Community Engagement Exchange (CEE)

The Community Engagement Exchange Program (CEE) is a year-long program designed to enable civil society leaders, ages 21-28, to harness the power of networks, relationships, and information for the public good, specifically on issues related to civic dialogue and peacebuilding, open and participatory government, women and gender, resilience and sustainable development, and youth engagement.

Fellowship components include:

Three-month U.S.-based practicum: CEE fellows are matched with nonprofit organizations, private entities, and government offices across the United States where they work with U.S. colleagues on initiatives related to civil society issues they face in their own communities.
Leadership and Civic Engagement Academy: Through the Academy’s blended learning components, fellows will develop and practice leadership skills that are essential for building their individual and collective abilities to lead and address societal challenges.
Community Engagement Project (CEP): The culmination of the fellows’ program is their actionable project in Moldova focused on one of the five CEE themes. Alumni also have the opportunity to apply for a CEP exchange with a practicum host or CEE Specialist that will enable them to travel to Moldova to further scale their CEP.
Community Engagement Project (CEP) Exchange: Select U.S. hosts and CEE specialists will travel to a CEE alumnus’ country and work collaboratively to support the fellow’s project implementation and bring back what they learn to strengthen communities across the United States or Moldova.

Eligibility Requirements

Competition for the CEE Program is merit-based and open to emerging civil society and community leaders who meet the criteria below. Applications that do not meet these eligibility requirements will be disqualified and will not be reviewed by the selection committee.

You are between the ages of 21-28 at the time of application
You have citizenship and live permanently in the Republic of Moldova (permanent residents of the Transnistrian region may be considered regardless of citizenship)
You have a minimum of two years of professional or volunteer experience at the time of application
You are living and working in Moldova
Individuals with refugee status working on behalf of Moldovan community may be given special consideration
You are working on a community engagement initiative in Moldova, either in a professional or volunteer capacity, with a vision to pursue a career working to support civil society
You have a high level of proficiency in spoken and written English at the time of application
Semifinalists will be required to take or submit recent scores for a TOEFL or IELTS English language test
You are available to travel to the U.S. for three months
You are committed to returning to Moldova to complete a Community Engagement Project (CEP)
You are not a citizen or permanent resident of the U.S. and have not applied for U.S. permanent residency within the past three years
You are eligible to receive a U.S. J-1 visa
Applicants who have participated in an exchange program sponsored by the U.S. Government must have fulfilled their two-year Moldovan residency requirement by the time of application
You are committed to returning to Moldova for a minimum of two years after completing the program and
You are not a current IREX employee or consultant, or their immediate family member

Financial Support

The program covers the cost of most expenses associated with:

J-1 visa support
Round-trip travel from Moldova to the U.S.
Monthly allowance to cover housing, meals, and other living expenses while in the U.S. and
Accident and sickness insurance

Application Information

The CEE fellow application will be open from Wednesday, October 26, 2022 through Sunday, November 30, 2022 at 11:59 pm EST.

If you have any questions about the application, please reference the CEE Program Frequently Asked Questions document (PDF, 275 KB) or email apply.CEE@irex.org.

For more information please visit: https://www.irex.org/project/community-engagement-exchange

To apply please visit: https://www.irex.org/program/community-engagement-exchange-program-application-information

Please visit program social media (Facebook @CommunityEngagementExchange or Instagram @CEEProgram) to view helpful application tips and recordings of live Q&A sessions.