Ashoka Fellowship - Support for Social Entrepreneurs

Enriched – · Found: 2026-03-13 17:21

Identifies and supports leading social entrepreneurs with up to three years of living stipend to scale initiatives in areas including circular economy and waste management. Applications accepted on rolling basis through Ashoka country and regional offices. Provides sustained funding for system-changing entrepreneurs.

Source: https://www.ashoka.org/en-nl/opportunities-social-entrepreneurs

Funding Details

Funder

Ashoka

Funding Goal

The Ashoka Fellowship supports leading social entrepreneurs with truly transformational, system-changing innovations. Fellows receive a living stipend (typically for 3 years), professional support, and access to Ashoka's global network of 3,800+ fellows. Ashoka looks for entrepreneurs with new ideas that change patterns in their field, creativity, entrepreneurial quality, significant social impact potential, and strong ethical character.

Funding Amount

Living stipend for approximately 3 years (amount varies by country); professional support and network access included

How to Apply

Nominations accepted through Ashoka's network of volunteer nominators or self-nominations via the website. Multi-step selection process: Nomination, First Opinion (site visit), Second Opinion (cross-continental review), Panel (local entrepreneurs), Board Review. Process is intensive and transformative.

Target Region

Global (95+ countries)

Contact

Ashoka USA / Global Headquarters, 1000 Wilson Blvd., Suite 1900, Arlington, VA 22209, USA. Tel: 703-527-8300

Official Page

https://www.ashoka.org/en/program/venture-selecting-our-ashoka-fellows

Last Checked

2026-03-15 09:48

Application Checklist

Eligibility

• Must be an individual social entrepreneur, not an organization or institution
• Candidate must demonstrate strong ethical fiber and be trusted by their community

Project Scope

• Must have a truly new, transformational idea — not just an incremental improvement
• Innovation must have potential for nationwide or sector-wide systemic change

Required Documents

• Nomination required — either via Ashoka's network or self-nomination through the website

Constraints

• Must be willing to dedicate full-time to growing and launching the idea
• The idea must not focus solely on a single municipality, province, or state

Summary

The Ashoka Fellowship is a prestigious global social entrepreneurship program that identifies and supports leading social entrepreneurs who are driving transformational, system-level change. Fellows receive a living stipend for approximately three years, professional support, and lifelong membership in Ashoka's global network of over 3,800 fellows across 95+ countries. The Fellowship is not awarded to organizations but to individual social entrepreneurs who demonstrate a compelling new idea, creative problem-solving, entrepreneurial drive, significant social impact potential, and strong ethical character. The selection process is rigorous and multi-stage, involving site visits, cross-regional review, and assessment by panels of local social and business entrepreneurs. Ashoka actively searches for candidates globally through its network, and self-nominations are also accepted. The program is continuously open with no fixed application windows. Ashoka's Fellows work across all sectors — health, education, environment, economic inclusion, and more. The Fellowship does not target a specific theme; rather, it seeks the most innovative change-makers regardless of sector. This makes it a potentially relevant but highly competitive option for individual leaders within circular economy or ocean conservation organizations, though the organization itself would not be the direct recipient.

Historical Context

Ashoka has selected 3,800+ Fellows since its founding. The Fellowship program operates in 95+ countries and is an ongoing, continuously running program with no fixed application rounds.

Sources

• https://www.ashoka.org/en-nl/opportunities-social-entrepreneurs
• https://www.ashoka.org/en/program/venture-selecting-our-ashoka-fellows

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