Dalai Lama Leadership Fellowship (2027 Cohort)

Dalai Lama Fellows, run jointly by the University of Virginia Contemplative Sciences Center and the University of Colorado Boulder Renée Crown Wellness Institute, is choosing 15 to 20 changemakers from around the world for its 2027 cohort. It is a one year, mostly remote fellowship that pairs a Head, Heart and Hands leadership curriculum and personal coaching with a social change project in a community you know well. Applications open on 1 October 2026.

What you get:

• A year long online leadership curriculum covering mindful awareness, emotional intelligence, navigating uncertainty, using power with care and storytelling
• Monthly 1 on 1 coaching and mentoring calls
• Monthly full group learning calls and quarterly small group calls with a global cohort
• A Contemplative Leadership Assembly at the start and end of the year; DLF says it covers visa fees, travel and lodging whenever the Assembly is held in person
• Lifelong membership of the LifeLong Fellows alumni network, with networking, small group coaching, webinars and retreats

What you'll do:

• Run or launch a compassion in action social change project in a community you have strong ties with, launching within the first six months if it is new
• Set aside about 12 hours a month for readings, reflections, coaching and group calls, on top of your project work
• Keep a daily contemplative practice through the year
• Attend the opening Assembly in May 2027, held on Zoom, and the closing Assembly in June 2028

Key dates:

• Application opens October 1, 2026
• Info sessions on Zoom: October 6, October 16 and October 28, 2026
• Last day to ask to be connected with a past Fellow: October 28, 2026
• Applications close November 11, 2026 at 22:00 UTC
• Finalist interviews: January 2027
• Fellows notified: February 2027
• Virtual onboarding: March 2027
• Fellowship year begins: April 2027
• Opening Contemplative Leadership Assembly on Zoom: May 2027
• Fellowship year ends: March 2028
• Closing Assembly, location to be confirmed: June 2028

More information:

• The application has five parts: background and overview, short essay questions, a video, a CV and a letter of recommendation
• Applicants apply as individuals; teams cannot be selected together
• DLF does not fund projects, and encourages Fellows to find other project funding with their coach's help
• Questions go to dalailamafellows@virginia.edu

• Aged 20 to 36 on April 1, 2027
• Fluent in written and spoken English
• Currently engaged in, or with well articulated plans for, a social change project, and able to stay engaged with it through the fellowship year (ongoing projects are preferred)
• In depth knowledge of the community and issue the project addresses, preferably with at least one year of experience working with that community, and at least six months at minimum
• Interest in learning and practising contemplative practices through the year
• Commitment to all parts of the programme, about 12 hours a month excluding project work
• Attendance at the virtual Contemplative Leadership Assembly in May 2027
• Open to students and non students alike; individuals only, not teams