Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellowships, 2009–2010

The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) invites applications to its Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellows Program. Established in 2001, the program is named in honor of NED’s principal founders, former U.S. president Ronald Reagan and the late U.S. congressman Dante Fascell. Based at NED’s International Forum for Democratic Studies, in Washington, D.C., the program is designed to enable democracy practitioners and scholars from around the world to deepen their understanding of democracy and enhance their ability to promote democratic change.

Program: The program offers five-month fellowships for practitioners to improve strategies and techniques for building democracy abroad and five- to ten-month fellowships for scholars to conduct original research for publication. Practitioners may include activists, lawyers, journalists, and other civil society professionals; scholars may include professors, research analysts, and other writers. Projects may focus on the political, social, economic, legal, and cultural aspects of democratic development and may include a range of methodologies and approaches.

Eligibility: The fellows program is intended primarily to support practitioners and scholars from new and aspiring democracies. Distinguished scholars from the United States and other established democracies are also eligible to apply. Practitioners are expected to have substantial experience working to promote democracy. Scholars are expected to have a doctorate, or academic equivalent, at the time of application. The program is not designed to pay for professional training or to support students working toward a degree. A working knowledge of English is an important prerequisite for participation in the program.

Support: The fellowship year begins October 1 and runs through July 31, with major entry dates in October and March. All fellows receive a monthly stipend, health insurance, travel assistance, and research support through the Forum’s Democracy Resource Center and the Reagan-Fascell Research Associates Program.

Application and Deadline: The application deadline for fellowships in 2009–2010 has been extended until Monday, November 10, 2008. For more information and application materials, please visit www.ned.org/forum/reagan-fascell.html or contact the program at fellowships@ned.org.