Calling All Creative Changemakers

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in Rural Communities

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Rural Youth Leaders is a new collaborative initiative rooted in place, culture, and the transformative power of youth leadership.

Launched by Partners for Rural Impact and Clear Creek Creative, and shaped in partnership with Liberation in a Generation and Native Americans in Philanthropy, Rural Youth Leaders (RYL) is designed to uplift and invest in the leadership of creative young people and the cultural stewards who support them in rural communities.

Rural Youth Leaders is launching two groundbreaking programs this year:

Youth Fellowship for emerging leaders aged 18-24 who are:

  1. engaged in creative arts and cultural traditions

  2. invested in supporting & strengthening their rural places

  3. committed to their own success & the success of their communities

  4. capable and willing to lead in the rural place they call home.

Stewards Network for the people who steward and support creative young leaders in their local communities including educators, artists, culture bearers, creative practitioners, and any other youth advocate who uses creative practices and/or cultural traditions to support rural young people of any age.

  • 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!