Fellows are expected to participate at three core programmatic conferences during the course of the Fellowship: Orientation, Midpoint, and Endpoint. These conferences are an integral part of the Fellowship program and offer a space for meaningful connection, engaged reflection, as well as personal and professional development.
Orientation marks the official beginning of the Fellowship and is generally hosted by AIF in Delhi. Spending nearly two weeks together before Fellows depart to their host sites, Fellows are prepared for their ten months of service. Orientation covers everything from team building to setting expectations, explaining policies, preparing for your project, navigating cultural adaptation in your host site and workplace, and guidance on how to immerse in your host community to succeed in your project. You will meet AIF staff and your host organization supervisors for the first time, and attend workshops and panels on social and economic development in India. You will also have the opportunity to hear from Fellowship Alumni and other guest speakers.
Midpoint is an integral part of the Fellowship, which intends to offer a space for reflection, professional development, and an opportunity to step back and assess personal and professional development towards the middle of the Fellowship program. During Midpoint, Fellows will share each other’s experiences and observations through formal presentations, attend workshops, explore solutions to challenges they experience, and clarify both personal intentions and professional goals for the remainder of the Fellowship in order to prepare for their journey after.
Endpoint is the culmination conference that marks the end of the Fellowship and consists of an internal and an external component. During the internal workshop, Fellows share the conclusion of their projects, celebrate achievements and impact, reflect on their overall personal and professional growth, learn to articulate their experience to an external audience, discuss next steps as Alumni, and prepare for the public seminar hosted in Delhi. During the Endpoint public seminar, select Fellows will share presentations, big idea talks, TED style talks, video and spoken word performances, and an exhibit about their ten months of service in India’s development sector, sharing innovations and sparking discussion on the importance of cross-cultural partnerships. The public seminar will be attended by AIF staff, programmatic partners, host organizations, guest speakers, and members of the larger development community in India. Upon the conclusion of the public seminar, the Fellowship class will be honored by an official celebration and completion ceremony.