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Call for Applications -- Senior Fellows Program Class of 2006

The Synergos Institute

Synergos is a nonprofit organization based in New York that works with local partners around the world to fight poverty. Synergos and its partners mobilize resources and bridge social and economic divides to reduce poverty and increase equity around the world. Synergos' goals are to:

• Increase the capacities and resources of African, Asian, and Latin American philanthropic and social investment organizations to reduce poverty and increase equity
   
• Increase the amounts of private resources being invested by individual philanthropists and social investors in efforts to reduce poverty and increase equity in Africa, Asia and Latin America
   
• Increase the number of new collaborative initiatives across national and global divides among business, government and civil society actors to reduce poverty and increase equity.

Senior Fellows Program

As part of its continuing effort to augment the capacity of institutions and individuals involved in grantmaking and philanthropy, The Synergos Institute launched the Senior Fellows Program in 1999. Applying a peer-to-peer learning methodology, the program creates opportunities for foundation colleagues from around the world to learn from one another, to combine energy on issues of mutual concern, and to share knowledge with others.

Senior Fellows occupy leadership positions at some of the world's most successful and innovative foundations. Most Fellows have been involved in philanthropic work for over ten years and possess extensive experience in one or more technical areas central to the establishment and operation of grantmaking programs.

In addition to technical skills, Fellows also possess a unique willingness to learn, an ability to communicate knowledge, and an awareness that involvement in learning networks is critical to solving complex problems in the global era. By joining the program, Senior Fellows demonstrate a dedication to social change and development beyond their immediate communities.

The Program offers Fellows the opportunity to acquire new knowledge and insights, to travel overseas, and to project the impact of their local work to a global level. Participation engages Fellows in a worldwide network of colleagues involved in strategic grantmaking and enables Fellows to forge enriching relationships with peer leaders in philanthropy.

The ultimate aim of the Senior Fellows Program is to strengthen the human and institutional infrastructure needed on a global level to make sustainable and meaningful improvements in lives of people living in poverty.

There are currently seventy-five Senior Fellows and Alumni from twenty-five countries. Most Fellows come from Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

Fellowship Activities

A class of Fellows is selected each year, for a term of three years, during which they participate in a variety of activities. These activities are designed to build each Fellow's own knowledge and networks and also to provide opportunities for Fellows to share their expertise with others. Activities include the following:

• Peer-to-Peer Learning Events: Over the course of the Fellowship, Senior Fellows contribute to organized learning events during which they share their own experiences and skills with other institutions. These peer-to-peer activities are individually tailored intensive consultations designed to meet the particular needs of the host organization. Last year, for example, a Senior Fellow from the Philippines led a strategic planning workshop for a grant-maker in Mozambique. Meanwhile, a Fellow South Africa shared his endowment raising experience with a national foundation in Ecuador. To date, Senior Fellows have conducted over one hundred peer learning events around the world.
   
  Importantly, these learning events are opportunities for Senior Fellows not only to impart knowledge, but also to gain new perspectives that are applicable to their own work.
   
• Annual Global Meeting and Regional Meetings: Fellows gather at an Annual Global Senior Fellows Meeting to exchange information on the latest trends and issues in grantmaking. At the Global Meeting, Fellows discuss the challenges of their work and learn how others have confronted similar obstacles. These annual gatherings, which take place in a different country each year, feature in-depth explorations of cutting-edge topics and involve site visits to local foundations where Fellows can learn about innovative grantmaking practices in different settings. Regional Senior Fellow meetings complement the Global Meeting. In 2004, Senior Fellows will gather in Manila, Philippines for the Global Meeting: Building Assets for Social Justice: The Role of Foundations
   
• Knowledge Production and Dissemination: Each Fellow is called upon to author a minimum one issue paper in an area related to their field of expertise. Papers are circulated among Fellows and others to build a body of knowledge on state of the art practices in philanthropy.

Eligibility

Participation in the Senior Fellows Program is open to current exeutive leadership of grantmaking foundations from any country. Applicants should have at least 10 years of experience in organized philanthropy, most of it at the executive leadership or management level. Candidates need to demonstrate a proven track record of accomplishment, originality, and innovation and should possess an advanced level of skill in one or more of the following areas of foundation operation: fundraising, endowment building, board development, grant making systems, strategic planning, program development, or communications.

Superior listening, learning, leadership and communication skills are important qualities of Senior Fellows. Fellows need to be able to dedicate approximately two weeks per year to Fellowship activities.