Global Voices Policy Fellowship | Attend the World Food Forum in Rome!

The Global Voices Fellowship Program consists of three elements:

• Pre-Departure briefings
• Completion of a Policy Fellowship
• Participation in the World Food Forum in Rome, Italy

The Program provides participants with dedicated policy-writing workshops, media engagement training, institutional visits, greater cross-cultural awareness, and significant professional networking opportunities. Global Voices offers unparalleled access to high-level diplomatic events for young Australians interested in international policy, intersections between high-level strategic issues, and diplomacy.

Pre-Departure briefings

The Pre-Departure briefings are an opportunity for Fellows to gain a deeper understanding of Australia’s role in multilateral fora and priorities for domestic policy-making. The briefings provide Fellows with private meetings with senior government leaders, subject matter and policy experts, esteemed academics, Members of the Australian Parliament, and leaders of civil society and private organisations.

Further, Fellows participate in policy-writing workshops, media engagement training, networking skill-building, and other professional development opportunities. Fellows also meet with their Delegations Manager and are encouraged to set goals and take time to reflect.

The Global Voices Executive Team coordinate all necessary arrangements and provide ongoing mentoring to Fellows to help them get the most out of their time in Canberra.

Policy Fellowship

Across the course of the Global Voices program, Fellows will develop a 2,500-word policy proposal which proposes practical recommendations on a topic related to the delegation agenda. With the assistance of the Global Voices Delegations Managers, Fellows will conduct their own research into their chosen subject matter, use their first-hand delegation experience to develop their ideas further, and polish off their paper on their return home. Papers that meet the GV Journal standard are then published in our Global Voices Journal and shared with key policy stakeholders and networks so that our Fellows’ work can be celebrated by the broader community.

Participation in the 2024 World Food Forum in Rome, Italy

This is a unique once-in-a-lifetime experience spanning roughly one week, tailored specifically to the needs and interests of each delegation group. On delegation, Fellows attend briefing sessions and other related activities run by the official forum hosts. Further, through Global Voice’s extensive network of international connections you’ll also be invited to attend side events and private meetings with subject matter experts and influential world leaders.

On delegation, Fellows will also have some spare time to enjoy the city they are visiting, and most evenings Fellows will enjoy dinner out at a local restaurant and explore their surroundings.

Event date: 14 – 18 October 2024 (This opportunity is now closed for applications. Stay tuned for applications opening in August 2025). 

The world currently produces enough food to feed everyone, but in 2023, around 738 million chronically malnourished people went hungry. To provide fresh impetus for a transformed global food system, the United Nations (UN) launched the World Food Forum (WFF) in 2021.

As a youth-led initiative organised by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the Forum brings together the next generation of students, farmers, scientists and entrepreneurs to discuss and enact change – from the global to the local level.

Participants attend workshops, events and roundtable discussions where they can foster connections, engage with industry leaders and gain the tools necessary to address today’s challenges on food insecurity and climate change.

The WFF serves as the premier global forum to harness the passion and power of youth to identify solutions and incite positive action for agrifood systems. It aligns with the 2021 United Nations (UN) Food Systems Summit, acts as a major youth platform in global food governance, and serves as a global think tank that fosters youth-led solutions in innovation, science and technology. The WFF aims to support and grow youth initiatives in the agrifood sector in line with global youth policy recommendations.

World Food Forum website

This opportunity is open to the following groups from AgriFutures Australia program alumni or partner program alumni:

• Horizon Scholarship recipients
• Future Young Leaders program participants
• Country to Canberra program participants

To be eligible for this opportunity, you must be from one of the above alumni groups and meet the following criteria:

• Be aged 18 – 30 for the full duration of the program
• Be available for pre-departure training in Canberra (dates listed in the application form). Virtual attendance is not acceptable.
• Be available and able to travel for the full duration of the international delegation you are applying for.
• Have the ability to commit at least 5 hours per week to the fellowship program
• Currently hold or can obtain a passport well before your delegation’s dates and will be valid for at least 6 months after the end of your delegation
• Be an Australian citizen or permanent resident living in Australia for the full course of the fellowship.

Applications will open Thursday, 1 August 2024 and close at midnight on Wednesday, 14 August 2024 – Applications are now closed and will re-open August 2025. 

It is suggested you research and prepare your 500-word policy proposal and responses to the application questions in advance. If successful, your proposal will become the basis of your final policy paper and help to familiarise you with the core themes of your international summit. YOU DO NOT NEED EXPERIENCE IN POLICY OR POLICY WRITING TO APPLY!

To assist in writing your application, Global Voices have released a document with tips and tricks, including a number of policy prompts that you may utilise to form your policy proposal. Policy proposals must relate to the theme of the World Food Forum ‘Good food for all, for today and tomorrow’. Additionally, your policy proposal must relate to Australian policy (please write a proposal for Australian policy change, not another country, or an international body).

You can address your policy proposal in response to one of the prompts below, however you do not need to address the prompts directly, and you may have another area of interest that links to these themes. We recommend focusing on a very specific issue that interests you.

• Some Australian crops are at risk due to a changing climate. How can we utilise policy to make our food production systems more robust and adaptable?
• The Australian Institute of Family Studies says that around 5% of the Australian population faces food insecurity. What policies can be implemented to combat this issue?
• The nutritional value of many foods has been decreasing over the past 50–70 years, and this trend is expected to continue. What policy levers can be implemented to ensure Australians are able to access nutritious, healthy foods?
• Indigenous Australians are some of Earth’s earliest farmers. How can policy support Indigenous knowledge to be utilised, acknowledged and compensated to create sustainable food systems?
  Globally, agriculture is a major driver of habitat loss and deforestation. How can policy support Australian agribusinesses to integrate habitat restoration into their business models?
• Water consumption is a major concern for many agricultural businesses in Australia, and has significant environmental implications. How can water policy be changed to better support both environmental and agricultural ecosystems?
• The transformation of the global agrifood system is a critical component of climate action. How can Australia create policy that supports the transition to a carbon neutral industry?

This and more information is also available on the Global Voices website. 

The application process requires you to submit:

• A 500-word policy proposal addressing a key Australian issue related to the Forum
• A 500-word personal statement
• A Description of Your Work and Education History
• Short answer questions on how you manage teamwork, conflict, and time

If you are successful in receiving a Global Voices Policy Fellowship as an AgriFutures sponsored participant, you will receive: 

• Support to write and publish a policy proposal that contributes a fresh perspective to domestic and global decision-making
• All expenses paid travel to Canberra for a 3-day departure briefing and upskilling program
• All expenses paid travel to the World Food Forum in Rome (14-18th October) including visas, comprehensive travel insurance, ground transportation, conference registration and accreditation fees, daily breakfasts and select dinners and incidental costs.

Global Voices Policy Fellowship

Emily Jones
Coordinator, Capacity Building

0455 980 310

Or your dedicated program contact