Innovation Ecosystems
Fellowship Overview
What are we trying to build?
A team-based fellowship program preparing leaders to
catalyze and grow local innovation ecosystems based on
values of inclusive design and co-creation that address local
development challenges
Why this approach?
The challenge: Local innovation ecosystems are not providing
the resources that grassroots innovators need to succeed in
advancing their solutions to address global development
challenges.
The opportunity: Local ecosystem entrepreneurs (such as
founders of maker spaces and accelerators) are more and more
abundant, and eager to help their innovation ecosystem thrive by
supporting grassroots innovators to create social impact.
Who are the prospective fellows & teams?
• Individual fellows are young, dynamic, and driven ecosystem
entrepreneurs who are currently working on early-stage projects or
ventures that advance their local innovation ecosystem
• Some examples of “ecosystem entrepreneurs” include
individuals who lead a maker space, a design education initiative, an
accelerator or incubator, or a collaboration platform
• Fellows will become part of a team with 3-4 other co-located
fellows (e.g. a team in Nairobi, Guatemala City, or Bangalore)
• There will be 3-4 total teams in each fellowship class or cohort,
creating the opportunity for different innovation ecosystems to learn
from one another.
How will it work?
1. Fellows will apply individually or as part of a team for a specific
location. A selection committee will identify promising candidates, and
create 3-4 teams across the applicants.
2. Once fellows are selected, a kick-off convening will be held in one of
the team’s local innovation ecosystems (e.g. Bangalore, India). The kickoff convening will focus on the basics of building innovation ecosystems,
and will provide time for team-building within and across the different
teams. Teams will also have an opportunity to immerse and learn from
the ecosystem they are visiting.
3. At the kick-off convening, each team will engage in a design challenge to
create actionable roadmap for an initiative that helps their innovation
ecosystem thrive over the course of the year. This collaboration could
include initiatives such as creating an inclusive small business advocacy
group or a STEM and design education initiative in primary schools. This
plan will also include a proposed budget.
How will it work? (continued)
4. Team collaboration grants will be administered based on the
feasibility and financial needs of each team’s proposed plan.
Grant sizes may range from $20,000 - $50,000 depending on
the team’s scope.
5. Based on each team’s specific needs, the fellowship manager
will identify and connect the team to 2-3 tailored mentors
that can help guide the team in their work.
6. Each team will have a monthly check-in with the fellowship
manager to take stock of progress, challenges, and lessons
learned.
How will it work? (continued)
7. A mid-point convening will be organized in a second local
innovation ecosystem (e.g. Nairobi, Kenya). This convening
will be focused on taking stock of the teams’ progress thus far,
and collaboratively identifying approaches to addressing
challenges that have become clear over the course of six
months. It will also be an opportunity for the fellows to gain
additional leadership and social impact skills (from monitoring
and evaluation to marketing and finance).
8. Monthly check-ins with the fellowship manager and mentors
will continue.
How will it work? (continued)
9. At the close of the fellowship, teams will gather in a third and
final local innovation ecosystem for a closing convening.
This convening’s purpose will be two-fold: 1) to celebrate and
share lessons learned from the various teams, and to explore
means of future collaboration; and 2) for the first cohort of
fellows to meet (and in some cases, teach) the newly-selected
second cohort of fellows)
10. Over the next year, D-Lab will continue to provide nonmonetary support to the first cohort of fellows by arranging
virtual check-ins, ensuring ongoing mentorship, and making
connections to key stakeholders that can move the teams’
projects forward.
How will we measure success?
Our measurement efforts will take place at three levels:
1. FELLOWS: Fellows' goals, satisfaction, takeaways, and learning
2. INITIATIVES: Their initiatives' reach, employment, outside
investment, and other custom indicators based on the nature of
those initiatives
3. ECOSYSTEMS: Fellows’ influence on (1) new innovation activity
in their communities, and (2) adoption of a collaborative design
approach by local, regional and global actors
Theory of change
How will we measure success? (continued)
Once each team has created an action plan (during the kick-off convening),
they will work with D-Lab’s Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning team to create
a theory of change for their work as well as a monitoring and evaluation
plan with specialized indicators.
Additionally, we will track a select set of universal outcomes for all teams,
such as number of local innovators supported, number of new program or
policy changes due to the fellowship, etc.
We will also create a pre-, mid-, and post-survey for all fellows to assess
their learning objectives and progress toward those objectives over time.
Finally, we will continue to seek user feedback on how to iterate and improve
the fellowship over time with input from the fellows themselves.
An Action Plan: Four Steps
#1 Pilot, plan & improve (March-Oct. 17)
#2 Launch & select cohort (Oct.-Dec. 17)
#3 Convene, train & support (2018)
#4 Evaluate, reflect & iterate (Ongoing)
#1 Pilot, plan & improve (March-Oct. 17)
• Learning pilot in Australia
• Team planning and curriculum development retreat
• Identify key partners (institutions & individuals)
• Define and fundraise for program budget
• Define cohort selection criteria
• Create application and selection process
• Create on-boarding process
• Outline learning objectives
• Define and create pool of cohort resources
• Staff the program
#2 Launch & select cohort (Oct-Dec 2017)
• Application goes live (October)
• Advertise and collect applications (November)
• Develop and curate cohort curriculum
• Review applications & selection process
• Announce & celebrate our fellows (December)
• Connect fellows over digital collaboration platforms
#3 Implement
Implement (2018)
(Jan-Dec 2018)
• Kick-off, mid-point, and closing convenings
• Provide access to resources (financial, mentorship, other) &
tailored support
• Provide access to digital collaboration platforms so teams can
collaborate virtually across the globe
• Administer and monitor team grants (average $50,000 each)
• Monthly check-ins, reporting, and communication with teams
• Storytelling & marketing of team journeys
#4 Reflect
Evaluate,
& iterate
(Ongoing)
& reflect
evaluate
(ongoing)
• Define program theory of change, set success metrics
• Define reporting structure
• Monitor progress & collect data and stories
• Publish program learnings output
• Iterate on theory of change & metrics for year two
• Update application process & launch applications for year two
Annual estimated budget
•
•
•
•
•
Kick-Off Convening: $25,000
Collaboration Grants: between $20,000-$50,000 / team / year
Mid-Point Convening: $25,000
Supplies, platforms & materials: $25,000
Staffing: $175,000 / year
• Program management (100% LOE)
• Curriculum development support (33% LOE)
• M&E, communications and administration (10% LOE each)
• Closing Convening: $35,000 (together w/ second year fellows)
ANNUAL TOTAL: $345,000-485,000*
*Depending on number of teams, and size of grants