ELP Fellowships offer intensive leadership and skills training, time for personal and professional reflection, and the opportunity to learn and collaborate with regional and national networks. Through immersive retreats, emerging leaders hone their leadership styles, improve their strategy and organizational development skills, and strengthen their capacity to work with diverse constituencies. With the assistance of professional coaching and peer learning, each Fellow develops a Personal and Professional Leadership Plan and structures to support that plan.

ELIGIBILITY 

All Applicants must meet the following criteria:

• Work or reside in California and Hawaii
• Have at least three years of work experience or are enrolled in graduate-level academic studies related to environmental or social change issues, broadly defined
• The ability to participate in all 3 retreats, complete all assignments in a timely manner, and the desire to remain an active member of the ELP Senior Fellows Network after the conclusion of the year-long Fellowship

EVALUATION CRITERIA

In addition to the above, applicants will be evaluated on the basis of their:

• Passion to respond to social and environmental challenges
• Leadership capacity (i.e have been willing and able to take “responsibility for helping people achieve shared purpose”)
• The nature of their work or area of expertise. Attention will be given to the applicant's accomplishments, background, and professional progress as shown in their resume and the clarity, breadth, and thoughtfulness of responses to the narrative questions in the application and in the interview.
• Eagerness to connect with and learn from others; willingness to actively contribute to the program as well as take advantage of its benefits
• Commitment to the values of diversity, equity, and justice within the environmental and social change fields; commitment to working with diverse constituencies
• Awareness of the interdependence of environmental and social problems; ability to convey a coherent vision for environmental progress and interest in how their work fits in with the big picture
• Ability to clearly articulate how participating in this leadership program will further their personal and professional development.

Particular attention will be given to the applicant's accomplishments, background, and professional progress as shown in their resume and the clarity, breadth, and thoughtfulness of responses to the narrative questions in the application.

REQUIRED RETREAT DATES: 

• Retreat 1: September 23-26, 2019: Green Gulch Farm Zen Center, Muir Beach, CA
• Retreat 2: January 27-30, 2019: Westerbeke Ranch, Sonoma, CA
• Retreat 3: March 2-5, 2020: Asilomar Conference Grounds, Pacific Grove, CA

Unless otherwise indicated, retreats will begin mid-afternoon on the first day and end before lunch on the last day of the retreat. It is important for the cohort, the individual Fellows, and the facilitators for all participants to be present for all sessions. 

COST

The Pacific Regional Network participation fee is $2200*. A few needs-based scholarships will be available and can be applied for in your application. Fellows may choose to pay their tuition in full at the time of being selected or through a payment schedule. This includes:

• Room and board for the 3 overnight retreats (including excellent food and delicious snacks)
• Participation in 12 days of training, community building and peer coaching
• Training materials (digital and hard copy)
• A 360 degree leadership assessment
• Membership in ELP's network of nearly 1100 Senior Fellows  - a lifelong learning community of professional and personal development, collaboration, and impact

Transportation to and from retreats is not included in the tuition and is the responsibility of each Fellow.

*We are able to offer a subsidized rate from the $3,500 full program cost thanks to the support from our foundation partners and local donors.
 

2019 APPLICATION DEADLINE

Applications for the 2019 cohort are due by 11:59 pm (EST) on June 24, 2019.

GUIDELINES

We're glad you're thinking of applying to an ELP Fellowship and we've tried to make it as simple as possible for you. There are three pieces to the online application process that you can complete from the application page.https://elpnet.org/application-form-pacific-regional-network

1. Fill out the short application survey. This should require only 2-3 minutes to complete. https://elpnet.org/application-form-pacific-regional-network

2.  Your resume. Once you have completed the application survey, you will be emailed a personalized link where you can upload your resume. Please attach your resume as a PDF or Word doc.

3. Short essay answer. Along with your resume, you will be prompted to attach a short response to the following question: "What is the most significant leadership challenge that you are personally facing, either current or something that you see on the horizon?" (500 words maximum)

INTERVIEW AND SELECTION PROCESS OVERVIEW

Applications are reviewed by a selection team of ELP Senior Fellows (alumni of ELP fellowships) and staff.
Interviews: a subset of applicants are interviewed in the 10 days following the application deadline. Interviews are conducted over the phone and are approximately 25 minutes long. Interviews are also an opportunity for applicants to ask any questions about the program and the Senior Fellow community.
Selection process:  Our selection teams review the applicant's accomplishments, background, and professional progress as shown in their resume. We also focus on the clarity, breadth, and thoughtfulness of responses to the narrative question in the application and the phone interview. We aim to select the best cohort for each program - which means giving attention to the diversity and balance of the class - in terms of work (sector, issue), identities (gender, ethnicity, etc.) and personalities.

Notification: Following the selection of the class (usually 2 weeks following the application deadline), applicants are notified of their status via a phone call and/or email. An applicant is either invited into the program (in which case they are expected to confirm within 48 hours), wait-listed, or invited to apply for another program