Ashoka
of Fellows have seen their idea replicated by independent groups
The Ashoka Fellowship
For more than 40 years, Ashoka has built and nurtured the largest network of leading social entrepreneurs in the world by electing them as Fellows.
Upon election, we invite Fellows into a life-long Fellowship and a global community of peers, where every member is committed to championing new patterns of social good. While some receive financial support in form of an unrestricted, needs-assessed stipend, the main value of the Fellowship lies in the support Fellows access throughout their entrepreneurial journeys, for example, through access to pro-bono legal advice, coaching and leadership development. Ashoka offers both structured courses and trainings, such as online webinars on systems change and social finance, as well as ad hoc and personal support. While we navigate and channel our Fellows’ needs and opportunities, it is our community that expands and adds most of the value we can provide.
Ashoka Fellows Change Policy, Market Dynamics, and How People Think
Ashoka also identifies patterns that are emerging from our Fellows—types of solutions, strategies, topic areas, etc.—that often point to areas ripe for major change. These learnings from across our Fellowship guide Ashoka’s work and investments in strategic initiatives that empower every person to be a changemaker. In 2018, Ashoka led one of the largest and most diverse studies of system changing social entrepreneurs ever conducted: Unlonely Planet Impact Report. And we found that Ashoka Fellows are having systems-level impact — 74 percent have achieved change in public policy or legislation, while many others are changing market systems, and mindsets.
Ashoka Fellows know that in order to spread their idea quickly and turn it into society’s “new normal,” they must employ innovative strategies to get their idea into the hands of as many people as possible. We define independent replication as when an independent organisation or institution takes on a Fellow’s idea, further increasing the scale and impact.
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have achieved change in public policy or legislation
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have seen their idea replicated within their country of residence
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have seen their idea replicated in other countries
Systems Change
At Ashoka, we believe that the most powerful force for good is a systems-changing idea in the hands of a formidable social entrepreneur. True systems change is the result of scaling social impact and not growing an organisation; it is the result of letting go of control of an idea, and enabling and encouraging others to join in and implement change. Ashoka Fellows embody this concept and their ideas have positively impacted on countless people around the world.
Collective Impact For Systems Change
Discover how we ignite collaborations and collective impact around Europe´s most pressing challenges: Biodiversity, Democracy, Anti-corruption, the impacts of COVID-19 and more.
The Ashoka Europe Fellowship Program
The Ashoka Europe Fellowship Program is a co-learning and co-creation community to leverage Ashoka's local and global experience, resources and networks in order to advance social entrepreneurship and changemaking for the good of all - across the continent. The Program empowers and connects change leaders and key players in the social entrepreneurship eco-sytstem in Europe to learn from one another and aim for systems change in co-creative ways.
The Ashoka Globalizer
The Globalizer program taps into Ashoka’s broad network of changemakers across the business, government, and citizen sectors. It begins with a three-month advisory phase where a support team of volunteer advisors—leading strategy consultants and high-level business leaders—help Ashoka Fellows reflect on key issues and establish a solid strategy to spread their impact.
Do you know someone with a pathbreaking idea?
Are they creative, entrepreneurial problem-solvers tackling big social problems?
Recently Elected Ashoka Fellows in the UK & Ireland
