2025 FELLOWSHIPS
Virtual: PT/MT ♦ CT ♦ ET
In-Person: Bay Area ♦ Chicago ♦ New York City ♦ Washington, DC
Applications are now open for the 2025 Fellowships.
The 2025 Fellowship offers two participation options:
Fully Virtual Cohorts: Organized by time zone (PT/MT, CT, and ET). Applicants in the Mountain Time zone are encouraged to join the PT/MT cohort. Virtual cohorts are open to anyone in the U.S., including those who prefer the flexibility of an online program.
In-Person Cohorts: Available in the Bay Area, Chicago, New York City, and Washington, DC. Individuals living within commuting distance of these cities are encouraged to apply to the in-person fellowships if they are able to commit to participating in person on these dates: 8/6, 8/13, 8/20, Saturday 9/6, 9/17, 9/24, 10/8, 10/15, 10/29, 11/5, 11/12, 11/19, 12/3, and Thursday 12/4.
CELI’s 4-month fellowship program for working professionals consists of weekly programming on energy literacy topics, Saturday sessions that go deeper on leadership skills, and preparation for a capstone project. In 2025, all fellowships begin on Wednesday, July 30 and run through December 4, 2025. Sessions feature thought leaders and expert practitioners in the field and include uniquely curated activities for fellows to dive deeper into the curriculum. Fellows are challenged to think critically about current energy policy and market structures, examine existing and historical inequities, identify barriers to clean energy deployment and innovation, and develop holistic solutions towards an equitable energy transition.
After core program completion, CELI fellows join an active, connected network of ~ 1,500 alumni nationwide. Our alumni continue to play an active role in the CELI community by hosting discussions, publishing thought pieces, attending ongoing leadership and professional development training, gathering at conferences, and participating in regular social and networking events. CELIons (CELI alumni) make the Fellowship possible year-after-year.
For any questions on your application, please contact applications@cleanenergyleaders.org
2025 FELLOWSHIP CURRICULUM OVERVIEW
Over the course of the fellowship, CELI Fellows will explore adaptive leadership, clean energy technology, policy, finance, and be challenged to look critically at inequities and power dynamics in clean energy systems. Fellows will practice their skills in public speaking, persuasive writing, and business pitching, as they prepare to deliver a capstone project via one of these methods. Most importantly, through the curated cohorts that comprise each fellowship, Fellows are introduced to approximately 20-35 peer participants, who will become a vital community of practice -- we hope, for life.
The program includes:
An opening orientation where Fellows will virtually gather for two hours to connect with their cohorts, be introduced to the CELI leadership team and staff, review requirements and expectations for the program, and engage in a high-level discussion of current climate challenges.
Educational modules with weekly virtual sessions consisting of a mixture of readings, lectures with expert practitioners, panel discussions with leaders in the field, hands-on activities, and small group discussions to build knowledge, community, and connection among Fellows. Module topics include energy markets, new technologies, deep decarbonization, policy and civic action, and an introduction to energy justice topics.
Leadership development workshops introduce Fellows to an adaptive leadership framework creating space to reflect on purpose and role in the energy transition.
Saturday sessions will focus on community building, sustainable infrastructure finance and capital markets, and leadership development.
Capstone Projects build public speaking, writing, or pitching skills. Fellows will be assigned Peer Pods to support the design and delivery of their capstone projects.
Community Programming as casual, optional activities open to the Fellows, as well as alumni and community members.
Additional Program Requirements:
For graduation, the fellows are required to develop and submit a Capstone Project that hones their skills as a clean energy leader. Fellows can choose from the following Capstone projects:
Opinion piece: A 600 to 800-word thought piece on a clean energy topic of choice. Fellows will receive guidance and edits from an assigned peer group, as well as assistance on pitching their blogs to industry publications. All opinion pieces will be published on CELI’s Medium page, and highlighted in our monthly newsletter reaching 6,000+ unique readers.
Business Pitch: Fellows will have 7 minutes to propose a new clean energy business or non-profit to receive feedback from a panel of judges, CELI alumni, and peers.
TED-Style Presentation: Fellows will have 7 minutes to take the stage and present on a clean energy topic of their choice to CELI alumni and peers.
2. The majority of in-person Fellowship sessions for the in-person cohorts will take place on Wednesday evenings in the following locations:
Bay Area (all sessions will be located in San Francisco): Wednesday evenings 6:00-8:00pm PT
Chicago: Wednesday evenings 6:00-8:00pm CT
Washington, DC: Wednesday evenings 6:00-8:00pm ET
New York City (all sessions will be located in Manhattan): Wednesday evenings 6:00-8:00pm ET
The virtual cohorts will meet online on Wednesday evenings, unless scheduled otherwise with advance notice, at these times:
PT/MT Virtual Cohort: Wednesday evenings 6:00-8:00pm PT // 7:00-9:00pm MT
CT Virtual Cohort: Wednesday evenings 6:00-8:00pm CT
ET Virtual Cohort: Wednesday evenings 6:00-8:00pm ET
Once in a while, Wednesday sessions will be fully virtual and pooled across all cohorts with the following timing:
PT/MT Virtual Cohort & Bay Area: Wednesday 4:00-6:00pm PT
CT Virtual Cohort & Chicago: Wednesday 6:00-8:00pm CT
ET Virtual Cohort & New York City & Washington, DC: Wednesday 7:00-9:00pm ET
3. Non-Wednesday Sessions:
[Required] Tuesday, August 5 - Energy Justice
[Optional] Tuesday, August 12 - Energy Fundamentals
[Optional] Tuesday, August 19 - Equitable Rate Design (guest speaker)
[Required] Saturday, September 6 - Adaptive Leadership in Practice
[Optional] Tuesday, October 7 - Decarbonizing Transport (guest speaker)
[Optional] Saturday, October 25 - Sustainable Infrastructure Finance and Capital Markets
[Optional] Tuesday, November 4 - Federal Policy and Just Transition (guest speaker)
[Required] Thursday, December 4 - Capstone Night 2
CURRICULUM AT-A-GLANCE
All sessions listed below are virtual via Zoom for the Virtual Cohort Fellowship.
In-Person Cohorts will convene in the Bay Area (sessions take place in San Francisco), Chicago, New York City (most sessions take place in Manhattan), and Washington, DC. The in-person cohorts will meet in-person for sessions on these dates: 8/6, 8/13, 8/20, Saturday 9/6, 9/17, 9/24, 10/8, 10/15, 10/29, 11/5, 11/12, 11/19, 12/3, and Thursday 12/4.
Session 0 - Orientation: Wednesday, July 30
ET Virtual Cohort & DC Cohort & NYC Cohort: 6-8pm ET
PT/MT Cohort & SF Cohort: 4-6pm PT / 5-7pm MT
CT Cohort & Chicago Cohort: 6-8pm CT
Introduction to CELI Staff and CELI Cohort Leadership Teams
CELI vision: fellowship, requirements, and policiesKeynote guest speaker and meet the rest of your cohort
Module 1: Energy Markets
Required Session 1 (Tuesday, August 5) - Introduction to Energy Justice Frameworks & Energy Equity Supports (all cohorts pooled)
(*hold 4-6pm PT / 5-7pm MT / 6-8pm CT / 7-9pm ET)Session 2 (Wednesday, August 6) - Utility model and electricity markets (wholesale, retail, capacity, auxiliary services) (guest speaker)
Optional Session 3 (Tuesday, August 12) - Energy Fundamentals
Session 4 (Wednesday, August 13) - Utility model and electricity markets (wholesale, retail, capacity, auxiliary services) (activity)
Optional Session 5 (Tuesday, August 19) - Equitable rate design (guest speaker)
Session 6 (Wednesday, August 20) - Equitable rate design (activity)
Wednesday, August 27 - No session
Session 7 (Wednesday, September 3) - Introduction to Adaptive Leadership (all cohorts, pooled)
(*hold 4-6pm PT / 5-7pm MT / 6-8pm CT / 7-9pm ET)
Required Session 8 (Saturday, September 6) - Adaptive Leadership Balcony Dance Floor Activity
(*hold 9am-12pm PT / 10am-1pm MT / 11am-2pm CT / 12-3pm ET)
Wednesday, September 10 - No Session
Module 2: New Technologies
Session 9 (Wednesday, September 17) - Energy storage and grid modernization
Session 10 (Wednesday, September 24) - Next generation technology
Due Date (Monday, September 22) Capstone Topic & Format Submission Due
Session 11 (Wednesday, September 24) - Energy Burden, Energy Insecurity, and Energy Poverty
Fellows choose (at least one) time slot to attend:
3-4pm PT / 4-5pm MT / 5-6pm CT / 6-7pm ET
6-7pm PT / 7-9pm MT / 8-9pm CT / 9-10pm ET
Session 12 – (Wednesday, October 1) - Energy Resilience (all cohorts, pooled)
(*hold 4-5:30pm PT / 5-6:30pm MT / 6-7:30pm CT / 7-8:30pm ET)
Module 3: Deep Decarbonization
Optional Session 13 (Tuesday, October 7) - Decarbonizing transportation (guest speaker)
Session 14 (Wednesday, October 8) - Decarbonizing transportation (activity)
Session 15 (Wednesday, October 15) - Energy efficiency in buildings
Wednesday, October 22 - No Session
Optional Session 16 (Saturday, October 25) - Workshops: Project Finance
(*hold 10am-1pm PT / 12-3pm CT / 1-4pm ET)
Session 17 (Wednesday, October 29) - Industrial decarbonization
Module 4: Policy and Civic Action
Optional Session 18 (Tuesday, November 4) - Federal policy and just transition (guest speaker)
Session 19 (Wednesday, November 5) - Federal policy and just transition (activity)
Session 20 (Wednesday, November 12) - State policy, equity, and access
Session 21 (Wednesday, November 19) - Local Action
Due Date (Monday, November 24) - Capstone Projects Due
Wednesday, November 26 - No Session
Required Session 22 (Wednesday, December 3) - Capstone Night 1
Required Session 23 (Thursday, December 4) - Capstone Night 2
For more information, check out our:
Email celi@cleanenergyleaders.org with any questions.