One Young World Leading Scholarship 2026

The One Young World Leading Scholarship 2026 is One Young World’s flagship scholarship designed to help exceptional young leaders attend its annual global Summit. The 2026 Summit will take place in Cape Town, South Africa, from 3 to 6 November 2026.

The scholarship is aimed particularly at young leaders who are creating positive change and addressing important local or global challenges through their work. One Young World places particular emphasis on applicants from countries that have historically been less represented at global forums and decision-making spaces.

The wider One Young World Summit brings together more than 2,200 young leaders from over 190 countries for speeches, panel discussions, workshops and collaborative discussions around major global challenges. The Summit is designed to connect emerging leaders, strengthen leadership capacity and encourage practical action beyond the event itself.

Leading Scholars also become part of the One Young World Ambassador Community and gain access to further networking, mentoring, regional events and leadership opportunities after the Summit.

• Applicants must be between 18 and 35 years old.
• Applicants must demonstrate an evidenced commitment to creating positive change.
• Applicants should be addressing important local and/or global issues through their work.
• Applicants should have a track record of developing impactful and innovative ideas.
• Applicants must be at least 18 years old at the time of the Summit.
• The scholarship is aimed at young leaders internationally.
• Priority is given to applicants from countries that have been less represented at previous One Young World Summits.
• Priority is also given to first-time One Young World Summit attendees.
• Previous One Young World Ambassadors may apply, but first-time attendees receive priority.
• No specific university degree requirement is stated.
• No specific professional work-experience requirement is stated.
• No IELTS or formal English-language test is listed as an eligibility requirement.

Selected scholars receive:

• Full delegate access to the One Young World Summit 2026 in Cape Town.
• Breakfast, lunch and dinner during the Summit.
• Access to the One Young World Global Leadership Programme.
• Access to the One Young World Action Accelerator.
• Lifelong membership of the One Young World Ambassador Community.
• Access to exclusive regional events and opportunities.
• Potential access to speaking events and mentoring opportunities.
• Opportunity to connect with a global network of more than 20,000 potential collaborators.
• Increased visibility for the scholar’s work.
• Opportunity to participate in the Summit Opening Ceremony and represent their country.

The official Leading Scholarship page does not publish a separate mandatory document checklist.

The current online application includes:

• Personal information
• Country of residence
• Contact information
• Date of birth
• Nationality
• Dual-nationality information, where applicable
• Written application questions
• Additional information requested within the online form

One Young World also recommends that applicants prepare:

• Evidence of their impact
• Tangible impact statistics where possible
• Links to relevant organisations or projects
• LinkedIn profile
• Media articles or external coverage of their work
• Links to awards, achievements or other evidence supporting their application

The scholarship page and official application guidance indicate that strong candidates should demonstrate:

• Proven leadership ability
• Evidenced commitment to positive change
• Engagement with important local and/or global challenges
• Track record of impactful ideas
• Innovation in addressing problems
• Tangible evidence of results and impact
• Clear understanding of the problem they are addressing
• Strong explanation of their personal motivation and story
• Leadership values and approach
• Clear future vision
• Strong explanation of how the One Young World Summit would help scale their impact
• Quality, clarity and completeness of the application

Priority is given to:

• Applicants from countries under-represented at previous One Young World Summits
• First-time Summit attendees rather than existing One Young World Ambassadors

• Join a major international gathering of young leaders from around the world.
• Develop leadership skills through the Global Leadership Programme.
• Connect with more than 20,000 members and collaborators across the wider One Young World network.
• Build relationships with young leaders working across different sectors and regions.
• Gain international visibility for your work and impact.
• Access mentoring, speaking and regional networking opportunities.
• Participate in the Action Accelerator to help convert Summit learning into practical action.
• Become a lifelong member of the One Young World Ambassador Community.