Yale Emerging Climate Leaders Fellowship 2027 in United States | Fully Funded — International Leadership Center, Yale University

Sixteen climate leaders, five to ten years of professional experience each, and a five-month journey spanning New Haven and Paris. The Yale Emerging Climate Leaders Fellowship exists for one specific purpose: giving experienced climate and clean energy professionals from the Global South a structured platform to sharpen their expertise and expand their global network.

Run by Yale’s International Leadership Center in partnership with departments across the university, the fellowship blends in-person immersion with sustained remote learning.

About the Scholarship

The Yale Emerging Climate Leaders Fellowship targets young, established professionals working across the climate and clean energy space in developing countries throughout Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America and the Caribbean. Rather than an entry-level training program, it is built for people who already have real accomplishments to draw on, whether that means public sector work, entrepreneurship, journalism, legal advocacy, or policymaking connected to climate change.

The five-month fellowship unfolds in three distinct parts. It opens with a one-week, in-person orientation at Yale University from 1 to 5 February 2027, bringing the full cohort together in New Haven for the first time. From there, fellows move into Remote Learning Journeys, running from March through June 2027, during which climate fellows themselves organize and lead a series of interactive remote sessions with leading global experts on policy issues connected to climate change and the clean energy transition. The program closes with an in-person week in Paris from 14 to 18 June 2027, where fellows meet with top international climate analysts and share the perspectives they have built throughout the program.

That structure gives fellows something genuinely rare: sustained, multi-month engagement with a cohort of peers working on similar problems in different regional contexts, punctuated by two in-person gatherings on different continents rather than a single conference-style event. Because fellows themselves help lead the remote sessions, the program treats participants as contributors to the curriculum, not just recipients of it, which shapes a genuinely collaborative dynamic across the cohort.

Host organizations cover every cost connected to both in-person weeks, including round-trip airfare, accommodation, local transfers, meals, and other related expenses, removing financial barriers that might otherwise keep talented professionals from developing countries out of a program like this. Applicants drawn to Yale’s broader leadership fellowship offerings might also compare this program against the Yale Peace Fellowship, which is run by the same International Leadership Center but focuses on peacebuilding and conflict prevention rather than climate leadership specifically. Professionals interested in paid, longer-term policy research alongside a leadership fellowship might also look at the Wilson Center Fellowship Program, a full 12-month research fellowship based in Washington, D.C. rather than this program’s five-month, dual-continent leadership format.

The Global South focus is central to understanding what makes this fellowship distinctive. Many prominent international climate leadership programs draw disproportionately from wealthier countries and established institutions, and this fellowship is explicitly designed to counter that pattern by centering professionals from developing regions who are often closest to the front lines of climate impact but furthest from the international platforms where climate policy gets shaped. That framing carries through into the program’s emphasis on cross-regional dialogue, with fellows expected to bring genuinely different national and regional perspectives into the same conversations.

The cohort-led structure of the remote learning phase also deserves attention. Rather than a passive lecture series, fellows themselves organize and lead sessions, which means the program’s actual content evolves based on what the specific 16 fellows in a given cohort consider most pressing. Two different cohorts, drawing from different countries and professional backgrounds, could end up covering meaningfully different ground within the same five-month structure.

Scholarship Benefits

The fellowship’s funding model is straightforward: host organizations absorb the costs of both in-person components so fellows can focus entirely on the experience itself.

• Full coverage of round-trip airfare for both in-person weeks in New Haven and Paris
• Accommodation covered throughout both in-person components
• Local transfers and per diem for meals during in-person weeks
• Structured, cohort-led remote learning sessions with leading global experts from March through June 2027
• Direct engagement with eminent Yale faculty members and a broader network of leading climate practitioners
• Membership in a genuinely international network of 16 climate leaders spanning diverse professions, regions, and perspectives
• A meaningful opportunity to visit both the United States and France as part of the fellowship experience

Eligibility Criteria

• Applicants should be representatives of the Global South, including individuals from developing countries in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America and the Caribbean
• There is no strict age requirement, though preference is given to younger leaders
• Applicants should have approximately 5 to 10 years of professional experience with local, regional, or international achievements
• Excellent English language proficiency is required
• Applicants must be fully available to participate in all three parts of the fellowship, including both in-person weeks and the full remote learning phase

Fields of Study Covered

Because the fellowship draws from a wide range of climate-adjacent professions rather than one academic discipline, past cohorts have included fellows working in:

• Public sector and government climate policy roles
• Clean energy entrepreneurship and business
• Climate finance and investment
• Environmental journalism
• Education connected to climate and sustainability
• Climate research
• Civil society and advocacy work
• Legal advisory and lawmaking connected to climate policy

Required Documents

• CV or resume, maximum three pages
• Personal statement, maximum 600 words
• One letter of recommendation
• A short video statement
• Passport

How to Apply (Step-by-Step)

1. Create an account on the official Yale Emerging Climate Leaders Fellowship application website.
2. Complete the online application with personal information, contact details, and professional background.
3. Prepare and upload the CV, personal statement, and short video statement.
4. Request your letter of recommendation through the online portal well ahead of the deadline.
5. Pay the required application fee when submitting your application.
6. Review the terms and conditions and your full application carefully before confirming.
7. Submit at least 24 hours before the deadline, since no extensions are granted under any circumstances.

Selection Process

Selection weighs demonstrated professional achievement in climate or clean energy work, genuine leadership potential, and the strength of the personal statement and video components, which together give reviewers a sense of both accomplishment and communication ability. Because the fellowship deliberately builds a cohort spanning multiple professions, regions, and backgrounds, the committee also considers how a given applicant’s specific expertise and geographic context might complement the rest of the group.

With only 16 spots available for a program open to Global South professionals across four continents, competition is genuinely steep, and applicants whose track record and statement both point toward substantive, ongoing climate leadership tend to stand out from more generic applications.

Tips to Improve Your Chances

• Use the personal statement to describe specific climate or clean energy achievements with measurable impact, rather than general passion for the topic
• Treat the video statement seriously, since it gives reviewers a sense of communication style that a written application cannot fully convey
• Choose a recommender who can speak concretely to your professional accomplishments and leadership potential in the climate space
• Confirm your availability for all three program components well before applying, since partial participation is not an option
• Submit well ahead of the 24-hour buffer the program recommends, since no deadline extensions are granted regardless of circumstances
• Research past Climate Fellows’ backgrounds if possible, since understanding the kind of professional profile the program has selected before can help calibrate how to frame your own application

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this fellowship open to applicants from any country?

No. It specifically targets professionals from the Global South, including developing countries across Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

Is there an age limit for applicants?

There is no strict age requirement, though the program gives preference to younger leaders, alongside its core requirement of 5 to 10 years of professional experience.

Do fellows need to attend both in-person weeks?

Yes. Full participation in the New Haven orientation, the remote learning phase, and the Paris closing week is required, since the program does not offer a partial or remote-only track.

Is there a cost to apply?

Yes, applicants must pay an application fee when submitting, even though the fellowship itself is fully funded and covers all in-person program costs for accepted fellows.

What professional backgrounds are represented among Climate Fellows?

Cohorts include public sector workers, entrepreneurs, energy company professionals, financiers, journalists, educators, researchers, civil society representatives, legal advisors, and lawmakers, all connected by direct experience in climate or clean energy work.

How many fellows are selected each cycle?

The program selects 16 Climate Fellows per cohort, keeping the group small enough for genuine cross-regional relationship building over the five-month fellowship.

Does the fellowship lead to an academic credential?

No. The program is built around leadership development, network building, and applied policy dialogue rather than awarding a degree or formal academic certificate at its conclusion.