Kaospilots - Denmark

The Kaospilot school was founded in Aarhus in 1991 by Uffe Elbæk. It is based on a cultural and social youth organisation called the Frontrunners (DA: Frontløberne), as a response to the emerging need for a new type of education. With roots in activism culture and with inspiration from the Danish folk high school and the Danish co-operative movement, the Bauhaus School in Berlin and the Beatnik movement in San Francisco, the school helps young people navigate the changing reality of today’s society.

The intention was to create an education for action-oriented people who seek out and utilize new knowledge. And for those who understand changing needs and shift systems to fit changing cultural, social and economic realities. It was also about creating a learning environment where students could learn, lead and be enterprising – essential skills that would enable students to work towards an unknown future. This education went on to become the flagship 3-year program: The Enterprising Leadership Program.

A Kaospilot is a graduate of the 3-year Enterprising Leadership Program. A Kaospilot is a profession in its own right. It is a person who drives results and creates transformation and who can best be described as a changemaker, an entrepreneur and a leader.

Kaospilots are people who can creatively lead a project through uncertainty and complexity. It is a person who often cares more about creating meaningful change in an organisation. As individuals, they possess crucial skills within project management, process leadership and business development, which make them masters at leading and driving a team forward in a project, especially during challenging and uncertain times.

A Kaospilot is trained to work across disciplines and in different industries and sectors, using their widely varying knowledge sets, abilities and competencies to make a lasting and positive difference. Some Kaospilots work in corporations, civil organisations, government agencies or the cultural sector. Others create their own start-up, social enterprise or work on large-scale projects.

A Kaospilot is trained to work across disciplines and fields and is capable of combining and integrating widely varying knowledge sets, abilities and competencies. There are many paths and opportunities for a Kaospilot!