StudyDesk Scholarships
About the fellowship
Sadhana Forest is a volunteer-run community centred on reforestation, water conservation and sustainable living, with its main centre at Auroville in Tamil Nadu and other centres in India and abroad. Its fellowships are built on Seva — selfless service — and on a gift economy in which participation, food and accommodation are offered freely. The Environmental Leaders Fellowship (ELF) is the organisation’s two-year international fellowship, designed for people ready to take on long-term leadership roles in ecosystem restoration rather than a short volunteering visit.
The fellowship begins with intensive training at Sadhana Forest Auroville. Fellows then serve in one or more of Sadhana Forest’s rural centres in India, Haiti, Kenya and Namibia, training local communities in water conservation and in creating indigenous food forests, with the aim of building long-term food and water security in those communities while deepening the fellow’s own practice of compassionate leadership.
Benefits
- In-depth, hands-on training in ecosystem regeneration, water conservation, community organisation and sustainable living practices.
- Service experience across more than one rural centre and country, training local communities rather than only working on one site.
- Food and accommodation provided for the fellowship, plus a small monthly stipend to cover expenses. The stipend amount is not published on the official fellowships page, so no figure is stated here.
- A certificate and a personalised recommendation letter on successful completion, and the possibility of being invited to continue serving at one of Sadhana Forest’s centres.
- Training in vegan community living, natural learning and ecological restoration methods as part of daily life, not as a separate course.
Who can apply
- You are at least 18 years old.
- You are an Indian resident (Indian residents may apply for any Sadhana Forest fellowship) or, for this international fellowship, an international participant.
- No prior experience is required. The stated requirements are dedication, compassion, and a willingness to learn and serve.
- You accept the fellowship’s core principles for the entire duration: a 100% vegan diet and complete abstinence from alcohol, tobacco, drugs and other intoxicating substances. The official page states that any violation results in immediate removal from the programme.
- You can commit full-time and on site for two years. This is a service fellowship, not a part-time or remote opportunity, and it is not a route to a degree on its own.
Documents required
No document checklist for the Environmental Leaders Fellowship is published on the official fellowships page checked, so none is invented here. The page directs applicants to email fellowships@sadhanaforest.org for details. Write to that address first, explain your background and motivation, and ask for the current application form and requirements before assuming any document list from other Sadhana Forest programmes, which have different timelines.
How to apply
- Read the Sadhana Forest fellowships page in full, including the core values (vegan and substance-free living, gift economy, Seva), and decide honestly whether a two-year full-time commitment fits your life.
- Email fellowships@sadhanaforest.org for the Environmental Leaders Fellowship application details. Applications are accepted year-round, so there is no single deadline to race, but places and start arrangements still depend on the organisation’s reply.
- Complete whatever application process Sadhana Forest sends you, and clarify the stipend amount, the training schedule, the centre placements, and the start date in writing before travelling.
- Do not confuse this fellowship with Sadhana Forest’s separate one-year fellowship, which has had fixed cohort dates (for example, a March 2026 application deadline for an April 2026 start in older listings). The Environmental Leaders Fellowship is the two-year, year-round programme described here.
FAQs
No. It is a full-time service fellowship in ecosystem restoration. You receive training, food, accommodation and a small stipend, not tuition funding for a degree.
Not published on the official fellowships page checked. Ask Sadhana Forest directly at fellowships@sadhanaforest.org before committing.
No. No prior experience is required; dedication, compassion and a willingness to learn and serve are the stated requirements.
No single deadline is published: the official page states that applications are accepted year-round.
The official page states that commitment to these core principles is essential and any violation results in immediate removal from the programme.
Training starts at Sadhana Forest Auroville, and fellows later serve in one or more rural centres in India, Haiti, Kenya and Namibia.
Verified 30 Oct 2026 against the official Sadhana Forest fellowships page (sadhanaforest.org/fellowships: two-year international fellowship, Auroville training, rural centres in India, Haiti, Kenya and Namibia, water conservation and indigenous food-forest training, year-round applications, fellowships@sadhanaforest.org, food and accommodation plus a small stipend, certificate and recommendation letter, age 18+, no prior experience, vegan and substance-free commitment with removal for violation, gift economy and Seva values) and corroborating fellowship listings for the same terms. The stipend amount is not published and none is stated.
