The Soapstone Fellowship is a 1-year full-time program where participants can get an enhanced perspective on the livelihood of persons with disabilities while leveraging their subject matter expertise for the benefit of the sector.  

  

Filled with opportunities for participants to engage with diverse stakeholders and harness the power of the collective, this Fellowship promises to be an experiential and reflective journey for all.   

 

We are calling this The Soapstone Fellowship because soapstone is durable and can be carved easily – just the right qualities we believe anyone working in the disability sector should possess!  

 

FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM STRUCTURE 

 

Being ambitious for the cause, EnAble India has created “The Soapstone Fellowship” to accelerate scaling sustainable positive change in the lives of persons with disabilities.  This effort will require diverse and qualified human capital to commit to the cause and contribute to impact with success.  

 

The Fellowship program is spread across 3 stages:  

 

  1. Pre-Fellowship: Search & Selection. 

  1. During Fellowship: Supporting A Cohort of Fellows Across 12 months with structured program design. 

  1. Post-Fellowship: Career Pathways & Networking. 

 

STAGE 1: Search & Selection is the process to identify future changemakers who have the ability to influence the disability sector at large through various means such as reaching the unreached, building a sustainable ecosystem for livelihoods of PwDs, connecting the dots and bridging gaps, creating new livelihood models, and so on. While they are aware of the sense of urgency and scale at which change needs to happen, they are not in a hurry. Their deep sense of responsibility and vision guide them to use the Fellowship as a launchpad for their contributions. 

 

STAGE 2: Supporting a Cohort of 15 Fellows for a 1-year Full-Time Program where they will acquire an enhanced perspective about the employability and employment of persons with disabilities while applying their business intelligence and domain expertise to the sector. The Fellows will have the chance to engage with diverse stakeholders and harness the power of the collective efforts to create change. With a blend of classroom and hands-on learning across different programs at EnAble India, the Fellowship promises an experiential and reflective journey for all. 

 

STAGE 3: The learning journey will equip Fellows to embark on a career pathway in the disability sector. By practising their professional talent and applying their Fellowship learning, the Fellows will have ample opportunities to make a difference in the lives of PwDs and contribute to the growth of the sector by pursuing their career in the Disability sector and being part of a Soap Stone community.  

 

Who Are We Looking For Eligibility Criteria 

 

The Fellowship is looking for individuals who relish contributing to social change and celebrate the human spirit.  Anyone from any field and any level of experience, who  

  • Is above 21 years of age. 
  • Are excited to contribute to the vision, evolution, and execution of projects in the disability sector that challenge the status quo.  
  • Seek an opportunity to apply their domain expertise, knowledge and experience in the disability sector.   (Domains could be fields like management spheres e.g. Project Management, Training, Data Management & Analysis or design & systems practitioner e.g. Instructional Design, Research, Content Writing and technology. Domains mentioned here are indicative and not exhaustive.)
  • Would be willing to relocate to Bangalore for the Fellowship.  
  • Preferably holds a Graduation in any discipline. 
  • Has professional working proficiency in English and at least one other regional language. 

 Any prior experience of volunteering or working in the development and/or disability sector would be an added advantage.   

 The Fellowship is open to all individuals (i.e. persons with and without disabilities) who are committed to leading progressive change.  

 

What Does The Fellowship Offers? 

  • Scope to be part of India’s leading and award-winning social organisations in serving them in prominent roles. 
  • Structured orientation to the disability livelihoods sector with a blend of on-ground experiences and spaces for reflection and learning as well as making sense of “emergence”. 
  • Access to pioneering frameworks, models, and resources to scale and sustain disability livelihoods.  
  • Learning the best practices and tools to build relationships with different stakeholders for the dignity and inclusion of persons with disabilities.   
  • Mentorship by experts who have pushed the boundaries with their perseverance and passion for mainstreaming persons with disabilities, including award-winning social entrepreneurs in the country.  
  • Being a part of a large community of professionals who have found their calling in the disability sector.  

  • The fellows will have the scope to create a benchmark in the sector for excellence  

 

The Fellows will receive a monthly stipend of Rs.25,000 during the period of the Fellowship. 

 

Fellowship Duration   

  • October 2021 and September 20221 

 

Assessment Parameters & Selection Criteria 

How will the Fellows be chosen? 

The Evaluation Committee, comprised of members of EnAble India, sector experts and leadership from partner organizations, will be looking for changemakers who provide strong answers to a range of questions about what drives their application for the fellowship and how applicants envision their change-making journey. Applicants will be evaluated on the following criteria:  

- Change making Characteristics: Applicants must either already be taking or ready to take steps to make a real difference by leveraging their talent and professional abilities for improving the scope of livelihood for persons with disabilities.  
- Human-centred Quotient: Potential Fellows should be able to listen, observe, and truly understand the lived experiences of persons with disabilities with openness and humility. They need to enable and co-create fresh and innovative solutions with stakeholders to address the status quo.  
- Strong Commitment: Potential Fellows must commit to complete the Fellowship program and serve the disability sector for at least 2 years. Their commitment to the cause and change-making should be higher than the financial benefits offered by other industries or sectors.  
- Connection: All Fellows must demonstrate a personal connection with the cause and be willing to connect with others for collaborations and/or working together to bridge gaps in the disability livelihoods sector.  

In addition to our evaluation criteria described above, the Fellows will be selected across diverse factors such as gender, disability, class, ethnicity, age, and other important inclusive aspects. Also, Fellows from diverse backgrounds and domains will be chosen.

  Visit http://www.enableindia.org/SoapstoneFellowship/ for more information and to apply. Post 5th September 2021, only offline applications should be downloaded from the webpage and completed and sent to fellowship@enableindia.org with the subject line - APPLICATION FOR SOAPSTONE FELLOWSHIP

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