Fellowship•Hybrid

Echoing Green Fellowship

Funding

Partial / Stipend · Grant

Program dates

TBA

Echoing Green is a New York–based nonprofit that has spent over 35 years identifying emerging leaders building solutions to entrenched social and environmental problems. Its full-time Fellowship selects early-stage social entrepreneurs — founders of nonprofit, for-profit, or hybrid ventures focused on social impact — and supports them through the critical start-up phase. Fellows receive a $100,000 stipend over 18 months alongside leadership development, wellbeing support, pro-bono expertise, and lifelong access to a global community of Fellows. The program looks beyond traditional credentials, prioritizing overlooked leaders and communities and weighing leadership potential rather than business degrees or prior financial success.

Benefits & funding

  • $100,000 USD stipend over the 18-month Fellowship (for-profit ventures instead receive recoverable grants).
  • Leadership development and strategy programming.
  • Mental and emotional wellbeing support and self-care workshops tailored to the demands of entrepreneurship.
  • Pro-bono professional support and expert facilitation to build organizational capacity.
  • Virtual and in-person convenings, plus lifelong access to the global Echoing Green Fellows network.

Eligibility

  • Open to applicants of all nationalities, working in any country.
  • Must be at least 18 years old and able to communicate proficiently in English.
  • Must be an original founder or leading founding-team member and the primary decision-maker, able to work full-time (40+ hours/week) on the venture for the full 18 months.
  • The organization must be early-stage (typically operated with full-time staff for under ~5 years, or still needing resources to grow) and have independent, autonomous decision-making; it may be a nonprofit, for-profit, or hybrid focused on social impact, and may be unincorporated or in the idea phase at the time of application.
  • No specific educational background, prior social-enterprise experience, or 501(c)(3) status is required. Ventures whose primary purpose is lobbying or promoting a religious faith are not eligible, and a previous Echoing Green Fellow may not be on the founding/leadership team. Note: ventures based in the United States require U.S. work authorization, as Echoing Green does not sponsor work permits.

Application process

  1. 1
    Submit a single online application during the roughly three-week open window — short-answer questions on your leadership and work, a collaborative analysis of comparable organizations, a resume, and a 60-second video on why you do what you do.
  2. 2
    Applications are reviewed and scored by expert evaluators.
  3. 3
    Finalists are selected and interviewed.
  4. 4
    New Fellows are notified and the cohort begins the 18-month Fellowship.

Program timeline

  1. 2026 cycle application opened

    Sep 17, 2025

  2. 2026 cycle application deadline (2:00 PM ET)

    Oct 8, 2025

  3. Expert review, finalist interviews, and new-Fellow notifications

    Mid-2026

  4. ~September 2026 (expected)

    2027 cycle opens