Deadline: 5-Jan-21
Applications are now open the Acumen East Africa Fellowship to develop a community of leaders who challenge the status quo, work across lines of difference and inspire their communities to believe in a brighter future.
The Fellowship is designed for individuals who are currently leading or are an integral part of building an initiative whose mission is to eradicate poverty or injustice. The Fellows are of all ages, come from diverse cultural, geographic and socioeconomic backgrounds and work across multiple sectors.
What makes a Fellow?
The fellows are extraordinary leaders who dare to embrace the difficult journey of social change. Here’s what they want from you—and what you can expect from your cohort.
- Entrepreneurs: Leaders of both for-profit and nonprofit organizations providing critical goods or services to the underserved.
- Intrapreneurs: Builders from any sector tackling poverty and injustice from within by shifting the institutional culture—and building new collaborations.
- Organizational Builders: Leaders (other than the Founder or CEO) supporting the growth of institutions combating poverty and injustice.
What will you Learn?
The Fellowship curriculum is centered around the principles of moral leadership:
- Adaptive Leadership: Based on Ron Heifetz’s work, Adaptive Leadership is a practical leadership framework that supports Fellows’ ability to catalyze and embrace the gradual and meaningful process of creating change.
- Authentic Voice: Grounded in Marshall Ganz’s life’s work, the Authentic Voice curriculum allows the Fellows to develop the capacity to articulate a hopeful vision, speak across lines of difference, and move others into action.
- Good Society Readings: Modeled off The Aspen Institute, the Good Society Readings explore the meaning of a just society, and the moral and historical foundation of social change through text-based dialogue.
- Managing Polarities: Based on Barry Johnson’s work, Polarities aims to cultivate an individual’s ability to lead effectively when opposing but interdependent and equally important values are in tension.
- Systems Thinking: Fellows explore the concept of Systems Thinking by working collaboratively on live challenges—enabling them to better understand larger, systemic problems and design more effective interventions.
Year 1
- Join a diverse cohort of 20 leaders from Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan & Ethiopia. Acumen Fellows are drawn from diverse sectors, disciplines, organisations and social change journeys;
- All programme costs covered by Acumen Academy East Africa;
- 5 virtual multi-day seminars, paired with individual & group online assignments between seminars;
- Learning that is immediately applied to your life and work;
- Peer coaching that challenges and accompanies you in your social change work;
- Cultivate a deeper understanding of yourself and your work in a broader context;
- Navigate uncertainty and embrace the meaningful process of creating change.
Beyond Year 1
- Join Acumen’s growing community of social innovators & builders accompanying each other from across the globe committed to a world beyond poverty and injustice;
- The Acumen Fellowship is a life-long engagement and after the first year fellows take part in a range of opportunities that are designed to both further their impact and build their communities.
- All seminars and training are conducted in English. Conversational proficiency in English is a requirement to ensure Fellows are able to give and get the most from this experience.
- They consider applications from citizens of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Burundi, and South Sudan. They will, on an exceptional basis, consider applicants who demonstrate a concrete connection to the region (ie. long-term employment, residency, the focus of the social change project).
- Each cohort of Acumen Fellows must be comprised of individuals who have not previously taken part in an Acumen Fellowship. This is specific to Acumen’s programs; candidates who have participated in other fellowships or leadership programs, or who have taken +Acumen courses, are welcome to apply.
Eligibility Criteria
Although many of the Fellows do work in social enterprises, Fellows can be working in any sector (including for-profit, nonprofit, corporations, and government). Fellows go on various career paths and personal journeys over their lives, but many of the Fellows they have seen over the years include:
- Entrepreneurs who have founded or are leading a for-profit or nonprofit organization that provides critical goods and services to the underserved;
- Intrapreneurs who are creating innovative solutions to tackle poverty or injustice from within existing institutions by shifting institutional culture and building new collaborations;
- Organizational builders who are supporting the growth of poverty or injustice-focused institution from within, but not as the founder or CEO;
- They are looking for an entrepreneurial attitude, mindset, and approach – people who don’t accept the status quo;
- There are no specific academic prerequisites;
- There is neither a minimum age requirement nor a maximum age cut off.
For more information, visit https://acumenacademy.org/fellowship/ea?utm_campaign=EA%20Recruitment%20-%202021%20Cohort&utm_content=144233847&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&hss_channel=tw-1123095866