The
Westerwelle Foundation for International Understanding is a nonprofit
organization based in Berlin, Germany. Our mission is to create equal
opportunities for all by uplifting emerging markets through empowered
entrepreneurship.
About the Fellowship
The
Young Founders Programme is a 6-month fellowship for outstanding young
entrepreneurs from emerging markets. It brings together leaders from all
over the world, who are united in the pursuit to achieve
entrepreneurial greatness.
What: 5-day conference in Berlin / 6 months remote programme
The
Westerwelle Young Founders Programme (YFP) is a six-month fellowship
for 25 leaders uplifting emerging and developing markets towards a
sustainable future. We offer targeted support to scale our founders'
ventures and develop their leadership abilities, with the following
programme plan:
Kick-Off Conference: A two-day digital kick-off conference will take place in the first week of September 2022.
Remote
Programme: From September 2022 – February 2023, the Young Founders will
receive six months of support including a personal mentor, monthly peer
mentoring sessions, monthly expert workshops and networking
opportunities with corporates and investors.
Berlin
Conference: The ten best performing Young Founders will be invited to a
five-day conference in Mai 2023. During this conference, the founders
will have the opportunity to pitch in front of investors, participate in
workshops, join networking events and get insights into the German
start-up scene.
Selection Criteria
We
are looking for entrepreneurs with high potential for impact and growth
to become leaders of a sustainable future, with the following criteria:
You are a citizen or resident of a developing or emerging country.
You have recently (in the last five years) started a for-profit company focused on developing or emerging markets.
Your
company possesses a scalable business model that has ideally generated
revenue or secured a first round of external funding.
You or your business possesses disruptive qualities that can increase the quality, impact or inclusiveness of the industry.
You possess a good working knowledge of English.
You
are available to attend the digital kick-off conference and can make
time to participate in programme activities for the six months.
How to Apply
The
following application will provide our Programme Team with an
understanding of your startup and profile. Please have the following key
elements ready:
Your startup pitch deck
Basic financial information (i.e. revenues, funding)
Your LinkedIn profile
With these on hand, the application will take approximately 20 minutes. Only complete applications will be reviewed.
Application deadline: Tuesday, August 9 at 11:59 CEST
Interviews with shortlisted candidates: August 22-27, 2022