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THE PROGRAM
Funded by Mercedes-Benz, beVisioneers provides young innovators like you with the training, resources and expert support you need to bring your planet-positive project or idea to life. It doesn’t matter who you are or what your financial status is. If you’re passionately committed to creating positive environmental change, whether in your community or across the world, beVisioneers is the fellowship for you.
As a beVisioneers fellow, you take part in a unique, one-year hybrid learning program designed and implemented by education pioneers The DO School Fellowships gGmbH. After completing the program and launching your project, you become a lifelong member of the beVisioneers community, getting support to continue developing your project as well as your leadership and entrepreneurial skills.
During your first year, you will receive one-to-one project coaching as well as guidance from top experts in relevant fields. You will have the chance to apply for project grants and join masterclasses. You will also learn the award-winning DO Method and use it to launch your product.
Upon completing the 12-month program, you remain a member of the beVisioneers community, a worldwide network of change-makers, working together at eye-level to confront the most pressing environmental challenges of our times. Continue to develop your skills, grow your project and contribute to positive environmental change!
BACKGROUND
In May of 2022, Mercedes-Benz auctioned off the world’s most valuable automobile, a 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé from 1955, for 135 million euros. By donating proceeds from the auction to beVisioneers, Mercedes-Benz aims to empower a new generation of innovators.
– Renata Jungo Brüngger,
Member of the Board of Management
of Mercedes-Benz Group AG
for Integrity and Legal Affairs
Explore our in-depth Q&A for the answers!
Q&A
For 2023, the first year of the fellowship, we are accepting applications only from residents of Denmark, Germany, Hungary, India, Poland, South Africa, Spain, Sweden or the United Kingdom; applicants must have a project in, or a project idea intended for, at least one of these countries. In 2024, we will expand to more regions, with the goal of rolling out globally by 2025. Sign up for our newsletter to stay informed about 2024 application dates, and keep developing your sustainability project or idea.
To be considered for a beVisioneers fellowship, you must apply with a sustainability project or an idea for one. While it doesn’t have to be fully-formed, your project or idea should demonstrate a solid understanding of the environmental challenge you want to tackle. To help us assess its feasibility, try to define the scope and goals of your project or idea as well as your plan for implementing it. During the fellowship journey, your project may change or evolve as you learn new things, and that’s to be expected. Your passion and determination, together with the ongoing support of the beVisioneers community, will help you make it stronger and improve its chances of success.
Fellows are selected on an individual basis. For this reason, every member of a project team who wishes to participate must apply individually, and the acceptance of one team member does not guarantee the acceptance of others. The fellowship experience is designed to help you grow personally as a leader, and significant emphasis is placed on individual development and reflection. We therefore recommend that project founders or leaders apply.
beVisioneers is a 12-month hybrid intensive with a blend of weekly on-demand and live classes where fellows build knowledge and learn by DOing around 3 labs:
Key elements of the program include:
There are no costs to individual fellows. Participation in the program is fully funded by a donation from Mercedes-Benz. All fellows benefit, free of charge, from the beVisioneers training curriculum and from access to the beVisioneers online community. All expenses associated with travel to summits are covered.
beVisioneers begins with a 12-month hybrid intensive program, a blend of weekly on-demand and live classes in which fellows build knowledge and learn by DOing. The program is structured around three labs. Grants will be awarded to the projects that demonstrate the highest potential for environmental impact. Whether or not you receive a grant, you will learn the DO Method for taking your idea from project phase to launch and beyond.
beVisioneers is committed to ensuring an accessible and financially inclusive fellowship experience. Active engagement in the fellowship program requires reliable and consistent access to a computer and the internet, as well as sufficient time for learning and project development. For this reason, beVisioneers offers two types of stipend (see below) to help fellows with specific needs overcome logistical and/or financial barriers that may prevent their full participation. Both stipends are available only for the initial, 12-month intensive learning program, and every candidate invited for a fellowship interview is welcome to apply for these stipends on a needs-blind basis.
The fellowship is a hybrid experience, with most content and training over the initial 12-month learning period delivered in live online sessions and through access to on-demand content. During this period, fellows also attend quarterly local meet-ups (in person whenever possible) and a regional in-person summit. Based on their engagement and project achievements over the fellowship period, fellows may also be invited to participate in an in-person global summit.
Eligible fellows:
Fellows retain the exclusive rights to all intellectual property brought to and/or developed as part of the beVisioneers program.
You may apply for a beVisioneers fellowship here until March 5, 2023. The application process consists of questions on topics such as your project or project idea, its impact, and your dedication to creating environmental change. The application should take about one hour to complete. You can save your application at any time and come back to it at a later point. Please note that you will need to upload an official proof of identity and record a motivation video of 90 seconds or less.
The key upcoming deadlines and time periods for beVisioneers are:
Application period: Jan. 10 – Mar. 5, 2023
Selection period: March – May, 2023
Launch of the fellowship’s 12-month intensive program, year one: June, 2023
Read press releases, get updates, watch video and download images.
Applying for a beVisioneers fellowship is easy. You can save your work in
progress and come back to it at any time. Here’s your checklist:
APPLY
Register: You’ll receive an email from Dream ID to log in for the first time.
When you are registered, sign in with your email address.
Fill in and submit your application.
Record your motivation video:
Please read this online motivation video process guide before you record your motivation video.
Want to know more? Keep me updated
Over the past 10 years, The DO School has created some of today’s most ambitious fellowship programs for young impact entrepreneurs in partnership with UN agencies, companies and foundations. We are incredibly proud of the over 50,000 alumni in over 100 countries that have launched and scaled their initiatives through our programs.
– Katherin Kirschenmann,
Founder, The DO School