Klaus Töpfer Sustainability Fellowship 2026

The Klaus Töpfer Sustainability Fellowship 2026 is a one-year fellowship offered by the Research Institute for Sustainability at GFZ (RIFS) in Potsdam. It invites highly talented mid-career professionals from Germany or abroad who have substantial experience in sustainability to lead a project with long-term impact and engage across science, arts, civil society, business, and politics. Fellows receive financial support including a monthly stipend, additional living-cost funding, and a discretionary budget up to 30,000 € for travel, publications, workshops, or artistic work, with on-site work in Potsdam for the full term.

Monthly stipend, additional living-cost compensation, discretionary budget up to 30,000 €, networking with experts across science, arts, civil society, business, and politics, and a flexible structure for the fellowship term.

Open to highly talented mid-career professionals who have at least ten years of experience in sustainability-related work and the potential to act as change agents; applicants may be from Germany or abroad.

Submit a letter of motivation, a project proposal, a current CV, and two letters of recommendation.