RURAL YOUTH LEADERS

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RURAL YOUTH LEADERS

Apply for the Fellowship by June 16, 2025

RURAL YOUTH LEADERS

Apply for the Fellowship by June 16, 2025

In 2025-26, we will invite teams from 6 rural communities across the U.S. and tribal nations to join the inaugural RYL cohort. Each rural community team consists of:
- 2 emerging leaders aged 18-24 who engage in creative arts and cultural traditions who will participate in the youth fellowship
- 1 cultural steward committed to mentor the 2 youth leaders and accompany them in the fellowship
- 1 nominating organization that agrees to be a backbone of support for the youth leaders and steward as they pursue the fellowship and their local community project
The 2 emerging leaders from each rural community will join a youth cohort that journeys through the fellowship experience together. The cultural stewards will accompany their 2 youth in the fellowship and build a peer cohort as well which will become the basis for building a broader national stewards network over time.
Through this inaugural RYL program, young people and stewards will receive:
- Leadership development grounded in creative arts and cultural traditions that build the skills and capacity to lead and uplift their communities
- Mentorship from program facilitators and stakeholders who share their passion for using creativity as a tool for change
- Funding including $2,500 stipends for each youth fellow and $10,000 to support the cultural steward and nominating organization
- Project guidance to initiate and implement a community-building project of their own design
- National networks of peer support for both youth participants and cultural stewards
- Opportunities to inform and influence narratives, policy agendas, strategies and power-building of stakeholder organizations and funding partners
- A great chance to make an impact as creative changemakers in their own community and nationally!
The inaugural RYL fellowship begins in September, 2025 and concludes in July, 2026. Team applications are due June 16, 2025 and applicants will be notified no later than July 15, 2025 of their status.
There will be two in-person gatherings over the course of the program. The first will be an opening retreat will be Sept 23-27, 2025 at CDF Alex Haley Farm in Tennessee. The second will be April 11 - 16, 2026 at the Rural Summit in Buffalo, New York. Other meetings will be virtual and scheduled in advance in coordination with the cohort.
Applications can be initiated and led by a young person, a cultural steward or an organization. The online application form will require that each member of the team contribute a component of the application so it’s necessary to determine who your team is and gain their commitment to apply together before the June 16 deadline.
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Criteria that panelists will use to select teams for participation include:
- Strength of Self-Nominations from each youth
- Strength of Team Nomination from steward
- Commitment of Youth & Steward to lead in their rural places for the long-term
- Clarity of Team on Value of this opportunity for themselves, their places, and their proposed community projects
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These RYL initiatives are more than just programs—they represent a national movement to invest in rural youth leadership and creative community-building. By connecting young changemakers with adult allies who champion creative engagement, the Rural Youth Leaders Fellowship and Stewards Network will spark new ideas, foster collaboration, and ensure that rural youth have the resources they need to thrive.
Build your team and apply by June 16, 2025!

APPLY BY JUNE 16, 2025

We believe in the power of art, creativity and cultural traditions to strengthen rural communities and uplift young leaders.

Photos: Rural & tribal youth and creative stewards gathered at CDF Alex Haley Farm in Tennessee (Erica Chambers Photography). Design: Social Impact Studios

In June 2024, forty-five people including youth, their local organizational sponsors, national youth advocates, allies, local hosts and a creative facilitation team spent 4 days together at the Children’s Defense Fund’s Alex Haley Farm in rural Tennessee in a creative convening we called the Rural & Tribal Youth Assembly. The convening was an initial step in a collaborative effort to learn from, empower and move resources to rural youth leaders and organizations in communities across the U.S. and tribal nations.
The Rural & Tribal Youth Assembly was guided by Partners for Rural Impact and Native Americans in Philanthropy and resourced by the Mobility Alliance, an initiative incubated by Common Future, the Urban Institute, and Dalberg Advisors. PRI’s local collaborator Clear Creek Creative managed and facilitated the project and was joined by Mobility Alliance partner Liberation in a Generation in design and facilitation.
Building on the Assembly lessons and recommendations as well as the enthusiasm of partners and participants:
- Partners for Rural Impact and Clear Creek Creative committed to collaborate on the development of the Rural Youth Leaders initiative.
- The Mobility Alliance committed additional seed funding to support the transition and growth of this body of work.
- Liberation in a Generation and Native Americans in Philanthropy are providing thought leadership and promotional support.
- Clear Creek Creative is leading the work as project manager, collaboration coordinator and facilitator of the youth fellowship and supporting steward network.
- Social Impact Studios is the creative partner in design, publicity & communications.
We seek national, tribal, regional and local partners to fund, promote and populate the fellowship and network. Interested? Please contact us!