Application Deadline: December 21st 2019
The Mekatilili Fellowship Program (MFP) is a gathering of creative and innovative African youth aimed at building 21st Century skills. Through this program, fellows will be exposed to learning opportunities, internships and meaningful work while acquiring professional development training to prepare youth for the job market.
Unlike traditional vocational training, MFP adopts pedagogy and creative learning techniques that strives to empower learners. These constructionist techniques are drawn from the Lifelong Kindergarten group at the MIT Media Lab and inspired by Mitch Resnick’s 4 P’s of Creative Learning: Projects, Peers, Passion, and Play.
The fellowship aspires to create open ended, playful, passion, and peer-driven learning while driven by the following core values:
- Inclusivity: Bring together a diverse group of young talent from various regions. Inclusivity is not just bound to the participant selection criteria but also refers to an openness to bold ideas.
- Collaborative: Creating a brave space for open collaboration among participants to enhance quality of ideas, inspire constructive feedback and build lasting relationships.
- Africa-focused: Nurturing and developing talent in Africa to spur a new generation of makers, scientists, researchers, innovators and change-makers who will use their skills to create a better future for the continent.
- Replicable: Adaptable, well-structured and based on a sustainable model to create long-lasting impact.
MFP is a unique opportunity for makers to work on projects that they are passionate about and to collaborate with peers on a global scale while co-designing appropriate solutions that can help us to get one step closer to realising the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Mekatilili Fellowship Program is 3-day, fully funded, workshop to be held in Nairobi, Kenya from 14th – 16th January 2019. This learning opportunity is in collaboration with the Technological Innovations for Inclusive Learning and Teaching (tiilt) Lab at Northwestern University and is supported by the Lifelong Kindergarten group at the MIT Media Lab and The Legatum Center for Development and Entrepreneurship at MIT.The fellowship program is focused on Human-Centered Design, the Internet of things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI).
In partnership with the tiilt lab, fellows will have a unique opportunity to collaborate with peers and faculty at Northwestern University and local partners to co-design solutions with specific communities in Kenya based on three tracks:
- Design for Accessibility
- Agriculture
- Design for Manufacturing
The target audience of fellows is students, engineers, computer scientists, entrepreneurs, innovators and tech enthusiasts with intermediate technical skills in programming and electronics.
Eligibility & Selection Criteria:
- Basic programming skills
- Basic electronics knowledge
- Knowledge on Arduino
- Living or working in Kenya
- Good to have: Past experience building electronics projects
For More Information:
Visit the Official Webpage of the Mekatilili Fellowship Program (MFP) 2019
