CHANGEMAKER FELLOWSHIP
A resource for the vision and development of individual Indigenous leaders.
The Changemaker Fellowship invests in the leadership and individual Indigenous organizers who are leading movement-building work to Defend, Develop and Decolonize in their communities.
Fellowship Total
$150,000
Fellowship Term
Two-year, flexible grant award of $150,000 ($75,000 per year)
GRANT CYCLE
Opens 2026
THE PURPOSE OF THE CHANGEMAKER FELLOWSHIP
The fellowship provides direct support to 21 individual Indigenous Changemakersā vision, personal and professional development, and leadership. We believe our people have the creativity, innovation, and determination to build healthy, resilient futures; defend our homelands and rights, and develop model regenerative Nations while decolonizing and healing our communities and families.
WHO IS ELIGIBLE FOR THE CHANGEMAKER FELLOWSHIP?
The NDN Changemaker Fellowship was designed specifically to support individuals.
Applicants must be Indigenous to and based in North America (Canada, Mexico, United States), and related Island Nations of Hawaiāi, BorikĆ©n/Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
All applicants must be at least 18 years of age or older by the time the Fellowship begins.
These Changemakers are responding to a spiritual and cultural call to action, bringing all of the gifts that they carry to create something greater than themselves by protecting the water, the land, and Indigenous sovereignty.
FELLOWSHIP REQUIREMENTS
Changemaker Plan: Awarded fellows will turn their Full Applications into a Changemaker Plan with specifics on how fellows will fulfill the goals stated in their application.
Budget: Awarded fellows will be required to create a two year budget for the grant funds.
Attendance: four mandatory convenings over the fellowship years, the virtual Welcome & Orientation Convening, the Indigenous Leadership Training, a virtual convening at the mid-term of the fellowship, and a Final Showcase.
Reporting: A reporting guide will be provided to each fellow at the beginning of their fellowship. NDN Changemaker Fellows will be required to submit the following throughout the fellowship:
- short monthly reflections through the āChangemaker Journalā online
- A Mid-Term Report at the mid-term of the Fellowship
- A Final Report at the end of the Fellowship