Training · Key profession of ecological transition

The Equity Initiative Fellowship

A fully funded award designed for working professionals from Southeast Asia and China.

The Equity Initiative Fellowship

Fellowship Overview

The Equity Initiative Fellowship is a fully funded, immersive learning experience designed to cultivate leadership for health equity across Southeast Asia and China. As part of the Equity Initiative, a program of the CMB Foundation, the Fellowship supports outstanding professionals who are committed to addressing the social, economic, political, and structural drivers of health inequity in their communities, countries, and across the region.

Fellows participate in six weeks of in-person learning events, combined with blended online engagement throughout the induction year. Through this carefully paced learning journey, Fellows build a shared foundation in health equity leadership while expanding their regional and global perspectives on the systems and conditions that shape health and well-being. The curriculum explores why these determinants matter for policy, financing, service delivery, community voice, and broader systems change.

The Fellowship journey begins in the region, expands to a global vantage point, and then returns to the region to consolidate learning and application. This intentional arc strengthens peer relationships, creates varied opportunities for experiential and cross-context learning, and keeps Fellows’ attention firmly grounded in the inequities affecting health and well-being across Southeast Asia and China.

Guided by the “Know, Do, Be” framework, the EI Fellowship curriculum provides essential knowledge, builds core competencies, and inspires a lasting commitment to health equity. Fellows develop a rigorous understanding of equity concepts and systems thinking (Know); practice and apply these concepts through tools, labs, experiential learning, and problem-solving exercises (Do); and internalize a purpose-driven leadership stance through reflection, leadership communication, and exposure to models of public leadership (Be).

The Equity Initiative Fellowship, also known as the Atlantic Fellows for Health Equity in Southeast Asia (AFHESEA), is part of the global Atlantic Fellows network. After completing the induction year, EI Fellows join the global Atlantic Fellows community, becoming part of a lifelong network of leaders working across regions, disciplines, and sectors to advance equity, justice, and social change.

Applications for the 2027-2028 Fellowship open June 15