Learnserve International

LearnServe Fellows Program: The LearnServe Fellows Program is a 7-month program with a mix of weekly in-person and some virtual meetings. Participants identify a global issue they care about, centered around the UN Sustainability Goals. Applying human- and equity-centered design methods, LearnServe Fellows ideate, test, design, and launch a social venture addressing their chosen cause. The program culminates in a pitch competition with a chance to qualify for matching seed grants of up to $200.During the financial year ending June 30, 2023, 22 Fellows completed the program in Washington DC.During the same year, LearnServe partners in Lusaka, Zambia, and Asuncion, Paraguay, piloted the LearnServe Fellows Program in their locations. 19 Fellows completed the program in Lusaka, and 8 Fellows completed the program in Asuncion. The partners adapted the curriculum to their local conditions with support from LearnServe.The LearnServe Incubator is a 5 months virtual program that builds on the skills learned during the Fellows Program and brings together young social entrepreneurs from around the world to further develop their social ventures with a focus on human- and equity-centered design, iterative customer discovery, and entrepreneurship skills as well as cross-cultural competencies. Participants introduce their ventures to a panel of judges at a virtual pitch competition. During the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023, 14 participants completed the virtual Incubator Program.

General Programs: General Programs includes Seeding Social Innovation, the in-school social entrepreneurship program, and initiatives to develop new programs and reach new audiences. During fiscal year 2022-23, Seeding Social Innovation was implemented in one area school. LearnServe provided a hackathon for 22 participants.

Global Summer Fellowship: The Global Summer Fellowship (GSF) is an intensive 5-week virtual introduction into social entrepreneurship. Participants from several countries are grouped into cohorts based on their interest in UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Over the course of 5 weeks in, they research their chosen SDG, and design and launch a social venture addressing their cause. In the process, they exchange research and ideas, and get to know each others communities. The program culminates in a pitch competition where judges from participating countries select one winning venture from each country. During July and August 2022, 33 Fellows based in the USA and 32 Fellows based in Zambia joined the virtual program.