The German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN) is inviting future leaders in nature conservation from countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia to apply for the 2023–2025 cycle of the Klaus Toepfer Fellowship (KTF).

The KTF Programme aims at enabling early-career professionals to effectively address conservation needs in their home countries, and to be actively involved in international conservation processes and networks.

Klaus Toepfer Fellows are emerging conservation leaders from Government, NGOs, Academia or other relevant sectors, who have at least three years of professional experience and preferably are not older than 35 years. Also, they have the support of their home organizations to attend the course, and a clear commitment to a career in their country of origin.

The programme 2023-2025 will start in summer 2023 and is extra occupational, combining learning on international best conservation practice and policy with management training, network development and a transfer project. The 18-month course is free of charge, and travel expenses of participants are partly covered.

The Klaus Toepfer Fellowship Programme is implemented by the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN) – the central scientific authority of the German federal government for both national and international nature conservation – in partnership with the IUCN, the CBD Secretariat, CMS Secretariat and UNEP-WCMC. Eligible early-career conservation professionals are invited to submit the application documents electronically to [email protected] until 26 March, 2023.

More detailed information on the programme and the application process is available at https://www.bfn.de/en/klaus-toepfer-fellowship