Launched in 2005, the Draper Hills Summer Fellowship on Democracy and Development Program is a three-week academic training program that is hosted annually at Stanford University's Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law. The program brings together a group of approximately 28 mid-career practitioners from transitioning countries that are working to advance democratic practices and reform in countries where democracy is at risk. From Afghanistan to Ukraine, our program participants are selected from among hundreds of applicants for the significant contributions they have made to their societies. In 2019 we had more than 1000 applications for our incoming class making this a highly selective program.

DHSF  is unique to academia because it provides a forum for civil society leaders to connect, exchange experiences, and receive academic training to enrich their knowledge and advance their work. Delivered by a leading Stanford faculty team composed of Michael McFaul, Kathryn Stoner, Stephen Krasner, Francis Fukuyama, Larry Diamond, and Erik Jensen, these seminars allow emerging leaders to explore new institutional models and frameworks to enhance their ability to promote democratic change in their home countries. Esteemed guest lectures are also presented by individuals from the greater Stanford community Pamela Karlan, Condoleezza Rice and Justice Mariano-Florentino Cuellar, and outside of Stanford such as Eric Schmidt (Former CEO Google), Carl Gershman (National Endowment for Democracy).

Our fellows live on the Stanford campus and become part of university life during the duration of their fellowship. Visits to Silicon Valley technology and social media firms broaden our fellows’ networks and allow them to examine the tensions between technology and democracy. They also deliver "TED"-style talks to refine their storytelling skills and learn how to communicate their work to a global audience.

The Leadership Academy for Development (LAD) at Stanford University trains carefully selected government officials and business leaders from developing countries who have responsibility for crafting policies and programs that will strengthen the private sector’s role as a constructive force for economic growth and poverty alleviation in their countries. Using a specially designed, innovative curriculum, LAD’s week-long intensive course modules provide participants with a robust analytical framework that will strengthen their ability to act as effective catalysts for policy reform in countries where government capacity to drive change is relatively weak. From a multi-disciplinary idea born in 2010, LAD has grown into a successful and far-reaching education program. 

With minimal staffing and a bare-bones budget, LAD has developed an original, robust curriculum and formed solid, ongoing institutional partnerships on three continents. We have executed successful programs in Peru, Ethiopia, Ukraine, Kurdistan and South Africa (among others) and taught over 1500 rising leaders from 60+ developing countries.

Originally based at the School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University, LAD is now housed within the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law, part of Stanford’s Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies. Funding to support LAD programs has been generously provided by individual donors, Luminate Group, the Hurford Foundation, the Smith-Richardson Foundation, and Stanford.

CDDRL’s Strengthening Ukrainian Democracy and Development (SU-DD) Program, formerly the Ukrainian Emerging Leaders Program, is a 7-week training program for Ukrainian practitioners and policymakers. Launching in the autumn of 2022, SU-DD provides a unique opportunity for up to 10 mid-career practitioners working on well-defined projects aimed at strengthening Ukrainian democracy, enhancing human development, and promoting good governance.

SU-DD builds on some of the successes of our Ukrainian Emerging Leaders Program, which was housed at CDDRL beginning in 2017. Since then, CDDRL has hosted 12 Ukrainian fellows across 4 cohorts. SU-DD aspires to multiply this success and increase our impact in Ukraine in a number of ways:

• First, we seek to make the experience of Ukrainian fellows at Stanford more structured and impactful by requiring them to devise focused projects as part of the application, and then by working with our faculty before they arrive at Stanford to further refine these projects so that they can provide actionable solutions to current challenges for Ukrainian democracy and human development.
   
• Second, by shortening the length of the program to a maximum of 7 weeks at Stanford, we can bring more Ukrainian policy influencers to campus and be more impactful with developmental solutions as a result.
   
• Finally, by including the Ukrainian fellows in CDDRL's Draper Hills Summer Fellows Program, we seek to create connections, synergies, and a deeper understanding of shared development problems and solutions from a variety of country contexts. This program will also expand the network for our Ukrainian fellows to draw upon as they continue their work to strengthen democracy and development when they leave Stanford.