Climate & Health Equity Leaders Fellowship

Health Professionals for a Healthy Climate (HPHC) launched the inaugural Climate and Health Equity Leaders (CHEL) Fellowship cohort in fall 2023 as an experiential, skill-building program for health professionals to gain tangible experience in advocacy that promotes a healthy climate for all Minnesotans.

Today, the CHEL Fellowship is a unique leadership opportunity for health professionals to translate their climate concerns into action.  

Through monthly learning sessions, peer connections, community speakers, advocacy opportunities, and personalized mentoring, fellows gain and fine-tune their skills for individual action, legislative advocacy, systems change, and supporting community-led efforts. Fellows join monthly learning sessions facilitated by Jessica Fisher, DNP and Laalitha Surapaneni, MD, MPH and receive personalized mentorship from an experienced climate health advocate within HPHC’s network.

CHEL Fellows represent a variety of disciplines, interests, backgrounds, and experience levels.

Meet the 2025 fellows 

For health professionals concerned about the public health impacts of climate change, the CHEL Fellowship is an opportunity to translate your concerns into action.

From January-June 2025, you’ll have the opportunity to:

1. Learn about the health impacts of climate change in addition to the health equity and climate justice issues facing Minnesotans.
2. Receive skills training on climate change advocacy: Partnering with frontline communities, legislative advocacy, science communication skills, and more.
3. Benefit from personalized peer mentorship from an experienced advocate in HPHC’s network. Mentors are well-versed in specific areas of public policy advocacy, organizing, and climate communications.

The application for the 2025 CHEL Fellowship cohort is now closed.

To stay updated about the next CHEL Fellowship application cycle, you can receive email updates.

Questions about the fellowship, becoming a mentor, or anything else? Let us know: [email protected].

Receive email updates  

The advocacy fellowship is open to all practicing and retired health professionals from interprofessional fields including medicine, nursing, public health, behavioral and mental health, social work, veterinary medicine, research, and many other clinical, science, or health-related fields. 

To apply to the 2025 CHEL Fellowship cohort, applicants should meet the following requirements:

1. Be a Minnesota resident.
2. Be a practicing or retired healthcare, public health, or science professional. At this time, the fellowship is not open to students.
3. Have an interest in and passion for environmental sustainability, health equity, or social justice. While no prior advocacy or leadership experience is required, applicants should demonstrate their interests and passions for these areas via the fellowship application. 
4.  Be able to commit to the engagement expectations outlined in the section below.

Fellowship applicants must be able to commit to the following expectations:

• Commit to a minimum of 6 hours per month for fellowship activities. Previous fellows reported spending anywhere from 4-12 hours per month on fellowship-related activities. Your time commitment of 6 hour per month may include:
  • 2.5 hours per month for synchronous learning and mentorship meetings.
  • 2 hours per month for putting your skills into practice via advocacy and leadership activities.
  • 1.5 monthly hours per month for asynchronous self-learning activities.

• Participate in at least 80% of the monthly online, synchronous learning sessions held on the first Tuesday of each month from 6:00-7:30 p.m. Central.
• Complete required readings and preparation activities prior to monthly learning session meetings. 
• Attend an in-person celebration dinner on Tuesday, June 3 from 6:00-7:30 p.m. in the Twin Cities. However, this is flexible for applicants experiencing financial, health, or logistical barriers to traveling and can be discussed once fellowship acceptance has been announced.
• Provide feedback at four points: 1) a pre-program assessment, 2) a mid-program evaluation and check-in conversation, 3) an end-of-program evaluation, and 4) a post-program follow-up survey.
• Become an active member of HPHC. Membership is free and includes subscribing to HPHC’s emails and participating in volunteer or committee opportunities that match your interests and availability.

If you have questions about eligibility, please contact the HPHC team at [email protected].

If you feel you don’t meet all of the requirements but are passionate about climate and health advocacy, please reach out!

The following criteria will be used to identify applicants who are a strong fit for the fellowship.

If any of the following apply to you, you’re encouraged to share that in your application responses.

• Commitment to climate action: Applicants are encouraged to indicate how they plan to engage in advocacy after completing the fellowship.
• Experience working with frontline communities: Applicants are encouraged to highlight their work or personal experiences partnering with frontline communities (communities affected first and worst by climate change and other systemic issues).
• Scheduling availability: If your current schedule allows you to be available during the weekday business hours of 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., please indicate that in your application. This enables HPHC to connect you with legislators and create opportunities to implement your advocacy skills such as testifying at the legislature. This schedule availability is not a requirement but is helpful information for the application review team to understand.
• Geographic and professional representation: The CHEL Fellowship strives to promote geographic and health profession diversity among selected applicants. 

The application for the 2025 CHEL Fellowship cohort is now closed.

To stay updated about the next CHEL Fellowship application cycle, you can receive email updates.

Questions about the fellowship, becoming a mentor, or anything else? Let us know: [email protected].

Explore 2024 fellows’ bios 

Explore 2025 fellows’ bios