Funding

Partial / Stipend · Grant

Program dates

TBA

Fellowship•Germany · Potsdam

Klaus Töpfer Sustainability Fellowship

Research Institute for Sustainability (RIFS) at the GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences

Application Deadline

Closed · April 5, 2026

Reopens ~Apr 2027

Official Page

The Klaus Töpfer Sustainability Fellowship is awarded once a year by the Research Institute for Sustainability (RIFS) in Potsdam, Germany, which belongs to the GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences. It honours the institute’s founding director, Prof. Dr Klaus Töpfer, and supports one mid-career professional who works across science, politics and society on sustainable development. The fellow spends up to a year based at RIFS in Potsdam, pursuing a self-designed project and taking part in the everyday work of the institute. Applicants may come from Germany or from any other country, and from science, the arts, civil society, business, politics or other areas. The fellowship has been awarded annually since 2019. The call for the 2027 fellowship closed on 5 April 2026.

Benefits & funding

  • A monthly stipend for the duration of the fellowship.
  • Financial compensation for the additional living costs of staying in Germany.
  • A discretionary budget of up to €30,000 for travel, publication fees, support for organising workshops, or production costs for artistic work, subject to RIFS regulations.
  • Up to one year at RIFS in Potsdam, with the schedule flexibly adapted to the fellow’s life situation, including splitting the term into intervals.
  • A place in the RIFS research community and its fellow network, which counts about 300 former fellows from more than 40 countries.

Eligibility

  • Mid-career professionals from Germany or abroad.
  • At least ten years of work on issues related to sustainable development.
  • Demonstrated potential to serve as a change agent and to build bridges between science, politics and society.
  • Professional experience in different countries and cultures.
  • An innovative project idea from science, the arts, civil society, business, politics or another area of society.
  • No formal degree requirement, nationality restriction or age limit is published. RIFS states that it welcomes applications from all qualified individuals regardless of ethnic and social origin, nationality, gender, sexual orientation and identity, religion or belief, age and physical characteristics.
  • The fellow must be based in Potsdam for the entire term and contribute to the work of the institute, for example by holding seminars and joining the regular internal meetings.

Can you apply?

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  • Experience required

    ≥ 10 yrs

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Application process

  1. 1
    Read the call and the fellowship FAQ, then shape a project that reflects the institute’s transdisciplinary and co-creative approach to research.
  2. 2
    Prepare the written materials in English: a letter of motivation (6,500 characters max.), a project proposal (15,000 characters max., plus references) and a current CV (10,000 characters max., plus key publications).
  3. 3
    Ask two referees for letters of recommendation and collect their contact details.
  4. 4
    Submit everything through the online application form before the deadline.
  5. 5
    Wait for the selection committee’s decision; the fellowship is awarded in autumn.

Program timeline

  1. Application deadline for the 2027 fellowship, 23:59 CEST

    Apr 5, 2026

  2. Fellowship awarded

    Autumn 2026

  3. Fellowship term begins

    Q1 2027

  4. Early 2027 (expected)

    Next call opens; the previous two calls closed on 31 March 2025 and 5 April 2026