Global Changemaker Fellowship Cohort 6.0: Now Accepting Applications for Young Social Change Leaders

If you are a young person leading a community project, a social enterprise, or an initiative that is genuinely changing lives around you, this opportunity is worth your attention. The Global Changemaker Fellowship (GCF) Cohort 6.0 is officially open for applications, and it is one of the most respected global platforms connecting grassroots changemakers to mentorship, skills, and an international peer network.

What is the Global Changemaker Fellowship?

The Global Changemaker Fellowship is a joint initiative of the Global Changemaker Collective (GCC), a US-based registered nonprofit, and the Connecting Dreams Foundation (CDF), an India-based organisation working to build grassroots leaders for sustainable change. Together, both organisations run this fellowship to identify, train, and support young people who are already leading community or social initiatives, and help them scale their impact.

It is a six-month virtual leadership accelerator. Fellows do not pause their existing work; instead, they continue running their initiatives while going through masterclasses, mentorship sessions, and peer learning designed to sharpen how they lead and grow their projects. The programme leans on four focus areas: systems thinking, thought leadership, polarities management (leading well when values are in tension), and adaptive, collaborative leadership.

Who Is This Fellowship For?

The fellowship is open to emerging social change leaders from anywhere in the world, including Nigeria and the rest of Africa, provided you meet the following:

- You are actively working on, or leading, a social or community change initiative (this can align with any of the Sustainable Development Goals).

- You are genuinely committed to creating impact, not just interested in the idea of it.

- You have reliable internet access and can attend virtual sessions consistently, since the entire programme runs online.

- You are proficient in English, as the fellowship is delivered in English.

Past cohorts have welcomed changemakers working on health, education, agriculture, climate, women's economic empowerment, and youth development across countries like Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Botswana, Liberia, India, Cameroon, and Indonesia, so this really is a global fellowship, not a regional one.

What Fellows Gain

•Masterclasses led by global experts and practitioners

•Personalised mentorship and one-on-one strategic consultations

•A global peer network and cross-cultural collaboration opportunities

•Practical tools, frameworks, and resources to strengthen their initiative

•Exposure to systems thinking for tackling root causes, not just symptoms

•Leadership development that stretches beyond the programme itself

Application Deadline

Applications for Cohort 6.0 close on 25 September 2026. Given how many young leaders apply for this fellowship, it is best not to wait until the last few days.

How to Apply

The application is submitted directly through the Global Changemaker Collective's website. You will be asked for basic details about you and your initiative, including how long it has been running, its focus theme, your team size, achievements so far, the challenge you are addressing, and why you want to join the fellowship. An optional short video introducing yourself and your initiative can also strengthen your application.

Apply here: https://www.gccnetwork.org/gcf2026

For further enquiries, you can also reach the organisers at fellowships@connecting-dreams.org or follow @globalchangemakercollective on Instagram for updates

If you have been building something meaningful in your community but feel like you are doing it alone, without mentorship, without a network, without the tools to scale, the Global Changemaker Fellowship is designed exactly for people like you. Cohort 6.0 is your chance to step into a global community of changemakers who understand the weight of local impact. Don't sit on this one; go apply.