Zambia 

One group of students will travel to Livingstone, Zambia working with Kaya Responsible Travel. Livingstone is a historic city and the present capital of the Southern Province of Zambia. It is a tourism center for Victoria Falls (Mosi-oa-Tunya) lying 10 km (6.2mi) north of the Zambezi River, and a border town with road and rail connections to Zimbabwe on the other side of the Falls. Livingstone acts as a gateway to the Falls and the Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park.

Zambian culture is considered a mixture of traditional Bantu and modern European influences. Colonization and urbanization caused a number of previously competing tribes to live in close proximity to one another. All of this has helped shape the culture of Zambia - whose people now retain strong ties to their clans alongside a strong united national identity.

Project Focus

Students in this program will work in small groups on a multifaceted project aimed at exposing local girls and boys to discussions around gender equality and empowerment. Alongside the local team, every morning, the groups will prepare and deliver a series of workshops to local grade 8-12 students from two schools. Typically, workshop topics are not standalone and are designed to be delivered as a 3-4 workshop series, and may be presented to multiple classes over the course of the project. Workshop topics include: Gender-Based Violence, Mental Health, Women’s Health and Self-Esteem.

In the afternoons, students will engage in various community development initiatives including other girl impact projects for boys and girls in grades 5-6; after-school activities to help engage children, including  clubs addressing reading, health, math, art  and rugby as well as an Eco Club, where local children learn about the environment and climate change. During the afternoon, students may work alongside other international volunteers. In the evening, students will participate in activities hosted at the volunteer house, including workshops such as Nyanja Language Lessons. Students will also engage in evening reflection as a group to discuss and reflect upon their daily experiences.

Kaya Responsible Travel

Kaya Responsible Travel is an organization that specializes in providing meaningful and ethical international experiences for both individual students and university groups.

Their mission is to promote sustainable social, environmental and economic development, empower communities and cultivate educated, compassionate global citizens through responsible travel. We do this by offering a wide range of academic programs in real-life learning environments across 28 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

Please note that the Peru site will not run in the summer of 2026.

Peru

One group of students will travel to Cusco, Peru working with Kaya Responsible Travel. Formerly the capital of the Inca Empire, Cusco was deemed a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983. It is a tourism center for Machu Picchu, the 15th century Inca citadel built for emperor Pachacuti.

This high-altitude melting pot of Amerindian and mestizo culture provides incredible opportunities for cultural immersion and exchange.

Project Focus

Students in this program will work with a non-profit organization founded in Urubamba-Cusco. Since 1998 they have been working with the same mission to promote social and economic development, empower communities, conserve the environment, and cultivate compassionate global citizens. 

During this program, the group will have the possibility to work on a variety of initiatives focusing on the areas of community support, education, or empowering local indigenous communities through supporting marketing efforts of initiatives that work to promote products produced with traditional techniques.

In the mornings, students will engage in project work, allowing them to get to know the community members. In the afternoons, students will return to the shared house and prepare for their projects with guidance from the local team. Students will also have the opportunity to participate in cultural activities, including Quechua language lessons and a meet and greet with local women entrepreneurs. Students will also engage in evening reflection as a group to discuss and reflect upon their daily experiences.

Kaya Responsible Travel

Kaya Responsible Travel is an organization that specializes in providing meaningful and ethical international experiences for both individual students and university groups.

Their mission is to promote sustainable social, environmental and economic development, empower communities and cultivate educated, compassionate global citizens through responsible travel. We do this by offering a wide range of academic programs in real-life learning environments across 28 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

Eligibility

Students interested in this fellowship must meet the following criteria:

• Be a first year or sophomore student.
• Have a demonstrated interest in international development. 
• Have no prior experience traveling in developing countries. (Students with family in a developing country may make an argument for eligibility.)
• Be mature, willing and able to be a positive participant in a group.
• Be available for all spring orientations as well as dates of travel of May 23-June 21, 2026.
• By early March, have a passport in order to get a visa on time. (Students needing assistance on this topic may speak with Holly Rivers.)
• For Peru site, students must have a basic level of Spanish proficiency. 

Students selected for the program will begin preparing for their summer experience through a series of orientations with the Institute. Failure to attend orientations in full will result in cancellation of the award.

Upon their return, each recipient will submit a detailed report of approximately 1,000 words which evaluates the challenges and rewards of pursuing the field project and which discusses how the experience informed their understanding of the region. Recipients may be invited to make a public presentation on their field experience and talk to other students interested in applying in the future.

For questions about this program, please contact Associate Director Holly Rivers (hrivers@nd.edu/1-6023).

Application Process

All applicants with questions should meet with Associate Director Holly Rivers for Zambia or Senior Program Manager Rachel Thiel for Peru.

To apply to be a part of the Kellogg Institute’s Pre-ETW Fellowship Program, please go to the online application page. You can login to the application system using your Notre Dame credentials. Before sending questions to the program administrators, please open the application and review.
 

2026 Deadline: Deadline has passed.

The application consists of the following:

• An application form of basic information about yourself
• A 3-page document responding to 3 prompts on the application that address your interest in and understanding of international development, your ability to be a positive contributor to a group and your willingness and desire to uphold commitments even in difficult circumstances.
• A letter of recommendation from a faculty member who can speak to your ability to be a strong participant in this program. The system will ask for the name and email address of the person whom you have asked to write a letter of recommendation. Please request the letter from your faculty recommender several weeks ahead of the deadline, and please inform him/her that the email will come from Submittable.
• A resume
• An e-transcript (see information regarding how to request an e-transcript.) Applicants must request their e-transcript by 4:00pm at least two business days before the deadline in order to upload it into the application system on time.

Orientations

Orientations are mandatory in order for students to be permitted to travel with this group. 
Attendance of these orientations in full is required for all students who choose to accept Kellogg Institute funding.
Failure to attend orientations in full will result in the cancellation of the award.

Dates for spring 2026 mandatory orientations for Pre-ETW are as follows:

• Requirements and Group Introduction Orientation

  Monday, March 2, 6:00-8:30pm

• Discussion of Zambia, Kaya and group dynamics
  Monday, March 23, 6:00-8:30pm
   
• Culture and Safety Orientation
  Monday, April 13, 6:00-8:30pm
   
• Positionality Orientation
  Monday, April 27, 6:00-8:30pm
   
• Dinner and group discussion (last one before leaving the country) in the Kellogg Commons
  Sunday, May 3, 5:00-8:00pm