About the fellowship
The AHDA fellowship allows participants to come to spend the fall semester of the academic year at Columbia University in New York City. This comprehensive program provides fellows with the opportunity to hone practical skills in fundraising, advocacy and leadership; to develop a deeper understanding of and engagement with the past; and to foster mutually beneficial relationships with their peers and with international and non-profit organizations based in New York and Washington, D.C.
The fellowship application period for 2017 is now open. Click here to learn how to apply.
Seminars
Over the course of the semester when the fellows are in residence at Columbia, they attend a series of 2-hour sessions with scholars and other experts in historical dialogue, exploring major theoretical issues and on-the-ground case studies. These seminars include discussions on the role of history, the goals of historical dialogue, and historical dialogue in different thematic and geographical contexts. Fellows develop clear concepts of historical dialogue and accountability on the basis of practical experiences and scholarly insights explored in these sessions. Continuing and active participation in the seminars, including weekly reading assignments and several short writing assignments is a requirement of the program.
Workshops
Seminars are supplemented by capacity building trainings in skills important to the work of historical dialogue, and important to implementing a successful project. These workshops include sessions on fundraising, advocacy tools, new media, and project development. The goal of these workshops is to build capacity in a wide range of skills required for historical dialogue, from facilitation to fundraising.
Site Visits, Networking & Colloborative Relationships
Fellows have the opportunity to meet with a range of international institutions, human rights organizations, foundations and practitioners in the field who are based in New York City, to observe their practices, learn more about their strategies, and to meet their leadership and staff. There are also visits to relevant sites of memory in New York City, and to learn more about their programs, outreach and organizational approach. These opportunities enable fellows to build networks with historical dialogue leaders, and connect with individuals and organizations relevant to their work.
Washington, D.C.
Fellows travel to Washington, D.C. to take advantage of the networking and advocacy opportunities available there. Fellows meet in groups and individually with relevant organizations, foundations, museums, universities and government agencies. The AHDA staff works closely with fellows to ensure that meetings are relevant to their needs and interests. The trip is also an opportunity for fellows to spend time together as a group, and to continue to learn from one another.
Individual Projects
During the fellowship participants design a project that addresses some aspect of a history of gross human rights violations in their society, country and/or region. Projects can take a range of forms (films, publications, curricula, reports, meetings/proceedings), with the aim of implementing them when fellows return to their home communities. Fellows will give several presentations related to the topics of their project proposals and other work that they are engaged in to members of the Columbia community and the larger human rights community in New York City. By the end of the semester, each fellow is expected to have completed a detailed proposal and budget narrative for a project in historical dialogue to a panel of fellowship reviewers, for critique and feedback.
Columbia University Coursework
Fellows audit 1 to 2 courses at the university during the fall semester. These courses are selected based on their relevance to the particular context or approach to historical dialogue of each fellow. Fellows can attend classes at the School of International and Public Affairs, the Law School, The Graduate School of Arts Sciences, the School of Social Work, Teachers College and Barnard College.
Student Life in New York City
AHDA integrates Fellows into various aspects of student life at Columbia and beyond. Fellows reside at the International House with international and US students and participate in a range of social learning and cultural activities organized by International House and Columbia University. The four month program gives fellows time and space to reflect on their work and share their experiences and insights with one another. AHDA also facilitates relationship-building among alumni of the program.
Selection of Participants
The Program is designed for lawyers, journalists, teachers, social workers, community organizers, artists, scholars and other human rights activists working on issues related to dealing with the past such as: transitional justice, historical dialogue, memory studies, historical justice, oral history, history education.
Participants are selected on the basis of their previous work experience in work that deals with the past, their commitment to the human rights field, and demonstrated ability to pursue graduate-level studies. Full-time students will not be considered. Applicants who are mid-career and hold full or part-time jobs pursuing their advocacy efforts are preferred.
Fellows must work in the country and/or region where they live. Fluency in English is required. Fellows must provide proof of institutional endorsement in English from their organizations for their participation in the Program and must commit to returning to that organization upon completion of the Program. The program lasts a full academic semester, from late August to mid-December, and fellows are required to be in residence in New York City for this period.
Funding
After the ISHR selection committee conducts its selection process, it makes every effort to secure funding for shortlisted Fellows to attend the program. In certain cases where ISHR cannot secure funding, shortlisted Fellows may be asked to secure the funds needed for them to be admitted to the program.
Application
The completed application must be submitted online by the deadline. Applicants should take into consideration technical issues and begin the process in advance of the deadline. Late applications will not be considered.
The application period for 2017 is now open. Completed applications are due 11:59 GMT, on January 31st, 2017.
Due to the number of applications we receive, we are not able to answer application questions personally. A Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page is available with answers to commonly asked questions. Please email further questions to ahda@columbia.edu. Answers to technical questions will be added as updates to the FAQ page. ISHR strongly recommends completing your application well in advance of this the application deadline.
Columbia University aims to make all websites fully accessible to users with disabilities. If you experience difficulty using this page, please contact ahda@columbia.edu
Applicants will be notified in June of their status. Please be patient as the selection and funding processes are lengthy.
Application Instructions
Applicants are asked to complete the application in its entirety. Please complete all sections in English. Please follow all instructions, including those sent to your email address.
In order to access the application, applicants must register an account on the ISHR website and log in. Once logged in, applicants can begin a new application by Start/Resume An AHDA Application from the menu.
After beginning an application, the applicant can either choose to save the form as a draft, or submit a completed application. If you choose to save the form as a draft, you can return to this page to complete it. Upon submission of a completed application, a confirmation will be sent to the applicant. Applicants may login to the online application to view or edit their submitted applications until the deadline.
Applicants can access their form from their user page and by using the Manage link in the menu.
Two signed letters of recommendation are required. Unsigned letters will not be accepted and your entire application will be removed from consideration. The recommenders must provide their contact information (phone number and email address). You cannot submit the proof of institutional endorsement as one of the letters. The letters must be in English. They must be from those who can attest to your work in human rights and dealing with the memory of historical violence. Your letters of recommendation weigh heavily in our consideration. Please reach out to potential recommenders in a timely fashion. Most recommenders require at least one month's notice.
The application period for 2017 is now open. Completed applications are due 11:59 GMT, on January 31st, 2017.
- What kind of funding does the fellowship provide for fellows?
Our funding ranges from full funding, which covers programmatic costs, living/travel expenses and includes a small monthly stipend to partial funding which covers some portion of these costs. In cases where we are unable to provide full funding, we work with fellows to try to identify additional financial support.
- When and where does the fellowship take place?
The program lasts about four months--for the full academic semester in the fall of each year. The fellowship is based at Columbia University in New York City and fellows are required to be in residence in New York City for this entire period. It is not possible to attend for only a part of the time in question, nor is it possible to defer admission should you be accepted.
- May students apply?
The AHDA fellowship is an intensive, full-time program. ABD and Post-doctoral students are eligible to apply, but please be aware that the program is demanding and intensive and focuses on applied research and capacity building. This fellowship program is not geared toward the writing of the dissertation or other extensive research projects.
For more information click "Further official information" below.
This opportunity has expired. It was originally published here:
http://www.humanrightscolumbia.org/ahda/fellowship-historical-dialogue-and-accountability