The 2024 Fall FELLOWSHIP
National PT/MT ♦ National CT ♦ National ET
Applications are now CLOSED for the 2024 Fall Fellowship.
DEADLINES: Feb 29 (Early Bird), March 31 (Regular $25), Apr 3 (Late $100)
The 2024 Fall Fellowship encourages any individual who lives and works in the United States (any city) and meets eligibility criteria to apply.
The 2024 Fall Fellowship is designed for an all-virtual participation (with the exception of clusters).
Find eligibility requirements on the Overview page.
* [Last year, the 2023 Fellowship only accepted candidates from CELI’s four metro areas and CELI cities, including the Bay Area, Chicago, Washington DC, and New York. The 2024 Fall Fellowship is meant to open up the fellowship to candidates from across the country, and — individuals from the four CELI cities may still apply! Please note that for ONLY applicants from CELI’s traditional cities / metro areas, including the Bay Area, Chicago, New York City, and Washington DC, CELI will be re-introducing the idea of required in-person weekly meet-ups with cohort peers – we’ve named these sub-cohorts *clusters* – which will only be open to those individuals who are able to commit to doing the fellowship in-person (which the applicant will indicate on the application itself). These clusters will only be located in the CELI cities/metro areas listed above. Note that while the participants in a cluster will be in-person, the speakers will be on-line/virtual. Whether or not CELI is able to hold clusters in 2024 depends on the interest of candidates.]
CELI’s mission is to create a multiracial, diverse and inclusive organization of change-makers working across sectors and disciplines to drive an equitable, decarbonized, and resilient energy ecosystem. CELI’s signature Fellowship Program equips emerging leaders with the technical knowledge, leadership development training, and passionate community dedicated to accelerating the transition to the clean energy economy.
CELI’s 4-month fellowship program for working professionals consists of weekly programming on energy literacy topics, Saturday sessions that go deeper on approaches and tools that support growing leadership skills, and preparation for a capstone project. The 2024 Fall Fellowship begins on Saturday, August 3 and runs through Friday, December 6, 2024. Sessions are led by thought leaders and expert practitioners in the field or include uniquely curated activities for fellows to dive deeper into the curriculum. Fellows are challenged to think critically about current energy policy and market structures, examine existing and historical inequities, identify barriers to clean energy deployment and innovation, and develop holistic solutions towards an equitable energy transition.
After the core program completion, CELI Fellows join an active, connected network of over 1,200 alumni nationwide. Our alumni continue to play an active role in the CELI community by hosting discussions, publishing thought pieces, attending ongoing leadership and professional development training, gathering at conferences, and participating in regular social and networking events. CELIons (CELI alumni) make the Fellowship possible year-after-year.
For questions on your application, please contact applications@cleanenergyleaders.org
The 2024 Fall FELLOWSHIP CURRICULUM OVERVIEW
Over the course of the Fellowship, CELI Fellows will explore adaptive leadership, clean energy technology, policy, finance, and be challenged to look critically at inequities and power dynamics in clean energy systems. Fellows will practice their skills in public speaking, persuasive writing, and business pitching, as they prepare to deliver a capstone project via one of these methods. Most importantly, Fellows will be introduced to approximately 50 peer cohort participants, who will become a vital community of practice -- we hope, for life.
The program includes:
A Saturday opening orientation where Fellows will virtually gather for two hours to connect with their cohorts, be introduced to the CELI leadership team and staff, review requirements and expectations for the program, and engage in a high-level discussion of current climate challenges.
Educational modules with weekly virtual sessions consisting of a mixture of readings, lectures with expert practitioners, panel discussions with leaders in the field, hands-on activities, and small group discussions to build knowledge, community, and connection among Fellows. Module topics include energy markets, new technologies, deep decarbonization, policy and civic action, and an introduction to energy justice topics.
Leadership development workshops introduce Fellows to an adaptive leadership framework creating space to reflect on purpose and role in the energy transition.
Saturday sessions will focus on community building, energy justice deep dives, sustainable infrastructure finance and capital markets, and leadership development.
Capstone Projects build public speaking, writing, and pitching skills. Fellows will be assigned Peer Pods to support the design and delivery of their capstone projects.
Community Programming as casual, optional activities open to the Fellows, as well as alumni and community members.
Additional Program Requirements:
For graduation, the fellows are required to develop and submit a Capstone Project that hones their skills as a clean energy leader. Fellows can choose from the following Capstone projects:
Opinion piece: A 600 to 800-word thought piece on a clean energy topic of choice. Fellows will receive guidance and edits from an assigned peer group, as well as assistance on pitching their blogs to industry publications. All opinion pieces will be published on CELI’s Medium page, and highlighted in our monthly newsletter reaching 6,000+ unique readers.
Business Pitch: Fellows will have 5 minutes to propose a new clean energy business or non-profit to receive feedback from a panel of judges, CELI alumni, and peers.
TED-Style Presentation: Fellows will have 7 minutes to take the stage and present on a clean energy topic of their choice to CELI alumni and peers.
2. The virtual weekday 2024 Fall Fellowship sessions will take place on Wednesday evenings, unless scheduled otherwise with advance notice. *CELI city clusters will meet in-person.
National PT/MT: Wednesday evenings 6:00-8:00pm PT // 7:00-9:00pm MT
National CT: Wednesday evenings 6:00-8:00pm CT
National ET: Wednesday evenings 6:00-8:00pm ET
3. Weekend 2024 Fall Fellowship sessions will take place over three Saturdays and one Sunday:*
[Required] Saturday, August 3 - Orientation
[Required] Saturday, September 7 and Sunday, September 8 (only for National ET cohorts*) - Energy Justice, Introduction to Capstones and Adaptive Leadership
[Required] Saturday, September 14 and Sunday, September 15 (only for National PT/MT and National CT cohorts*) - Energy Justice, Introduction to Capstones and Adaptive Leadership
[Optional] Saturday, October 26 - Sustainable Infrastructure Finance and Capital Markets
CURRICULUM AT-A-GLANCE
*Please note that all cohorts will meet online weekly on Wednesday evenings from 6-8pm local time with the exception of those in MT time zone who will meet from 7PM-9PM MT. Additionally, fellows will have the option to meet online for optional Tuesday sessions taking place on select Tuesday evenings from 6-7pm ET for the National ET cohorts, and from 5-6pm PT; 6-7pm MT; 7-8pm CT; for the National CT and National PT/MT cohorts.
Session 1 - Orientation: Saturday, August 3
(*hold 10am-12pm ET, 10am-12pm PT, 11am-1pm MT, 12-2pm CT)
Introduction to CELI Staff and CELI Cohort Leadership Teams
CELI vision: fellowship, requirements, and policiesIntroduction to Energy Justice frameworks and meet the rest of your cohort
Module 1: Energy Markets
Session 2 (Wednesday, August 7) - Utility model and electricity markets (wholesale, retail, capacity, auxiliary services) (guest speaker)
Optional Session 3 (Tuesday, August 13) - Energy Fundamentals
Session 4 (Wednesday, August 14) - Utility model and electricity markets (wholesale, retail, capacity, auxiliary services) (activity)
Optional Session 5 (Tuesday, August 20) - Equitable rate design (guest speaker)
Session 6 (Wednesday, August 21) - Equitable rate design (activity)
(Wednesday, August 28) - No Session
Session 7 (Wednesday, September 4) - Energy Resilience (all cohorts)
(*hold 7-9pm ET, 6-8pm CT, 5-7pm MT, 4-6pm PT)
Required Weekend Sessions 8 & 9 - Energy Justice, Introduction to Capstone Projects, Adaptive Leadership Training
National ET Cohorts:
Saturday, September 7: 9am-12pm ET
Sunday, September 8: 10am-1pm ET
National PT/MT and National CT Cohorts:
Saturday, September 14: 9am-12pm PT, 10am-1pm MT, 11am-2pm CT
Sunday, September 15: 10am-1pm PT, 11am-2pm MT, 12-3pm CT
Module 2: New Technologies
Session 10 (Wednesday, September 11) - Energy storage and grid modernization
Session 11 (Wednesday, September 18) - Next generation technology
Due Date (Monday, September 23) Capstone Topic & Format Submission Due
Session 12 (Wednesday, September 25) - Capstone Skills Workshop (all cohorts)
(*hold 7-9pm ET, 6-8pm CT, 5-7pm MT, 4-6pm PT)
Module 3: Deep Decarbonization
Optional Session 13 (Tuesday, October 1) - Decarbonizing transportation (guest speaker)
Session 14 (Wednesday, October 2) - Decarbonizing transportation (activity)
Session 15 (Wednesday, October 9) - Energy efficiency in buildings
Session 16 (Wednesday, October 16) - Industrial decarbonization
(Wednesday, October 23) - No Session
Optional Weekend Session 17 (Saturday, October 26) - Workshops: Finance
(*hold 1-4pm ET, 12-3pm CT, 11am-2pm MT, 10am-1pm PT)
Module 4: Policy and Civic Action
Optional Session 18 (Tuesday, October 29) - Federal policy and just transition (guest speaker)
Session 19 (Wednesday, October 30) - Federal policy and just transition (activity)
Session 20 (Wednesday, November 6) - State policy, equity, and access
Session 21 (Wednesday, November 13) - Local Action
(Wednesday, November 20) - Capstone Projects Due (No Session)
(Wednesday, November 27) - Holiday break (No Session)
Session 22 (Tuesday, December 3) - Capstone Night 1 - Business Pitches
Session 23 (Wednesday, December 4) - Capstone Night 2 - Ted-Style Talks
[Clusters may be asked to hold December 6, 2024 for a potential in-person social.]
All Fellows will be required to submit their selected capstone topic by September 23, 2024 for their capstone project (which are due November 20, 2024), as well as select their desired format (writing a short-form opinion piece, preparing a Ted-style talk or public-speaking presentation, and/or defining a business idea and business pitch).
For more information, check out our:
Email applications@cleanenergyleaders.org with any questions.