The Copenhagen Fellowship

Overview

The Humanity in Action journey begins with a year-long Fellowship - an intense period in the summer, virtual and in-person, and an ongoing virtual training program throughout fall and winter - and it continues beyond...

Accepting Applicants from:
Read about the other European Fellowships >

Fellowship dates 2021

 

Copenhagen Fellowship

June 1 – June 4 and June 21 – June 23, 2021
International Online Pre-Fellowship: “Human Rights and Civil Engagement”

August 9 – 29, 2021
In person Fellowship in Copenhagen and Tórshavn: “Unity of the Realm and Human Rights”. Includes a study trip to the Faroe Islands*

September 2021 – February 2022
International Online Post-Fellowship: “Action Project Lab-series”

Spring 2022
In person Coneference for all 2021 Fellows (if feasible)

The 2021 Fellowship special theme: Unity of the Realm and Human Rights. Read more about the theme here.

*(If circumstances allow: August 23.-29., both days included)

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Fellowships

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Placing Denmark’s human rights realities today into the context of its history, especially the flight and rescue of the Danish Jews in 1943

The Copenhagen Fellowship centers around a pivotal example of civil society acting in defense of human rights: the rescue of Danish Jews by the larger public during World War II. Today, Denmark is still seen as a paragon of the successful progressive society: a beacon of wealth, happiness, and equality. The Copenhagen Fellowship investigates these narratives to reveal more complicated truths.

In a country lauded for its egalitarian healthcare, education, and welfare systems, political rhetoric against minority groups is on the rise, and nationalist sentiments simmering. The nation’s history has its darker sides, too. Copenhagen Fellows will dig into Denmark’s displacement of its own colonial history; its complicated historical control over Greenland, the Faroe Islands, and Iceland; and the ways in which historical notions of cultural and ethnic homogeneity affect contemporary Danish approaches to pluralism.

The 2021 Fellowship special theme: Unity of the Realm and Human Rights. Read more about the theme here.

Take a sneak peak

Recent Fellowship Speakers

Our speakers, trainers and panelists come from a wide range of professions and backgrounds. They love to share their perspectives with you.

Nauja Bianco

Speaker Nauja Bianco

Director of Isuma Consulting

Aydin Soei

Sociologist and Author

Martin Breum

Journalist, Arctic Expert and Lecturer
More Speakers >

In October 1943, the Danish Jews escaped to safety in Sweden with the help of Danish civil society. This historical event is the starting point for the Copenhagen Fellowship program. From there, the Fellowship examines human and minority rights as well as the forces of social cohesion and coercion. At the same time, the program investigates how societies have and can better resist the discrimination and subjugation of its minorities.

After the month in Copenhagen, our Fellows are tasked with developing impactful Action Projects within the next 11 months in their own communities.

For the eleven months following their time in Copenhagen, Fellows work on their Action Project: an independent venture focused on promoting democratic values in their own communities. Action Projects are as diverse as Humanity in Action Fellows. Fellows apply their new knowledge and perspectives to the communities they impact—in whatever format they find meaningful. Past Action projects have been documentaries, arts festivals, and new organizations that serve a public good. Planning for the Action Project begins during the study portion of the Fellowship, through workshops and collaborative discussion.

No Straws Attached

Authors: Priyanka Kalra, Denmark

Senior Fellow Priyanka Klara leads the charge against waste through a business-focused campaign to reduce needless straw use.

Theresienstadt - Danish Children in Nazi Captivity

Authors: Solvej Berlau, Denmark, 2013

A documentary film and interactive, educational website with teaching materials and ideas for incorporating first-hand accounts into Danish World War II education.

Trampoline House visits Roskilde University - Why do we need an asylum system in Denmark?

Authors: Julian Lo Curlo, Federico Jensen, Denmark, 2017

Senior Fellows Julian Lo Curlo and Frederico Jensen brought the experiences of recent newcomers to Denmark to Roskilde University.

More of our Action Projects >

Alumni of the Copenhagen Fellowship

After completing the Copenhagen Fellowship, our Fellows go on to change the world

Priyanka Kalra

2017 Copenhagen Fellowship

DeLesslin "Roo" George-Warren

2014 Copenhagen Fellowship

Jakob Lund

2005 Copenhagen Fellowship

Copenhagen Fellows & Senior Fellows >

Our Fellowship Supporters in 2021

We thank our supporters and partners, host families, Senior Fellows and friends of Humanity in Action. These contributions help to prepare outstanding students for a lifelong commitment to civic responsibility and the promotion of human rights.

Møllmanns Legatfond

Become a Fellow

Every year, new Humanity in Action Fellows come together in six cities across Europe and the United States to study how and why people confront intolerance and protect democratic values.

01 Year duration

06 Cities

135 Fellows per year

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