Forefront is Urban Design Forum’s annual leadership action lab for emerging urbanists, built around a yearly New York City theme. The tenth cycle (2026, Living Routes) studies the care of green streets and public spaces.
Fellows meet in person in Manhattan and at sites across the city for nine months (84 scheduled hours plus about four hours a week), research the theme with a city agency partner, then develop team proposals.
Benefits & funding
- A tailored leadership curriculum, peer mentoring, and access to the Forum’s member network, workshops, roundtables and tours.
- Applied research with a city agency (NYC DOT in 2026) and an independent team proposal.
- No stipend: accepted fellows join the Forum as dues-paying members at $350 a year; a sliding scale is offered and no one is turned away for lack of funds.
Eligibility
- Must live or work in one of New York City’s five boroughs for the whole fellowship.
- Attendance is required at all dates; fellows may miss at most four dates (about 16 hours).
- Fellows are typically early- to mid-career professionals with five to ten years of experience — a description, not a cut-off.
- Open across disciplines (design, planning, policy, engineering, organizing, law, data, journalism and more); each year’s theme shapes which backgrounds are especially welcomed.
- No nationality, degree or age rule is published.
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.
“Fellows must live or work in the five boroughs of New York City for the duration of the Fellowship to be considered.” Eligibility
Residence required
USA
Circlebreaker is a free database of global fellowships, scholarships and programs — every one decoded like this.
We only check the criteria we have data for. Always confirm full eligibility on the official page before applying.
Application process
- 1Complete the online form, pasting in a resume or CV.
- 2Answer three short questions, at most 200 words each.
- 3Optional: a nominating letter of up to 500 words from a supervisor, department head, mentor or Forum Fellow, emailed to program staff.
- 4Submit by the deadline — 7 December in the last cycle; the 2027 call has not been posted yet.
Program timeline
Information session (2026 cycle)
Nov 10, 2025
Application deadline, 11:59 p.m.
Dec 7, 2025
Results notified
Jan 7, 2026
Orientation; program starts
Feb 7, 2026
Capstone; program ends
Nov 12, 2026