UC Davis is proud to announce its selection as an Institute Partner for the 2023 Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders.  Beginning in mid-June, UC Davis will host 25 of Africa’s bright, emerging Public Management leaders for a six-week Leadership Institute, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State.

The Mandela Washington Fellowship, the flagship program of the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), empowers young African leaders through academic coursework, leadership training, mentoring, networking, professional opportunities, and local community engagement.  YALI was created in 2010 and supports young Africans as they spur economic growth and prosperity, strengthen democratic governance, and enhance peace and security across Africa.  Since 2014, the U.S. Department of State has supported nearly 5,800 Mandela Washington Fellows from across Sub-Saharan Africa to develop their leadership skills and foster connections and collaboration with U.S. professionals.  The cohort of Fellows hosted by UC Davis will be part of a group of 700 Mandela Washington Fellows hosted at 28 educational institutions across the United States.

After their Leadership Institutes, Fellows will participate in the Mandela Washington Fellowship Summit, where they will take part in networking and panel discussions with each other and with U.S. leaders from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors.  Following the Summit, up to 100 competitively-selected Fellows will participate in four weeks of professional development with U.S. non-governmental organizations, private companies, and government agencies.

Funded by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and implemented by IREX, Leadership Institutes will offer programs that will challenge, motivate, and empower young leaders from Africa to tackle the challenges of the 21st century.

The 2023 cohort will be the seventh UC Davis has hosted since 2016. During their time in the Leadership in Public Management Institute at UC Davis, Mandela Washington Fellows will connect with departments and partners across the UC Davis and UC Davis Health campuses and engage with community partners and collaborators from around Northern California. Fellows will have opportunities to experience science-based public management in action through site visits, small group discussions, panels and volunteering. UC Davis Global Affairs is planning a welcome event in mid-June to introduce the Fellows to campus. Event details will be available closer to the summer.

For additional information about the Mandela Washington Fellowship Leadership Institute at UC Davis, please contact Administrative Director Jennie Konsella-Norene at jknorene@ucdavis.edu and Academic Director Karen Beardsley at kbeardsley@ucdavis.edu, or visit globalaffairs.ucdavis.edu/mandela.

About Global Affairs at UC Davis

Global Affairs brings the world to UC Davis, welcoming more than 10,000 international students, scholars and leaders, and hosting programs that inspire global curiosity, understanding and engagement. Compelled by the valuable outcomes of thinking globally, we make transformative opportunities a reality by supporting the thousands of students and faculty learning and researching globally—and by facilitating collaborations that tackle the world’s most pressing challenges through more than 150 global partnerships.

Putting our vision of a UC Davis community that engages, thrives, and leads in this interconnected world into action, Global Affairs is in pursuit of an ambitious goal: Global Education for All.

About the Mandela Washington Fellowship

The Mandela Washington Fellowship is a program of the U.S. Department of State with funding provided by the U.S. Government and administered by IREX.  For more information about the Mandela Washington Fellowship, visit mandelawashingtonfellowship.org and join the conversation at #YALI2023.