2025 Feminist Global Development and Foreign Policy Fellowship

Feminist Global Development and Foreign Policy

A South-North Exchange at the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW)

March 2025, in Washington, DC and New York

Due to an overwhelming response we unfortunately had to close the call for applications early. Thank you for your understanding! 

Application Deadline: Dec 2, 2024

The Heinrich Böll Foundation’s (HBS), Washington DC Office is pleased to announce the third iteration of our Feminist Foreign and Development Policy Fellowship.

30 years after the Beijing Declaration, we are witnessing the rise of a global anti-rights movement that is challenging the achievements of decades of work on gender equality. Across the globe, young men are increasingly attracted to authoritarian movements and political leaders who advocate for the rollback of reproductive rights, LGBTQ rights, and a return to patriarchal norms. As the global community comes together to take stock of our progress in the past 30 years, we will also need to find new ways to support global feminist alliances in confronting these challenges.

We see the annual session on the Commission on the Status of Women as an important multilateral forum, where feminists from all around the world can strategize, exchange and forge new ideas on how to push back against anti-gender movements. This year, the programming of the 69th session of the CSW, which will take place in New York City from March 10-21, 2025 will revolve around the 30th anniversary of the 1995 Beijing Conference.

Our fellowship aims to support feminist experts from the Global South to be part of these critical discussions, provide space, access and experience in the realm of international institutions and connect young underrepresented voices to relevant decision-makers. Part of the program will also focus critically on how to best advance a feminist foreign policy – a framework that has been under scrutiny in the last year. The fellowship will cover participants’ travel and accommodation costs to attend the CSW, provide passes to the CSW meetings, as well as opportunities to attend supplementary meetings and events tailored to the fellowship.

The key objectives of this fellowship opportunity are:

• To provide a learning and networking experience for emerging feminist leaders in development and foreign policy. As a result, participants will be better able to pursue their policy and advocacy aims and tap into a global network of like-minded change-makers;
• To enable more intergenerational and cross-regional debate on feminist development and foreign policy;
• To serve as a mechanism through which emerging feminist leaders can identify issues that require further debate and/or advocacy, and where exchange between relevant actors can be facilitated.

WHAT WE EXPECT

• Travel to the US and participate at the 2025 CSW: All candidates must be available to travel to the US and participate at the CSW for a 5-day period during the conference dates of March 10 – 21, 2025. The exact dates of the trip will be set once the CSW program is announced.
• Engage in discussions and provide thematic inputs: Once selected, fellows will be asked to provide a short statement/strategy outlining what goals they aim to achieve at the CSW (e.g. an intervention during a specific event, targeted networking on a specific issue, etc.). During the exchange visit, participants will be asked to share their key insights and expertise in public and private events, workshops and meetings. Participants are free to choose CSW and NGO side events how they see fit but are expected to attend meetings and exchanges organized by the Heinrich Böll Foundation. 
• Active social media engagement: In the lead-up to, during, and after the CSW, participants are expected to actively engage with the Heinrich Böll Foundation over social media channels to report on their experiences. Fellows are expected to provide quick and concise statements and messages from the events they attend to share lessons amongst each other and with a broader public. The Foundation will also publish a profile of each participant on the website of its Washington DC office and its Global Unit for Feminism and Gender Democracy website. 
• Be part of a growing network: Candidates should apply not only to participate in the CSW, but with the goal of becoming part of a growing network of feminist thinkers and “doers” who support each other in advancing a new vision for global diplomacy and development.

Please note that professional competency in English is required.

WHAT WE OFFER

• Travel Costs: The Heinrich Böll Foundation will cover the cost of international flights; transportation to the departing and arriving airport, as well as local transportation in NYC; up to 6 nights of accommodation in New York City; and health/travel insurance. Selected meals will also be provided.
• Visa Processing: If needed, the Foundation will support the visa application process by providing an official letter of invitation and will cover visa fees. Please note that the Foundation cannot guarantee that visas will be processed in time.
• Visibility and Platform: Before the CSW, selected fellows will be promoted on social media channels to create a visible online platform around their aims and to amplify important political messages related to the CSW.
• CSW Registration: The Foundation will facilitate conference registration and cover related fees.
• Skills and Network: The selected fellows will get access to the global HBS network, introductory sessions and strategizing workshops ahead of CSW, networking events, bi- and multilateral meetings, as well as informal sessions for exchange during CSW.

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

Please read the instructions carefully. Incomplete applications will not be considered. 

We seek candidates who are emerging or experienced leaders and activists in the fields of foreign and development policy, with a specific feminist focus on issues such as human rights, reproductive rights, or decolonial struggles, among others. Qualified candidates will be actively engaged in developing and shaping feminist development and foreign policy in at least one of the following ways:

• as leaders and activists in civil society and grassroots organizations (e.g. supporting feminist approaches to development policy on the ground);
• as elected officials or policy advisors at local, state, national, or supra-regional level (e.g. implementing feminist foreign & development policy, Women, Peace & Security agenda);
• as students, researchers, or teachers in academia or think tanks (e.g. researching women’s and queer rights and representation with an international lens);
• as entrepreneurs in the private sector (e.g. developing creative solutions in support of gender equality and women’s and queer human rights).

Experience and applicant profile: We reserve a specific amount of seats for applicants who are young feminists (between the ages of 21 and 35) and who have not yet attended a CSW in the past. Also considering more experienced profiles, we hope to create a space that encourages learning and exchange within the group. We also encourage HBS partner organizations with or without CSW experience to apply and indicate their connection to HBS in their application.

Regional background: in 2025, we are seeking candidates based in Latin America, Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Caucasus Region, and Eastern Europe.

Applications should consist of:

1. Resume: Please use a standard US format. Standard US resumes do not include pictures or marital/familial status and have a maximum of 2 pages. Please indicate your age, as we reserve some fellowships for candidates aged 21-35.
2. Challenge / motivational statement: Please write a short (max 300 words) reflection on the biggest challenge you see for the movement towards gender equality or women's rights right now. How do you propose to deal with it and what are concrete steps that you are currently taking? How will your participation at the CSW help you in navigating those challenges?

About the Heinrich Böll Foundation Washington, DC

The Heinrich Böll Foundation Washington, DC is a non-profit organization that is part of the global green movement. The Washington, DC office, in line with the Foundation’s guiding principles and values, works to strengthen civil liberties, human rights, and democratic institutions. We promote gender equality, social justice, and equity. We strive to preserve a habitable planet for current and future generations. We foster these goals through a diversity of projects such as public seminars, fellowships, study tours, and publications.