Summer Mentorship Training Program and Leadership Fellowship 2023
Program Theory
In-Sight Collaborative’s mentorship program is designed to provide a safe and welcoming introduction to leadership in the humanitarian sector with continuing opportunities to refine leadership skills.
The humanitarian sector is one of the most diverse and intersectional sectors in the world. Humanitarian action requires coordinated action from legal teams, policy-makers, logisticians, medical specialists, funders, journalists, local leadership, and many others to successfully execute interventions. We believe that anyone with the right mindset and a willingness to engage can be an effective part of the humanitarian response from any background, profession, or sector. It is one of our goals to help inspire future humanitarian leaders and give them the tools and resources they need to participate in a meaningful way.
Participants will move through a six-week course where they are introduced to the history of the sector, current trends, problems, and innovations in the humanitarian sector. For the duration of the program, participants are mentored by In-Sight Collaborative and our partners through problem-solving and reflection activities. Each week will have a leadership cultivation component so that mentees who exit the program are prepared to take on mentorship roles in other settings or with us at In-Sight Collaborative.
Throughout the program, participants will be given the opportunity to explore the following areas of the non-profit and humanitarian sector:
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The history of the humanitarian sector and current events
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Planning, assessment, implementation, and evaluation of humanitarian interventions with human-centered frameworks
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Strategic planning within the non-profit industrial complex
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Fundraising
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Research
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Storytelling
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Advocacy initiatives
"Arriving at meaningful solutions is an inevitably slow and difficult process. Nonetheless, what I saw was: better is possible. It does not take genius. It takes diligence. It takes moral clarity. It takes ingenuity. Above all, it takes a willingness to try."
- Atul Gawande, Better
Mentorship: In-Sight Collaborative’s mission is to unite humanitarians under a new narrative through decolonization approaches, education, and promoting the model of accompaniment along the migratory pathway. This means that we choose to walk alongside the populations affected by forced displacement and support them by deconstructing and reforming systems that create harm and disempowerment. We believe in building relationships and facilitating their journey with their input and direction rather than being driven by donors or the assumptions and intentions of humanitarian actors.
In-Sight Collaborative provides educational tools and programs to help raise awareness on the issues facing the humanitarian sector, including sector biases, savior complexes, and inconsistent standards of practice which can be harmful to those experiencing displacement and relying on humanitarian interventions for support.
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Accompaniment in Migration: In-Sight’s online modules are designed to provide entry-level learning opportunities for those interested in exploring the humanitarian and migration sectors and participating in a meaningful way. We believe that anyone can have an impactful role within any capacity. The crash course provides a brief history on the sector, a summary of current events, and guidance on how to engage with these humanitarian issues in an ethical and effective way from anywhere in the world.
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Mini Modules: Mini Modules are designed to be used as tools for In-Sight Collaborative and our partners to train incoming volunteers and provide continuing education on current issues in the humanitarian sector.
The role of the In-Sight mentors is to welcome new participants to the program and follow them through the duration of the course. Mentors will be available to answer questions, engage in thoughtful conversations, and direct participants to additional resources. We believe that this method of direct-mentorship facilitates a positive and meaningful learning experience and helps us expand our network and support system.
Listen: Receive the information objectively.
Reflect: Think about your potential role in the action strategies and information you are taking in.
Act: Consider the population or field of development work you may be interested in engaging with in the future and start to think about an action plan you could develop in support of that community. Although we won’t carry out these action plans until the end of Week Two, start to reflect on how you could actualize your plans of action either at a local or global level.
Repeat: Take the knowledge of what you’ve grasped in the week’s concepts and reflect again with your more refined critical eye. Then, reconsider your action plan if needed and make adjustments as you see fit.
Program Content
Each week will include the following material:
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A lecture to introduce and contextualize the information, activities, and reflections for the week
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This lecture will be archived, so participants can attend live or watch at their convenience)
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A resource page where the week’s content will be posted along with additional learning resources
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A workbook where participants will be guided through reflection activities to help process the content
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A cohort meeting at the end of each week where participants will meet with their mentors and groups to discuss the content
Timeline:
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Applications run: April 1st - May 21st
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Interviews run: May 21st - June 18th
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Start Date of Mentorship Program: Monday, July 10th - Monday, August 14th
Time Commitment: 5-6 hours per week for six weeks, and a 30-45 minute interview before and after the program
Participants must be able to attend mandatory 90 minute Cohort Meetings for the duration of the 6-week mentorship program. Cohorts will be divided based on time zones and the meeting times will be decided by the cohort on the first week of the program.
Pre-Program Module:
Participants who are accepted into the program and have not yet completed In-Sight Collaborative’s mini module on Accompaniment in Migration will be asked to complete the self-paced program before July 10th. This module takes about 3-6 hours to complete.
Program Objectives:
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Educate young professionals and current participants in related sectors about the paradigm shift we would like to see in forced migration
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Cultivate an understanding and embodiment of the accompaniment model
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Identify organizations/entities/movements who embody the accompaniment model
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Identify ways to promote the accompaniment model as a leader in their respective sectors
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Prepare mentors who will mentor new community members at In-Sight Collaborative
Testimonials
Michael Leo
Tanzania
“The program has positively impacted me as it was a perfect one. I learned to respect all humans in the world because we all are equal, and not undermine anyone's rights for personal gain.”
Mohammad Aboulwafa
Egypt
"For me it was a great experience and an excellent opportunity to be a part of this program because I find it very challenging to gather all these persons with their differences towards an important goal like that, for me I find it a life-changing experience because it helps me to see what I couldn't do."
Luana Nunes
Portugal
"I want to be aware of what is happening around the world, I don’t want to be another person pretending that everything is ok, when it's not. This program was very challenging and it made me wonder about everything, even about myself."
Esraa Sayed
Egypt
"Without this program, I'd have spent my life wondering if I'll ever be able to support humanitarian issues, now I can say that I can".
Stevie Kennedy
Australia
"I did the summer mentorship program in 2020 and absolutely loved it. I have been engaged on team ever since. In-Sight Collaborative really stands out to me for always trying to better their practice and programs within the humanitarian sector. I found it so interesting to have this program teach me the reality of the aid sector and the challenges posed within it. I would recommend this program to absolutely anyone who is about to be stepping into the humanitarian and aid sector."
Eirene Smith
USA
“I've learned so much from the In-Sight Mentorship program. Coming in, I knew very little about refugees or people who are displaced. I'm not an expert now, by any means, but I definitely know more than I did. I met and worked with amazing people from all over the world who are interested in making the world a better place, and got to speak with and learn from a professional in the field I hope to enter into! I've been so blessed to be a part of the program, and cannot recommend it enough!”
Tracy Taylor
Netherlands
"I learned that there are so many innovative avenues that you can take when contributing to humanitarian causes and this has really inspired me to become more involved with others to tackle difficult problems in unique ways. For example, I had no idea how important our language is when speaking about the refugee crisis and displaced persons, but now I am able to educate others and begin to make small changes in the way we talk about refugees and migrants."
Muhammad al Mahroof
Nigeria
" I learned from the experiences of some refugees and also those who make research into their issues and those who are directly involved in providing services and succour to refugees. The program was a big eye opener for me as I look forward to an opportunity to volunteer as a humanitarian and also keep open the network created from this training."