In Mountaintop's first application cycle, 6,194 candidates from 155 countries representing 98.6% of the global population started an application, and 1,877 candidates completed the entire application, including two essays and eight short responses. According to voluntary self reported data, 60% of candidates come from families making less than $2.15/day (the World Bank's extreme poverty line) and 67% from families where neither parent graduated from university.

From former Members of Parliament, former mayors, Nobel Peace Prize Nominees, and presidential candidates, to hospital directors in low income rural communities, humanitarians working for peace in conflict zones, indigenous leaders fighting to protect land rights, and refugees building youth leadership initiatives, our candidates were united by a common vision — strengthening the "human infrastructure" of their home communities so that local people can solve local problems.

While selection was extremely competitive, Mountaintop is proud to support the local leadership journeys of the exceptional individuals below. Please learn more about the stories of our remarkable Fellows by clicking on their profiles.

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We are in the process of completing paperwork for additional selected Fellows and raising funds for waitlisted candidates. We will be sharing additional Fellow updates as we have them. To learn more about our 87 waitlisted candidates from 47 countries, click here.