Applications now open for the Climate Literacy Teacher Leader Fellowship Program 2026-2027 First Year Cohort
Overview
Supported by the University of Minnesota’s Center for Climate Literacy, the Climate Literacy Teacher Leader (CLTL) Fellowship Program provides in-service preK-12 teachers with support, resources, mentorship, and training to become leaders in climate literacy education. Fellows will develop tools and strategies to leverage written, visual and multimodal narratives in the classroom to empower students to understand the climate crisis and become agents of change in their lives and communities. Fellows will deepen their knowledge of pedagogy and curriculum development, create climate literacy educational materials for their classrooms, provide mentorship to peers, and join a growing community of teacher leaders committed to transforming education as a system capable of supporting the transition to an ecological civilization.
The CLTL Fellowship arc is designed as a three-year program. First Year Fellows will read and discuss climate literacy scholarship, young people’s literature and media, and more. They will also develop standards-aligned curricular materials for their classrooms. In the first year, fellows will receive a $2,500 stipend. Funds will be disbursed after the successful completion of each semester’s work: in December 2026 and then in May 2027.
Program Requirements
Participating in the CLTL Fellowship requires 44 in-person hours with an estimated 132 hours of additional work at home. Fellows are expected to commit to the following:
- Attend ten in-person working sessions (9am - 1pm) on the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities campus: Sept 12, Oct 10, Nov 14, Dec 12, Jan 9, Feb 13, March 13, and April 10.
- Fellows are expected to attend all sessions except for extenuating circumstances (illness, family emergencies, etc). Missed sessions will be made up in consultation with program facilitators.
- Carefully engage with all assigned materials and readings
- Design one curriculum project in Fall 2026 to be taught in Spring 2027
- Draft one literature or media entry for publication in the Climate Lit Database
- Draft one curriculum development or personal reflection article and submit it for publication in Climate Literacy in Education
Eligibility
All in-service preK-12 educators from all content areas are eligible to apply. School librarians, media specialists, and instructional coaches are also welcome to apply. We especially encourage applications from early career and BIPOC educators. Multiple educators from the same school are highly encouraged to apply.
Deadlines
- Application opens: May 19, 2026
- Application closes: July 5, 2026
- Selected applicants notified via email: July 15, 2026
- Selected applicants must notify program staff of their acceptance: July 25 (11:59pm central)
Questions can be addressed to Nick Kleese at [email protected].
Application Content
The application will ask you several questions about yourself, your teaching context, and your school. It will also ask you to craft two long-form responses to the following questions:
Climate Literacy Statement
Why is teaching about climate literacy important to you? We are less interested in a list of professional accomplishments as we are in understanding the experiences, values, and hopes you have for yourself and your students. Your response must be less than 250 words.
Climate Justice Statement
Describe your current understanding of climate justice and equity, including your personal relationship with both. Your response must be less than 250 words.
The Climate Literacy Teacher Leader (CLTL) Fellowship Program provides in-service preK-12 teachers with support, resources, mentorship, and training to become leaders in climate literacy education. Fellows develop tools and strategies to leverage written, visual and multimodal narratives in the classroom to empower students to understand the climate crisis and become agents of change in their lives and communities. Fellows deepen their knowledge of pedagogy and curriculum development, create climate literacy educational materials for their classrooms, provide mentorship to peers, and join a growing community of teacher leaders committed to transforming education as a system capable of supporting the transition to an ecological civilization
2022-2023 Fellowship Cohort
Thanks to a generous gift from the late Dr. Pete Palmer, the initial version of the Climate Literacy Teacher Leadership Program was launched for five Twin Cities metro area teachers in the 2022-2023 school year. Click here to meet the inaugural Fellows.
Dongmei Lian (Math)
"The fellowship has opened my eyes, humbled me and help me become a better educator. Seeing how the other Fellows teach climate literacy in their subject area definitely gave me confidence to do so too."
Luke Gliddon (Science)
"Having time set aside for this work is important. Without it I would be spending time on other important things, but would neglect this longer-term, and ultimately more important, work."
Joseph Lin (Chinese)
"This Fellowship is important to connect educators and feel an urgent obligation to impart climate knowledge to the next generation through the school education system."
Abby Hartzell (English)
"I loved the interdisciplinary connections in our cohort. I learned more about the curriculum writing process as well since I saw my fellow educators develop and hone ideas, create timelines, and workshop lessons."
Zach Johnson (Science)
"I learned a lot about how we tell stories and how those stories are used to communicate ideas, and it's given me a lot of ideas for how to discuss climate with my students."