Yale Directors Forum Fellowship

Now entering its second cohort, YDF convenes an exceptional group of trailblazers who are building, directing, or transforming museums, cultural enterprises, and institutions that steward and safeguard collections of cultural heritage for present and future generations. The program is tuition-free and culminates in a non-degree certificate from Yale University.

Through engagement with leading global practitioners, Yale faculty and staff, and a distinguished international peer cohort, YDF offers fellows a rare opportunity to:

• Deepen their expertise in key areas of cultural heritage leadership and management
• Expand and activate a global professional network
• Strengthen their organization’s long-term capacity to care for, manage and preserve significant collections, while putting a spotlight on these collections through dynamic programming 

In the YDF context, cultural heritage encompasses a broad range of tangible and intangible cultural and creative expressions. These may include:

• Photographs, historical papers, and archival documents
• Artworks (painting, sculpture, mixed media)
• Fashion, textiles, and design materials
• Music, sound recordings, and performance materials
• Culinary traditions and recipes
• Oral histories, storytelling, and community memory
• Archaeological objects, rock art, and petroglyphs
• Architectural heritage, including historic interiors
• Murals and mosaics
• Other forms of material and immaterial cultural expression

YDF selects a diverse and accomplished group of leaders from across the Global South, with a strategic focus on Africa and the African Diaspora, particularly from the African, Caribbean, and Latin American regions.

Applicants must meet the following criteria:

• Serve as the chief executive, director, or equivalent senior leader of a cultural institution, enterprise, or organization (e.g., museum, cultural center, community-based organization, fashion or culinary enterprise) that has been in operation for at least two (2) years.
• Be based in and primarily operating within the African, Caribbean, or Latin American regions.
• Oversee the management or stewardship of a cultural heritage collection ideally 100+ items of significant historical or cultural value, and demonstrate both the urgency of its preservation and its contribution to public knowledge (see “What Do We Mean by Cultural Heritage?”).
• Demonstrate a strong and sustained commitment to serving diverse and underserved communities.
• Exhibit openness to learning, peer exchange, and active participation in a global professional network.
• Demonstrate fluency in written and spoken English.

Over 12 transformative months (June 2026 – June 2027), fellows engage in the following core experiences:

Opening and Closing Global Symposia (In-Person)
The fellowship begins with a one-week Global Symposium, bringing fellows together for an immersive program of learning seminars, site visits, and exchange with cultural leaders from across the world. It concludes with a Closing Symposium, where fellows present their collections-focused work and reflect on the impact of the year alongside invited guests.

Cohort Connection Sessions (Online)
Facilitated virtual sessions throughout the year are designed to foster relationship-building and peer learning within the cohort.

Collections Care and Management (In-Person)
At the heart of the fellowship is a one-week, on-site engagement at each fellow’s institution. Working directly with Yale staff and partner experts, fellows assess their collections, strengthen documentation, conservation and care practices, and develop practical short- and long-term preservation strategies.

YDF is tuition-free, and fellows receive a stipend to support international travel and participation costs.

Prospective applicants should note the following:

1. YDF is not a residential fellowship at Yale. Fellows do not relocate to Yale’s campus in the United States. The program is rooted in hands-on, on-site engagement within Fellows’ own institutions across the Global South, working with global experts including members of the Yale community.
2. YDF is not a fellowship for curators alone. YDF is designed for leaders from diverse professional backgrounds who run and shape cultural institutions, not solely for curators producing exhibitions and programs.
3. We encourage new institutional participation. Priority is given to organizations that have not previously had a YDF Fellow in order to expand the Fellowship’s reach and impact.