Incubation Programs for Charity Entrepreneurship
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Summer 2022 (late June – late August 2022, with one week in person in London).
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Winter 2023 (early February – late March 2023, with one week in person – location TBA).
If you want to apply to start your own charity idea, use this form.
To learn about the charity ideas we expect to launch through our 2022 Summer program, go to our top ideas section. The top ideas for the Winter program will be announced in late summer. You can learn more about the program below.
Prepare to start an effective charity with our two-month online program. It’s a full-time, cost-covered, intensive training designed by founders for founders. Our instructors will guide you through the most important decisions and help you with the best charity and co-founder match. Explore the critical components of evidence-based charities. Learn prioritization, impact analysis, cost-effectiveness, gathering support, management, and fundraising in real-world partner projects. Gain clarity, build your confidence, and network.
How it works
STEP 1: APPLY TO THE PROGRAM
We will soon open applications for two programs:
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Summer 2022 – runs from late June to late August 2022 (8 hours a day, 7 weeks online + 1 week in person in London).
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Winter 2023 – runs from early February to late March 2023 (8 hours a day, 7 weeks online + 1 week in person – location TBA).
We will hold multiple application rounds, but we encourage you to apply early:
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Round 1 (starts December 2021)
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Round 2 (starts March 2022)
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Round 3 (starts September 2022)
You can apply with one of two goals:
a) To start one of our top charity ideas (highly encouraged).
b) To develop and launch your own nonprofit idea, if it looks as, or even more, promising.
Our application process is designed to help you decide if charity entrepreneurship is right for you. It’s always possible that you might have an even more impactful career option. We’re most interested in your values, your work ethic, and your potential for success. We’ve become very good at spotting diamonds, and we won’t waste your time.
STEP 2: PREPARE FOR THE PROGRAM
If you’re accepted, we’ll provide background reading and host casual weekly meetups beginning 1-2 months before kickoff. That way, you can learn the theory at your own pace and start to meet your fellow budding founders.
STEP 3: TWO-MONTH INTENSIVE TRAINING
Our training is divided into two stages:
Month 1 is all about matching with a co-founder and a charity idea. You will spend most of your time working with project partners on practical challenges. Explore different working styles and test compatibility, values, and epistemics. Deeply engage in a variety of real-world tasks and charity ideas.
Month 2 is about working with your new partner to build your charity: early pilots, monitoring and evaluation strategy, and even your brand. Together, you will craft and submit a real proposal for funding and get ready to launch. We don’t just teach you about starting a charity, we make sure you have the tools and confidence to actually do it.
Stipends are provided to those in need, and transportation costs are covered for those who can travel for the week in person.
STEP 4: CHARITY SELECTION
Our Board of Directors and network of funders evaluate the teams and their project proposals. Then, they award seed funding to launch successful projects, with grants ranging from $50,000 to $175,000. In 2021, new CE charities received seed funding of over $500,000 in total.
If you don’t seek or receive start-up funding, our track record for connecting non-founder participants to research grants, related jobs, and other pathways to impact is near 100%. (Moreover, we are able to offer stipends to the few participants who do not immediately find a new opportunity).
STEP 5: ONGOING SUPPORT
After launching, you will continue to receive ongoing operational support, one-on-one mentorship, and access to a powerful worldwide network of experts, funders, and skilled employees. We continue to evaluate your measurable impact over time, coaching you and championing your success.
Who should apply
This is a part of our “What it really takes to found a high-impact charity” keynote talk Joey Savoie gave at EA Global: London 2021! Watch the whole talk.
How to apply
You can complete the written application in less than 30 minutes. Our entire recruitment process typically takes fewer than 10 hours for the applicant and ~1 month for us to complete. Along the way, we will assess your fit for charity entrepreneurship and help you weigh your other options and pathways to impact.
We are only able to contact applicants who are moving forward to the second stage of the recruitment process. If we have not contacted you within four weeks of the application deadline, unfortunately you have not been accepted to the program (but you are free to apply next year).
You will be informed whether you have been selected in February 2022 (first application round) or April 2022 (second application round). We expect to accept between ten and twenty attendees per program.
