Deadline: April 5, 2024
Applications are open for the United Nations Office of Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) Youth for Biosecurity Fellowship 2024. Launched in 2019 as a Biosecurity Diplomacy Workshop, the Youth for Biosecurity Initiative organized its first fellowship in 2023. For the second edition, the fellowship will provide the opportunity for 20 young scientists from the Global South to join an online interactive training programme prior to a field visit during the meeting of the BWC Working Group on the Strengthening of the Convention in Geneva.
The Fellowship aims at allowing young biosecurity leaders from the Global South to:
- Learn & lead: deepen your expertise in biosecurity and disarmament to build leadership skills
- Think & act: engage in discussions with senior experts and make your voice heard in the margins of multilateral disarmament meetings
- Engage with community: connect with young experts, join an international youth network and enjoy a space for dialogue between young scientists and BWC practitioners including diplomats and experts.
Program Overview
The Fellowship runs over a 3-month period and requires a minimal time commitment to accommodate fellows’ work or academic schedules. Activities include:
- An Online Biosecurity Diplomacy Workshop from 5 June to 5 July 2024 with approximately one session (two to three hours) per week
- A collaborative project to prepare in July 2024 and to be presented at the BWC Working Group on the Stengthening of the Convention in August 2024
- An online briefing on the Working Group on the Strengthening of the Convention in July/August 2024
- A five-day field visit in Geneva from 19 to 23 August 2024 during the meetings of the BWC Working Group on the Strengthening of the Convention
Benefits
- Fully funded visit to Geneva during the Meeting of the Working Group on the strengthening of the Convention.
- One month of pre-Working Group online workshop in the lead up to the field visit.
- Small group interactions with leading experts in disarmament and nonproliferation, biosecurity, biosafety, and health security.
- Opportunities to meet, collaborate and network with fellow young scientists, diplomats, experts, civil society organizations and other international youth-driven networks.
- Be part of a growing network of early-career professional in biosecurity.
Eligibility
To be eligible to apply, prospective fellows must:
- Be under the age of 35
- Be citizens of a low- or middle-income BWC State Party (Check if your country is in the list Development Assistance Committee List of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
- Have an advanced degree in the life sciences or a related discipline from a recognized university or institution. [Candidates with backgrounds in other fields such as social sciences can be exceptionally considered if they have a demonstrated interest in biosecurity, health security and/or disarmament and non-proliferation]
- Have a strong command of written and spoken English
Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply. The selection process will be guided by the need to ensure the highest quality of participants while maintaining a gender and regional balance.
Fellows’ Commitment
- Participate in all online sessions and in the field visit [the fellows are responsible for obtaining the relevant authorizations from their employer or universities].
- Engage actively in all the Fellowship’s activities – the Fellowship is an interactive and participative experience and relies on the fellows’ active participation
- Make time in your schedule to adequately prepare for all sessions and discussions – the course will be fairly intensive and prior preparation will be key to the fellows’ active participation.
Application
For more information, visit Youth for Biosecurity Fellowship.
