Inspired by His Majesty King Charles III, the King’s Commonwealth Fellowship Programme is now accepting applications for its 2026/2027 cohort. This fully funded, one-year professional development initiative is designed for frontline climate adaptation professionals across public, private, and civil society sectors in Commonwealth Small Island Developing States (SIDS)
Core Objectives
The programme aims to fortify the long-term climate resilience of Commonwealth SIDS by:
- Capacity Building: Equipping mid-career professionals to solve immediate and future climate adaptation challenges in their home nations.
- Collaboration: Providing a dynamic platform to test and execute practical SIDS-focused climate solutions.
- Networking: Building a cross-sectoral, international ecosystem of climate experts.
- Inclusivity: Centering gender equality, social inclusion, and indigenous knowledge at the heart of climate adaptation.
Fellowship Timeline & Structure
Candidates will undertake the course while continuing their full-time employment. The curriculum is actively progressing towards formal accreditation as a Postgraduate Certificate.
The one-year blended training programme is guided by expert facilitators and mentors, including these core elements:
- An 18-week online training course (February – July 2026): Involves live workshops, self-study, and assignments. It covers four core modules: Climate Literacy, Inter-sectoral Collaboration, Influencing Policy, and Climate Finance.
- One 5-day in-person residential in Jamaica (June 2026): Focuses on collaborative design workshops to map out participant-defined applied learning projects.
- A 5-month workplace-based applied learning project (August – December 2026): A participant-defined and led project executed within their home organization, culminating in a final project report submission in week 46.
Detailed Weekly Curriculum
Module 1: Climate Literacy (Weeks 2–5)
- Week 2: Introduction to Climate Literacy and the Climate Emergency
- Week 3: Physical Basis, Projections, and Climate Information
- Week 4: Climate Impacts and Risks for SIDS
- Week 5: Communicating Climate Change and Community Engagement
Module 2: Inter-Sectoral Collaboration (Weeks 7–10)
- Week 7: Systems and Errors of the Third Kind
- Week 8: Systems Thinking, Status Quo Disruption, and Decolonizing Development
- Week 9: Moving from Linear to Circular Systems & Multi-Stakeholder Collaboration
- Week 10: The Role of Indigenous and Local Knowledge in Inter-sectoral Planning
Module 3: Influencing Policy (Weeks 12–15)
- Week 12: Global Policy Context for Climate Change Adaptation
- Week 13: National and Sub-national Policies and Institutions
- Week 14: Gender Justice in Climate Action
- Week 15: Indigenous and Local Knowledge Solutions
Module 4: Climate Finance (Weeks 17–20)
- Week 17: Sustainable Financial Instruments
- Week 18: Sustainable Finance in Project Evaluation
- Week 19: Fintech in Climate Financing
- Week 20: Climate Finance Regulation and Supervision
Eligibility Requirements
To qualify for this fellowship, applicants must meet the following criteria:
Enjoying this article? Share it with your network!
- Professional Experience: 5 to 15 years of direct or related experience in climate adaptation practice (defined by experience, not job title).
- Career Trajectory: A planned commitment to another 10 to 20 years of growing leadership responsibilities in the climate field.
- Employment Status: Currently employed by an organization registered in an eligible country, with a contract extending through at least February 2027.
- Residency & Citizenship: Must be a citizen, permanent resident, or hold refugee status in an eligible country.
Eligible Countries
- Africa: Mauritius, Seychelles
- Asia: The Maldives
- Caribbean & Americas: Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago
- Pacific: Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu
How to Apply
Interested Applicants can review full details and apply on the official website:
https://www.acu.ac.uk/kcfp-crf
Disclaimer
Edfrica shares opportunities for informational purposes only. Results and funding outcomes are not guaranteed.
