Young Leaders
Financial support of up to $50,000 and a six-month program that supports visionary, young leaders who are innovating for our planet.
Young Leaders Receive
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Funding
Cohort Retreat
Leadership Development
Young Leaders Recipients
Do you know a passionate young leader who is working on solutions for the betterment of our planet? Become a nominating organization.
The Young Leaders program is seeking a well-rounded cohort with a mix of representation across geographies, backgrounds, and approaches to sustainability and regeneration.
2026 Nominations are Now Closed.
Reflections from Young Leaders
FAQs
Walking Softer Young Leaders is an impact-focused accelerator program for visionary leaders in their 20s and 30s who are innovating for our planet. Recipients receive up to $50,000 in non-dilutive funding, six months of personalized executive coaching, a cohort-based learning experience, an all-expenses-paid leadership retreat in Lake Tahoe, and a pitch showcase that helps the Young Leaders move forward with their professional development by maximizing exposure, partnership opportunities, and long-term support from the Walking Softer community.
Walking Softer Young Leaders program goals are to:
- Develop: Provide 6 months of customized intensive executive and leadership development
- Cross-pollinate: Bridge for-profit and non-profit leaders, creating the container for peer-to-peer learning that encourages valuable cross-pollination of knowledge across sectors, solution approaches, and lived experiences.
- Catalyze: Prepare Young Leaders for future support pathways beyond Walking Softer, and for long-term engagement as alumni within the Walking Softer leadership community.
- Are Young Professionals in their 20s and 30s.
- Are the Founder, Co-Founder, CEO, or Executive Director of their organization.
- Are based in the U.S. or Canada. Candidates and their organizations must be based in the U.S. or Canada to be eligible.
- Are committed to developing an early-stage project, organization, or business full-time, ideally, for 1-2+ years beyond the program.
- Are committed to creating impact within the climate/sustainability space.
- Have an average annual operating budget of at least $30K in recent years.
Young Leaders are required to fully commit to engaging in and preparing for all sessions. The program's time estimate is 5-10 hours per month over 6 months. A percentage of funding is allocated as a participation bonus. As the success of the cohort depends on collective engagement, receiving the bonus is contingent upon the Young Leader's participation throughout the program.
The Young Leaders nomination process spans roughly seven months. Walking Softer reaches out to nominating organizations to invite them to identify and nominate Young Leaders over a three-month period. After nominations close, the list is reviewed, and selected nominees are invited to fill out a Project Readiness Form. From there, another round is selected to submit pitch decks. Nominees who advance to the next round will be evaluated based on their impact, vision, and leadership background. External experts and executives are consulted in the final stages of the selection process. Finalists will then be invited to participate in a 30-minute virtual interview.
An important note is that we select Young Leaders who already have a strong foundation in their relevant climate and/or environmentally related field. Finally, we aim for a well-rounded cohort that represents a diversity of backgrounds, including urban and rural areas, across age groups, various problem-solving approaches to sustainability, and a balance between for-profit and non-profit leaders.
Each leader will have the opportunity to focus on developing in the areas most relevant to their current stage or needs. Examples of areas we can support include organizational development, strategic planning, financial management, pitch deck development, regenerative business models, impact evaluation and systems thinking, go-to-market strategies, capacity building, and fundraising.
The Young Leaders program focuses equally on the person as the project; all sustainability projects that meet the aforementioned criteria are considered. Examples of project types might range across the areas of:
- Public policy, governance, and regulatory action
- Movement-building, grassroots organizing, and civic engagement
- Community-led climate resilience and adaptation
- Indigenous and place-based stewardship
- Regenerative agriculture innovation beyond technology (e.g., community agroecology programs, traditional regenerative farming practices, cooperative soil restoration initiatives)
- Circular and regenerative systems innovation beyond technology (e.g., community-based repair and reuse programs, local zero-waste initiatives, cooperative circular economy models)
- Conservation, rewilding, and biodiversity protection
- Economic and cultural models that advance climate justice and regenerative societal shifts
- GHG monitoring and climate intelligence tools
- Consumer climate technologies
- Renewable energy and storage technologies
- Electrification technologies for buildings and transportation
- Decarbonization technologies (e.g., batteries, sustainable fuels, CCUS)
- Engineered and bio-based materials innovations
- Tech-enabled regenerative agriculture (e.g., precision agriculture sensors, AI-driven crop optimization, vertical farming automation)
- Circular and regenerative systems using technology (e.g., smart recycling platforms, material tracking software, AI-driven supply chain optimization)
- Regenerative business models that rethink how value and resources flow to support long-term economic and ecological resilience
Funds can be used to support personal and professional needs associated with the project, including salaries and compensation for living expenses, so they can focus on their project full-time.
An early-stage project is typically between two and four years old, though we adopt a flexible definition of “early stage.”
For for-profits, this refers to newly launched ventures focused on developing their product or service, validating market fit, building a small team, and acquiring initial customers, often with minimal revenue and active fundraising efforts.
For nonprofits, it refers to organizations in the initial phase of development that have already demonstrated early traction, established their mission, built programs, and begun to scale their efforts to secure sustainable funding and community support.
The project, organization, or business must be legally incorporated. Projects that are still in “idea” form on paper, with no volunteers and no activities yet, will not be considered. Except in cases where the individual is the founder, the project cannot fall under the scope of normal paid job responsibilities for an organization.
All nominees meeting the eligibility criteria will be formally invited to submit a Project Readiness Form. Two weeks after the deadline, nominees will be notified via email if their application is moving forward to the next round, which is an invitation to submit a pitch deck. The final step will be an application and a 30-minute virtual interview.
We are keeping this number open as we intentionally curate a well-rounded, diverse cohort representing a mix of geographies, solution approaches, and backgrounds. As a guideline, we anticipate awarding a minimum of 10 leaders and a maximum of 15.
50% of the funding will be distributed at the beginning of the program. The remaining 45% will be distributed at the end of the program, and the remaining 5% upon receipt of all necessary and requested documentation, and confirmation of program attendance to all required sessions.
Walking Softer Young Leaders offers up to $50,000 in financial support tailored to each recipient's needs. This non-dilutive funding is structured to empower Young Leaders with the financial resources they need to advance their innovative solutions for the planet.
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