Funding

Salary · Self Funded

Fellowship•Belgium · Brussels · Hybrid

EU Food Transition Fellowship

The School for Moral Ambition

Application Deadline

Closed · April 27, 2026

Reopens ~Apr 2027

Official Page

The EU Food Transition Fellowship moves experienced professionals into the organisations shaping European food and agricultural policy in Brussels. It is run by The School for Moral Ambition, an Amsterdam-based foundation started in 2024 by historian Rutger Bregman with four co-founders, with further offices in Brussels and New York.

Fellows train together for one month, then spend six months inside one host organisation: think tanks, advocacy groups and EU-level policy bodies. Host organisations listed for the program include ProVeg, Fern, the European Environment Bureau, Mighty Earth, Madre Brava, BirdLife Europe and Central Asia, the Good Food Institute Europe, the European Policy Centre and the Institute for European Environmental Policy.

The program is built as a career change rather than an internship. No food or agriculture background is required, selection is on transferable skills, and the School reports that 80% of its first cohort stayed in the field afterwards.

Benefits & funding

  • Seven months in total: one month of training in September 2026, then a six-month placement from October 2026 to March 2027.
  • A monthly stipend of €4,000 gross under Belgian law for full-time fellows.
  • A €1,000 monthly expense budget for travel and housing, plus practical support with relocation where needed.
  • One month of intensive training in the Netherlands and Brussels: EU food and agricultural policy, the protein transition, stakeholder engagement, coalition building and narrative change.
  • Six months inside a leading food transition organisation in Brussels, on live policy work and active campaigns from the first day, matched to the fellow’s skills and the organisation’s needs.
  • Fellows work four days a week at the host organisation, with Fridays kept for cohort training and joint sessions.
  • Career support after the placement, including access to the network. There is no job guarantee.
  • Fellows are contracted by The School for Moral Ambition for the seven months and seconded to the host organisation as consultants.
  • The part-time route of 2.5 days per week is self-funded and carries no stipend.

Eligibility

  • At least five years of experience in policy, law, strategy consulting, communications, marketing, economics, research or advocacy. Non-linear careers are welcome; freelance years and a PhD count towards the five years.
  • The legal right to work and live in Belgium, and willingness to relocate to Brussels for the placement. The FAQ states that EU or EEA citizenship and/or permanent residence is required, and that UK residents are not eligible for this fellowship.
  • The part-time route does not require relocation, but does require eligibility to work in the EU.
  • English at C1 level or above.
  • No degree requirement and no food or agriculture expertise. The program selects on skills rather than credentials.
  • No age limit and no gender restriction are stated.
  • Anyone who applies to the US Food System Reform Fellowship cannot also apply to this fellowship.
  • Full-time places are funded by the program; a maximum of seven part-time places are offered and those are self-funded.

Can you apply?

Here's who can apply

Decoded from the official rules. A free account checks them against your passport, degree and age in seconds.

  • Residence required

    Austria · Belgium · Bulgaria · Croatia · Cyprus · Czechia · Denmark · Estonia · Finland · France · Germany · Greece

    + 18 more

    Hungary · Iceland · Ireland · Italy · Latvia · Liechtenstein · Lithuania · Luxembourg · Malta · Netherlands · Norway · Poland · Portugal · Romania · Slovakia · Slovenia · Spain · Sweden

  • Experience required

    ≥ 5 yrs

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Application process

  1. 1
    Submit the online application, which takes about 1.5 hours. The full-time round ran from 27 March to 27 April 2026; the part-time associate route stayed open until 30 June 2026.
  2. 2
    Complete a short recorded video interview through Hireflix, scheduled 5 to 11 May 2026.
  3. 3
    Complete a written test task relevant to the fellowship, scheduled 19 to 26 May 2026.
  4. 4
    Interview with the fellowship program team, scheduled 2 to 11 June 2026.
  5. 5
    Go through host organisation matching, scheduled 17 to 26 June 2026.
  6. 6
    Receive the final decision between 26 June and 1 July 2026.

Program timeline

  1. Applications open.

    27 March 2026

  2. Full-time application deadline.

    27 April 2026

  3. Recorded video interviews.

    5 to 11 May 2026

  4. Written assignment.

    19 to 26 May 2026

  5. Personal interviews.

    2 to 11 June 2026

  6. Host organisation matching.

    17 to 26 June 2026

  7. 26 June 2026

    Decisions begin, running to 1 July 2026.

  8. Part-time associate application deadline.

    30 June 2026

  9. Training month in the Netherlands and Brussels.

    September 2026

  10. Six-month placements begin in Brussels.

    October 2026

  11. Placements end.

    March 2027

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