About
Why?
Where?
Who?
Meet the Team
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Purpose
Values
Engaged in CONTEXT: Context shapes what we do and how we do it.
Inspiring EXCELLENCE: Serving with distinctive quality.
Effective TEAMWORK: Working with others to go further.
Where we are
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Ukraine
Moldova
Central Asia
Ireland
Great Britain
Other countries
Our history
In 2005, Innovista became an independent charity, in recognition that the local church also needed to be supported. Since then, as well as maintaining a long-standing missional presence in many countries including Ukraine, Christian leaders have been supported by the ‘Leading for Life’ conferences held across Europe, the ‘Glad you asked!’ evangelistic series, and the popular Tempo course.
Innovista continues to provide wide-ranging support for Christian leaders serving in challenging contexts. Every year, around 1,500 people from around the world are trained by local staff based in Britain, Ireland, Moldova, Ukraine and two Central Asian Republics.
2000
Innovista starts as an initiative focusing on catalysing effective evangelism among the under-resourced national student ministries of the former Soviet Union and Europe.
Good leadership is identified as being one of the most important factors for successful mission.
Pioneering work begins in challenging locations, including Belarus, Ukraine, Russia and Latvia.
2001
Innovista supports local mission teams by combining creative evangelism with leadership training and mentoring.
Willow Creek’s ‘Becoming a Contagious Christian’ is contextualised and translated for use by students and staff.
2004
An evangelistic small group resource called ‘Glad You Asked!’ is developed and launched. It is subsequently translated into seven languages, including Russian.
2005
Innovista becomes a fully independent charity (registered in the UK). The move followed the recognition that the local church needed to be resourced too, as well as student ministries.
2006
The first ‘Leading for Life’ conference hosts 70 young leaders in Berlin. Innovista develops the Zerro weekend, an evangelistic retreat to help young people encounter Jesus for the first time.
2007
The Tempo Leadership Course is launched, which helps missional leaders clarify their vision, develop strategy, and improve their teamwork, so that people and communities are changed by Jesus.
2009
Ministry begins in Siberia.
Innovista Ireland is launched.
2010
‘Leading for Life’ is held in Central Asia for leaders from four countries.
The Thrive initiative is launched to develop young leaders in disadvantaged communities in the UK.2013
Innovista appoints its first National Director of a Central Asian country.
2014
A further training base is opened in another Central Asian country.
‘Leading for Life’ is held in Vienna with 60 young leaders from eight countries.
2015
50 young leaders gather in Central Asia for training.
2016
Nearly 400 leaders attend five one-day ‘Leading for Life’ events (in L’viv, Chisinau, Omsk, Linz and Dublin). A further 45 attend a week-long ‘Leading for Life’ gathering in Central Asia.
2017
Tempo version 2 is launched to enable leadership teams to participate together, speed up the implementation of what they learn, and help churches and ministries have a deeper impact.
2018
In one of the Central Asian republics another training hub is started in a new region.
2019
Innovista Moldova is launched.
Youth Ministry Training is started in the UK, using the experience gained through the Thrive teams.
2020
The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns cause many challenges for ministry across Europe.
2021
Innovista commissions a ‘Learning and Impact’ system to help measure impact more accurately.
The Mindshift course is launched to help leaders in post-Soviet contexts.
2022
The Ukraine war hugely impacts ministry, as resources have to be diverted to help local church leaders serve their communities. For security reasons, Innovista has to stop work in Siberia. The Resilient Families programme is commissioned from Viva and is launched to help with the emotional impact of the war.
2023
The first trainers’ gatherings are held in Riga, Latvia, and Central Asia.