Mozilla’s Senior Fellowship Program

Mozilla’s Senior Fellowship program provides time, resources, tools, community, and amplification to the cohort. During their tenure, fellows have the opportunity to use their skills — whether in technology, policy, research, or movement building — to lay the groundwork or build up on existing initiatives for a more open and inclusive internet environment.

The Fellowship Experience

• Fellows join a remote cohort of experienced practitioners, technologists, researchers, policy experts and activists from around the world who work at the intersection of technology and society and are passionate about change.
• They also become part of Mozilla’s community and gain access to the resources and diverse network. Through a cohort approach, fellows are connected to each other, more broadly across the organization, and with a wider community of people and organizations in the movement for a healthier internet.
• Fellows should expect to:
  • Drive an independent project aligned with Mozilla’s vision to accelerate and increase the creation of trustworthy AI
  • Contribute to Mozilla’s broader impact by promoting tech that is built and deployed in ways that support accountability and agency, and advance individual and collective well-being.
  • Plug into Mozilla-led efforts focused on advancing trustworthy AI, calling the tech giants to account, shifting narratives and industry norms, and promoting new regulations and incentives.
  • Convene as a cohort – virtually and/or in person – for group working and feedback sessions, peer-to-peer support, and/or workshops
  • Connect with like-minded experts, leaders, partner organizations, alumni, and staff in Mozilla’s community
  • Receive support from Mozilla’s Communications and Marketing Team as well as other teams at Mozilla, such as Insights, Policy, Advocacy, or the Data Futures Lab, as relevant to the fellow’s work.

Independent Project

• Senior Fellows are invited to use the fellowship as a platform to carry out an independent project that is of importance to them and their communities and propels work around a specific area of focus aligned with Mozilla’s strategy to advance trustworthy AI.
• Independent projects are projects proposed, designed and carried out by fellows, by leveraging the resources and expertise a partnership with Mozilla can provide. Fellows receive supplemental funding to help advance their independent, aligned project
• The project should be aligned with the focus areas listed in the call for proposals. The impact defined for the project should demonstrate a deep understanding of what it means to drive change at asystemic level.
• It is expected that the project will result in tangible outputs and demonstrate the substantial time dedicated to the work of the fellowship. Fellows are also expected to work in the open, regularly sharing and documenting their work and releasing it under an open license. Projects may not include activities that involve lobbying, voter registration, or political campaign interventions.
• They encourage applicants to be innovative in the design of projects that demonstrate compelling narrative(s) about how to realize trustworthy AI.

Funding Information

• Taking the whole person into consideration and recognizing that technology has a global terrain and is a global industry, they take the following approach in supporting fellows –
  • Each fellow will receive a stipend of $100,000 USD/year (FTE equivalent). Compensation is adjusted for part-time fellowships.
  • In addition to the fellowship stipend, each fellow will also have access to personal supplements, which are intended to support an individual’s wellbeing.
  • Fellows will also have access to supplemental funding to help advance their independent, aligned work.

Eligibility Criteria

• Fellowships should be aligned to Mozilla’s vision and demonstrate significant influence in the trustworthy AI ecosystem and an ethical, responsible and inclusive internet environment.
• For this fellowship, they are interested in applications from these key geographies: East and Southern Africa, Europe, Brazil, India and the United States. They also welcome applications from outside of these geographies, particularly those working on issues in Asia Pacific, Latin America, and SouthWest Asia and North Africa (SWANA), as well as representation from indigenous and displaced communities.
• Preference will also be given to projects that intersect with a clear social justice area, involving communities historically excluded in the use and/or processes to design, deploy and regulate tech. These may be projects related to human rights, economic justice, racial justice, community justice, gender justice, disability justice, LGBTQIA+ rights, environmental and climate justice, or another issue that centers people’s lived experience.

Requirements

• Fellows will participate in regular calls with a Mozilla program officer to track progress and consult for support. At the onset of the fellowship, fellows will create a – work plan with clear objectives and outputs. Fellows are also expected to submit –
  • regular reports as requested by their Program Officer
  • a final report, including a budget report.
• Fellows will be also encouraged and supported to share publicly about their work during the fellowship as well, at events and in media.

For more information, visit Mozilla.