New Zealand Prime Minister, and the Dalai Lama have in common?
Each one found a way to lead and change systems around them without losing sight of what truly matters - people. During this course, you will examine how these leaders were able to create a positive impact in the world.
Positive leadership is a rigorous, evidence-based course built on the psychology of leadership, positive psychology, and positive organizational behavior — a framework developed by Prof. Kim Cameron at the University of Michigan and enriched by former Harvard Prof. Tal Ben-Shahar's work on leadership, wellbeing and high performance. Through a blend of theory, workshops, guest speakers, and the resolution of real-world challenges, you will investigate how successful leaders cultivate resilience, adaptability, and compassion in the face of 21st-century complexities.
The journey moves through three layers: enhancing your capacity to lead, then building high-performing teams, and, finally, contributing meaningfully to organizations and society. At the end, you will craft your Leadership Statement, a clear articulation of your values, strengths, and leadership approach that serves as a compass and a roadmap for your career. You will leave the course with both the theoretical frameworks and the practical tools to lead with purpose and impact.
Additional skills
Yourself:
Teams you lead:
Make a bigger impact:
Create your Leadership Statement:
Course period: 1 September - 17 November 2026
Number of hours (in total): 30 hours of 45 minutes each
Course structure (online course): 15 online sessions: 12 weekly academic lessons (90-minute online sessions) and 3 additional guest speaker sessions (90-minute online sessions)
Date and time: Tuesdays, 15:00-16:30 CET (Berlin time). The class time may still be adjusted, depending on the time zones in which the participants are located.
Course fee:
Democratic Resilience & Human Rights Law in Times of Global Crises
Explore the transformative journey of international human rights norms and standards, their impact on democratic transitions and reversals via transitional justice. Berlin offers a distinctive environment for studying this subject, as the city bears palpable evidence of historical struggles for democracy and human rights.
The course gives you the opportunity to:
Get incentives for sustainable change and development toward resilient, democratic, and globally-local communities.
The course is designed in collaboration with lecturers and professionals from the Center on Governance through Human Rights at the Berlin Governance Platform (BGP), the German Center for Peace Operations (ZIF), the ‘Stiftung Aufarbeitung’ in Berlin, and the Global Campus of Human Rights in Venice.
Course period: 5-10 October 2026
Number of hours (in total): 42 hours of 45 minutes each
Course structure (onsite course): 6-day block seminar in Berlin: Monday-Saturday, 9:00 am – 4:00 pm CET (Berlin time)
Global Challenges and Opportunities – Through a Berlin Lens
How can individuals worldwide create ideas for a better future, society, and environment? Berlin serves as your classroom for exploring global issues. Students engage with current worldwide issues through interdisciplinary studies, discussions, and collaborative projects. They develop innovative solutions influenced by Berlin's vibrant cultural and intellectual environment.
This course is built on the idea that today’s challenges cannot be understood in isolation. It guides learners to look beyond a single issue and instead explore how topics like migration, inequality, sustainability, and governance are deeply interconnected and constantly evolving within local and global contexts.
Berlin itself plays a central role in this process. As a city shaped by division and reunification, it offers a unique lens on political transformation and social change. As real-world case studies, we see the ongoing negotiation of global economic pressures against a strong local identity, the careful engagement with cultural memory after devastating historical events, and the development into a diverse, multicultural society.
We won’t solve all global problems in this course, but we will unite university students and young professionals to swap views, question beliefs, and collaboratively develop concepts for solutions. International teamwork allows participants to leverage diverse viewpoints and empowers them to translate their learning into meaningful local contributions, because enduring change begins at home.
Course period: October - December 2026
Online session: 10 sessions, times TBC.
The class time will be adjusted, depending on the time zones in which the participants are located.
On-site session: 7-11 December 2026 with 25 contact hours
Course format summary
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Here, you can find more information on the program costs, available discounts, funding options and payment methods. Learn more
Here, you can find everything about the acquisition and recognition of ECTS study points and other credits. Learn more
From visa applications to necessary insurances to finding accommodation, here you will find helpful information about your stay in Berlin. Learn more
