Big Bets Fellowships/

Big Bets Fellowship:
United States

2026 Big Bets Fellowship: United States applications are open! Join the Big Bets Community to apply.

A Transformational Fellowship for a Sustainable Future

As part of our long-standing commitment to making opportunity universal, we established an annual Fellowship to equip leaders with the mindset and skills needed to advance solutions with breakthrough potential to connect displaced workers to work, and support efforts to build resilience in the face of past or future economic disruption.

Centering the United States

The United States is at a critical juncture, facing both immense challenges and unprecedented opportunities that are undergirded by individual’s increased pessimism about their — and their community’s — economic prospects. Since the 1980s, economic inequality has risen steadily in the United States with income and wealth increasingly concentrated among a smaller and smaller percentage of Americans. Moreover, nearly 50 million Americans live in distressed places, with declining job opportunities leading to a host of other challenges including poor health and educational outcomes, persistent racial and gender inequities, and the erosion of social and political trust. However, the United States also has significant resources and capacity for transformative change, with robust research institutions, a growing green economy, and innovative policy initiatives that can drive impactful economic solutions.

The Big Bets Fellowship: United States will empower leaders across sectors to develop entrepreneurial solutions, resilient systems, and policies that seize the opportunity for growth that is good for people and the planet.

Program Dates:

  • Onboarding Call: week of May 4th, 2026
  • Virtual Programming: weekly 90-minute online sessions from May to August
  • In-person Convening at The Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Center: week of August 23rd, 2026
  • Amplification Moment: Fall 2026

Travel expenses for participation in the in-person convening will be covered by The Rockefeller Foundation. Fellows will be responsible for securing the necessary visa(s) for any travel during the course of the program.

Fellow Selection Criteria

We are looking to support leaders with bold solutions that reimagine an existing system or introduce innovative approaches to harness the know-how, assets, capacities, and energies of others to power a prosperous future for all Americans, focused on ensuring economic prosperity, stability and opportunities for communities that need it most.

While there is no single profile of a Big Bets Fellow, the following characteristics describe the individuals who are likely to thrive in the program:

  • 5–15 years of experience driving impact through professional, entrepreneurial, or community-based work.
  • Deep engagement in their region, reflected through lived experience, professional contributions, or community involvement.
  • A distinctive perspective and fresh insight into a pressing challenge, informed by both personal and professional experience.
  • A proven track record of meaningful change, demonstrating the ability to lead initiatives and bringing together diverse stakeholders to achieve shared goals.
  • Collaborative, curious, and community-driven, with a strong commitment to learning and contributing to the Fellowship network.
  • Courageous and bold, willing to challenge the status quo and advance new approaches for lasting impact.

  • Applicants must be members of the Big Bets Community to be eligible for the Fellowship.

Meet the 2025 Big Bets Fellows
Project Selection Criteria

A Big Bet is a bold, concerted effort to fundamentally solve a problem, not just make incremental improvements.

Projects may take many forms — from social innovations and policy experiments to community-based initiatives or technology-driven solutions — but all should clearly demonstrate the potential to:

  • Create quality jobs in communities that need them through innovative approaches to economic development and entrepreneurship support;
  • Help place low-wage workers and their families into quality jobs through innovative approaches for workforce development and removing barriers to work (e.g., transportation challenges, childcare access);
  • Fix supply-side issues that increase the cost of living for working families, such as making it easier to build affordable housing, lower the cost of healthcare or provide quality, low-cost higher-education pathways that lead to quality jobs;
  • Improve family supports, such as public benefits, that eligible workers and their families can access;
  • Transform food and health systems to ensure underserved workers have access to food as medicine; OR
  • Drive innovative solutions, with a strong emphasis on artificial intelligence, policy innovation and data access to strengthen civic institutions, governance, and service delivery for vulnerable communities.

To learn more about the program, eligibility criteria, and focus areas, please check out the 2026 Big Bets Fellowship: United States Terms and Conditions.

Read the Terms and Conditions
Application Dates

  • Application Launch: December 15th, 2025
  • Deadline for fellows to complete the Eligibility Form and Pre-Application Forms: January 12th, 2026 – 12PM EST
  • Finalists invited to submit Full Application and schedule interviews: Early February 2026
  • Deadline to complete Full-Application: March 2nd, 2026 – 12 PM EST
  • Interviews conducted: Early March
  • Fellows announced: Mid April

  • In the face of rising inequality, these fellows are a springboard for innovative, inclusive solutions that uplift workers and their families.
    Nathalia Arcencio De Marchi dos Santos
    Manager, Convenings and Networks
    The Rockefeller Foundation
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