Beacons of Learning Design (BOLD)
Fellowship Nominations
The Beacons of Learning Design (BOLD) Fellowship brings together leaders from some of the world’s most transformational schools and learning environments to reshape education for a better future.
We welcome nominations of exceptional leaders of schools or other innovative learning environments who are working at the forefront of shaping a better future for children and young people. Learn more >
Who the fellowship is for?
Fellows are leaders who:
- Champion holistic student development
- Lead distinctive learning environments
- Serve as lighthouses who influence others
- Are committed to local impact and global learning
How to nominate
Nominate a learning environment for our second cohort by October 15th.
We welcome nominations of exceptional leaders of schools or other innovative learning environments who are working at the forefront of shaping a better future.
Nominate an exceptional learning environment, or your own environment, for consideration.
Fellowship timeline
Better Future Forum and BOLD Gathering
Fellowship timeline
How to apply to the fellowship
Applications to the fellowship will open on June 1 and close on September 4, 2026. We invite applicants to refer to the application guidance outlined in the fellowship blueprint document.
Available soon!
Who the fellowship is for?
The fellowship is designed for the most influential and innovative education system leaders working within ministries, political offices, or in long-term partnerships with the government from civil society roles. Fellows will show:
- A lifelong commitment to improving the systems around children
- Alignment with the purpose of developing all students holistically regardless of background or economic status
- Capacity for developing collective leadership and navigating complex politics
- Ability to influence significant system-level change at a national or regional scale
- Potential to serve as an influential leader in the global education ecosystem
The fellowship experience components
Fellowship Design
A year-long transformative journey
One year hybrid fellowship A hybrid model combining virtual gatherings with immersive, in-person experiences for deep learning, shared inquiry, and global exposure.
Experiential peer visits Opportunities to step outside one's own context, experience what's possible, and apply insights from other distinctive learning environments.
Frontier learning Peer dialogues, curated convenings, and expert roundtables focused on learning edges and advancing a co-created shared learning agenda.
Field shaping Codifying distinctive practices and insights, and sharing them widely through masterclasses, forums, publications, and the Better Future Hub.
Commitments
In person experiences
- Travel to Singapore for Better Future Forum and the BOLD Launch in May 2027
- Participate in a peer learning visit by visiting another fellow’s learning environment
- If feasible, hosting another BOLD Fellow for a visit to your learning environment
Bi-weekly virtual engagement
- Attend and actively participate in all virtual sessions and peer engagement, two 90-minute Zoom sessions per month
- Fellows are also encouraged to self-organize 1:1 or small-group conversations as helpful
Ongoing
- Bring openness to learning from a diverse global community of peers
- Spread learning within your own context and contribute to shared learning to shape the wider field
Cohort Model
Join a curated cohort of groundbreaking education system leaders
Build trusting and enduring relationships for deep learning with peers
System Change Lab
Explore and address a problem of practice through the fellowship
Generate new insights through action, reflection, and peer feedback
Immersion Event
Participate in a 4-day immersive learning experience in a transforming education system
Engage with ministers, schools, practitioners, and fellowship peers
Masterclasses & Roundtables
Attend closed-door sessions with senior global education leaders
Engage in honest dialogue about trade-offs, failures, and breakthroughs
Shared Inquiry
Join a curated cohort of groundbreaking education system leaders
Build trusting and enduring relationships for deep learning with peers
Triad Model Coaching Opportunities
Received a three-part support model combining policy mentors for subject expertise, leadership coaches for navigating execution, uncertainty, and trade-offs, and peer coaches for shared learning, accountability, and feedback
The Better Future Forum
Participate at the Global Institute’s annual in-person event
Connect with global education ecosystem leaders
Lifelong Community
Exchange practices across geographies with the option to visit other fellows
Build a lifelong global community of system leaders
For inquiries about the fellowship, applications, or nominations, please contact @email
This initiative is a collaboration between
In partnership with
