Yale’s International Leadership Center, part of the Jackson School of Global Affairs, has named its 2026 cohort of the Yale Emerging Climate Leaders Fellowship.
“It is a privilege to welcome another extraordinary cohort of Fellows to Yale,” said Paul Simons, a retired U.S. ambassador and the program’s founding director.
“With this fourth cohort of the Fellowship, we continue to build a global community of practitioners driving real-world climate solutions. By convening diverse leaders — from government, business, and civil society—we aim to raise collective ambition, foster innovative collaborations, and forge lasting partnerships that accelerate the clean energy transition and strengthen resilience worldwide.”
The five-month program offers an opportunity for 16 rising climate and clean energy practitioners from across the developing and emerging world to strengthen their leadership skills, broaden technical proficiencies, deepen professional networks, and explore policy solutions with top global clean energy and climate change leaders.
“This year’s Fellows are at the forefront of climate action in their countries and sectors,” said Emma Sky, director of the International Leadership Center. “They include a Fijian climate negotiator advancing adaptation for vulnerable island states, a Namibian practitioner working with parliaments to shape ambitious climate legislation, and a Filipino entrepreneur pioneering new battery technologies to support the energy transition. We are excited to help them unleash their full potential as climate champions.”
Fellows begin the program in February at the Yale campus in New Haven, taking part in a series of interactive sessions with prominent faculty and practitioners active in advancing climate initiatives that form the heart of Yale’s innovative Planetary Solutions program. The fellowship then continues with a series of remote learning sessions featuring top international experts on the full range of policy issues associated with climate change and the clean energy transition. The program concludes in June with an in-person week in Paris, including dialogues with top international energy and climate change leaders.