Echoing Green’s Fellowship
Accepting Applications October 19 – November 2, 2023
Echoing Green identifies tomorrow’s transformational leaders today. Through its Fellowships and other initiatives, Echoing Green spots emerging leaders and invests deeply in their success to accelerate their impact. The organization has established a global community of emerging leaders who have launched hundreds of innovative social enterprises to drive social good. In June 2020, Echoing Green launched a $50 million Racial Equity Philanthropic Fund (REPF) and has since increased that fundraising goal to $75 million. With this fund, Echoing Green furthers over three decades of commitment to bold, strategic investments in incredible leaders working on the frontlines of racial equity and justice.
Echoing Green’s Fellowship Seeking Social Innovators Advancing Racial Equity Echoing Green works where social justice and social innovation meet, backing bold leaders who believe in upending unjust systems. We seek people with the best ideas for social transformation and do everything we can to help them succeed.
One of the greatest threats to building a world where all people thrive is racial injustice and we believe social innovation is an important tool for addressing this head-on. We’re committed to building upon our 35-year track record of finding, investing, and connecting some of the world’s best social innovators to ensure that the social innovation field directly contributes to advancing racial equity globally.
Echoing Green Fellows connect across their experiences, whether they are working on access to education across Michigan, digital equity in Accra, environmental justice in Brazil, or Indigenous sovereignty across the world. Together, we strive to build a world that has yet to exist: a future free from racism and its far-reaching consequences where all people can thrive.
The Fellowship is for people who are experts on the challenge they’ve chosen to confront and whose enterprises are at an early stage. We seek leaders who reflect the communities they serve and bring deep knowledge of the issues into their work as they design solutions with and for their communities. We strongly encourage leaders from anywhere in the world who identify as Black, Indigenous, or a person of color to apply for the Fellowship.
DISCOVERING TOMORROW’S LEADERS, TODAY
Through our full-time Fellowship, we find people working on plans to make the world better in a big way. Then we help them become impactful leaders by connecting them with the tools, resources, and communities they need to bring their ideas to life.
ALL ABOUT THE FELLOWSHIP
For over 35 years, Echoing Green has been on the front lines of solving the world’s biggest problems by raising up transformational leaders who challenge the status quo.
We seek leaders who bring deep knowledge and passion to designing solutions with and for their communities. Fellows are lifelong members of Echoing Green’s community and work across issue areas to advance equity, including education, climate justice, human rights, health, and more.
EVERY FELLOW GETS OUR PROVEN SUPPORT MODEL
CAPACITY BUILDING
Leadership Development
A comprehensive program to build and grow leadership skills and develop the strategies needed for ideas to thrive.
Wellness and Wellbeing Support
Ongoing support focuses on mental and emotional wellbeing along with self-care workshops designed specifically for the struggles of entrepreneurship.
CAPITAL
Expert Resources
The programs team facilitates the Fellow experience and connects these leaders to experts and opportunities according to their needs.
Seed Funding
A stipend over 18 months (80,000 USD). Funding offered to for-profit organizations is in the form of recoverable grants.
COMMUNITY
Virtual and In-Person Convenings
Gatherings to connect Fellows within and across classes, regions, and communities to build strong ties among Fellows over their entrepreneurial journey.
Expert Support
A suite of pro-bono support from leading professionals to build organizational capacity and help navigate the social innovation field.
Opportunities to connect with experienced business leaders committed to supporting positive social change globally.
OUR UNIQUE SELECTION PROCESS
The methods we use to identify high-potential leaders have been refined over three decades, and the results speak for themselves. Three rules guide the Echoing Green search and selection model, even as we’re always adapting to stay ahead of the curve.
Seek out overlooked places
We prioritize funding leaders and communities less likely to connect with traditional investment.
Include all kinds of talent
We cultivate a diverse network of social impact talent across a breadth of ethnic, gender, religious, and economic backgrounds.
Evaluate potential in new ways
Fellows are more than their business plans—so we focus on indicators of lifelong leadership, looking beyond traditional benchmarks such as previous financial success or business school degrees.
Prepare your application offline
Download these resources to get a head start on your application.
Echoing Green supports bold leaders from all over the world who see possibility in the face of the most existential challenges of our day. Together, we strive to build a world that has yet to exist: a future free from racism and its far-reaching consequences where all people can thrive.
This Fellowship is for people whose enterprises are at an early stage and who are experts on the challenge they’ve chosen to confront. We seek leaders who reflect the community they serve and bring deep knowledge of the issues into their work as they co-design solutions with and for their communities.
Tune in on October 17, 2023 for an overview of the Fellowship program, the application process, and frequently asked questions.
APPLICATION DETAILS
Everything you need to know about rules and tips for applying to the Echoing Green Fellowship.
Eligibility Requirements
Applicant Eligibility
Will you be 18 years or older by the time you begin the Fellowship?
Echoing Green Fellowship applicants must be 18 years or older by June 1, 2024.
Are you able to communicate proficiently in English?
To be eligible for the Fellowship and fully participate in programming and support offerings, you must be able to communicate in English proficiently. Support throughout the Echoing Green Fellowship is offered in English.
Are you an original founder or a leading member of your proposed organization’s original founding team?
We use the term “original founder” to describe people who launched or are launching an organization that is their original idea. You cannot have assumed a leadership position within the organization after its founding. To be eligible, you must be a leader with decision-making power within the organization and be either 1) a sole founder or 2) a leading founder on a team of people who created the organization.
Are you the primary decision maker for your organization?
To be eligible for an Echoing Green Fellowship, applicants must be the primary decision maker and have the ultimate authority over your organization’s growth and strategic vision.
Will you be able to work full time on your proposed organization throughout the 18-month Fellowship?
If selected for an Echoing Green Fellowship, you may hold other professional responsibilities, but you must work full time, defined here as 40 hours a week, on the work outlined in your Fellowship application, and it must remain as your main professional priority.
Writing Your Application
Give yourself plenty of time
Our application is open for two weeks but don’t wait until the last day to start an application. The best answers are well thought out, reflective, and concise. Build in time for several rounds of proofreading and review. Submitting your application before the due date gives you time to deal with any unforeseen technical issues. Your application must be received before 2:00 PM (14:00) ET on the date of the application deadline.
Show why you are addressing the challenge
Echoing Green wants to know what your organization does and how, but, most importantly, we want to understand what inspired you to address your issue and why you are the right person for the job. Your application should demonstrate your personal connection to the community you will serve and the issue you’ll address.
Be as specific as possible
We know that you may not have all the answers right now – but many applications do not advance to the next stage of consideration because answers are vague and lack clarity. If you don’t have demonstrated results, that’s okay. Walk us through your thought process for what your goals might be and how you would measure them. For instance, provide concrete examples, hypotheses, and statistics related to your work instead of vague generalizations. Establish a clear connection between the work you do and your goals and objectives.
Be straightforward and use plain language
While you should be descriptive, avoid the use of jargon as you write your responses. Assume they will be read by someone with limited knowledge of your field, the population you’re working with, or your industry.
Utilize all available resources
Read the Question by Question Guide to help you strengthen your responses. The help text provides clarification and offers suggestions on what you should and should not include in your response. Use the Worksheet to draft your answers offline; you can edit and refine your answers before submitting your application. This worksheet will be available prior to the launch of the Echoing Green application.
Below is an outline of information you’ll be asked to provide in the Echoing Green Fellowship application
- General information about you
- Information about your organization including but not limited to: general overview, financial overview, and how you think about and categorize your work
- A series of short answer questions asking about your leadership, work, and the organization you are building.
- A collaborative analysis where you will be asked to identify other organizations similar to yours and how you might work with them toward shared goals.
- A resume that should demonstrate your qualifications
- You will be asked to upload a 60-second video answering the question “Why do you do what you do” while sharing your personality, energy, and passion.
Application Cycles & Timing
Application Cycles
Applicants who are selected for the Fellowship will be notified in June/July 2024. Sign up to be notified about information and timing of new application cycles.
Submission Policies
Policies for all applicants
Submit your final application using Echoing Green’s application website. Do not mail, fax, or email your application – Echoing Green will not accept it if it is not submitted through the application website. No exceptions!
Any extraneous materials submitted will be discarded immediately and not reviewed. We will not accept or review any other documents (e.g., letters of inquiry, business plans) in lieu of the online application.
Your application must be received before 2:00 PM (14:00) ET on the date of the deadline. Without exception, if Echoing Green receives your application after this deadline, regardless of technical difficulty, your submission will not be considered for the Fellowship application cycle.
Applications cannot be revised once they have been submitted. Once you submit on Echoing Green’s application website, no changes can be made, even if time remains before the final deadline.
You may only submit one application. Any applicant who submits multiple applications for the same project or single applications for different projects in the same application cycle will be automatically disqualified from consideration.
Additional questions
Echoing Green has a small staff. Annually, we receive close to 2,000 applications for our Fellowship programs. We cannot grant personal interviews to any applicant, either over the phone or in person. Please do not contact our office requesting an appointment for a personal interview.
If you have questions about the application process that are not answered above, you may email us at fellowship@echoinggreen.org. You will usually receive a response within two working days.
Frequently Asked Questions
What kind of feedback does Echoing Green provide if I am not selected to be a Fellow?
Echoing Green receives close to 2,000 applications per cycle. Due to the large volume of proposals that we receive and the limited capacity of our staff, we are unable to equitably provide individualized feedback on each application.
However, we also recognize the time and effort it takes to complete the application. Therefore, we share numerical feedback specific to how reviewers read and scored your application based on Echoing Green’s selection criteria and scoring rubric. This feedback is designed to provide insight into how our reviewers perceived the strength, clarity, and/or level of detail of your responses—not on your idea or model for change. We hope that this general feedback helps applicants refine future proposals for Echoing Green or other institutions.
I’m not based in the United States can I apply to Echoing Green?
You do not need to be based in the United States or be an American citizen. We encourage applicants of all nationalities, working in any country, to apply for the fellowship. Echoing Green does not sponsor American work permits for any foreign nationals.
My organization has multiple founders, can we all apply for an Echoing Green Fellowship?
An organization does not only have to be run by one individual, but only a single applicant is eligible to apply for an Echoing Green fellowship starting in 2021.
Are there any educational requirements to apply for an Echoing Green Fellowship?
Echoing Green does not have any educational requirements to apply for a Fellowship.
Does my organization need to be structured as a nonprofit in order to be eligible?
No, all organization structures are eligible for an Echoing Green Fellowship as long as they are focused on social impact.
I have not incorporated my organization, can I still apply?
Organizations still in the idea phase are eligible. You do not need to establish 501(c)(3) status or register your organization before you apply.
If I am rejected can I re-apply in the future?
Yes, you are welcome to reapply in future cycles if you are not awarded a fellowship.
