The Global Solvers Accelerator (GSA) is an intensive eight-month program designed by the Melton Foundation to empower a new generation of changemakers and young leaders aged 18 to 35, who are actively shaping solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges. Since its inception in 2018, in partnership with Ernst-Abbe-Stiftung, the Global Solvers Accelerator has evolved into a globally recognized platform that blends academic rigor with practical engagement, equipping social innovators to turn local action into scalable global impact.
Each year, the program carefully selects 20 high-potential project leaders from diverse cultural and disciplinary backgrounds. Through a combination of immersive learning modules, expert mentorship, and collaborative project development, participants enhance their leadership skills while fine-tuning community-based solutions aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
What makes the GSA unique is its deep commitment to cross-cultural exchange and collective intelligence. Whether engaging in virtual co-creation or convening in person at the fully-funded Global Solvers Co-Lab in Gotha and Accra participants are immersed in an environment that challenges assumptions, sharpens strategies, and cultivates systems thinking. As the program continues to grow, especially in the post-COVID landscape it now serves as a living laboratory for tackling interconnected global issues, from climate change and migration to AI ethics and economic inequality.
The Global Solvers Accelerator follows an eight-month learning journey structured around eight thematic modules. Each module builds on the last, offering participants focused guidance to deepen their leadership, sharpen their projects, and drive systemic impact.
The eight-module framework guiding the Global Solvers Accelerator journey.
Recruitment and Selection
The 2024 Global Solvers Accelerator attracted over 970 applications from around the world. Through a five-stage selection process, we identified 20 outstanding changemakers ready to drive impact and embody global citizenship.
Stage 1: Application Screening – Ensured eligibility, completeness, and alignment with core program requirements.
Stage 2: Profile Check – Reviewed applicant backgrounds, project status, and thematic diversity.
Stage 3: In-Depth Evaluation – Conducted qualitative assessments by trained evaluators to assess leadership, motivation, and project relevance.
Stage 4: Assessment Center – Engaged shortlisted applicants in interactive group exercises to evaluate global citizenship competencies.
Stage 5: Cohort Curation – Finalized a balanced, diverse cohort based on evaluation scores and intersectional representation
Global Solvers Accelerator: A Unique Learning Experience for Social Impact Practitioners
The Global Solvers Accelerator offers a dynamic and holistic learning journey for emerging changemakers. Grounded in the Melton Foundation’s Global Competency Impact Model, the program supports personal and professional growth across four key dimensions: Understanding Self, Making Sense of the World, Collaborating Across Boundaries, and Enabling & Driving Change.
Learning Outcomes and Program Impact
The 2024 Global Solvers Accelerator (GSA) empowered changemakers through personal growth, project development, and systems impact. Built on the Melton Foundation’s framework, it offers immersive learning, cross-cultural collaboration, and peer support.
Growth Across Global Competency Dimensions
Participants’ confidence grew measurably across all four dimensions of the Global Competency Impact Model, with the most significant leap in collaborating across boundaries. This shift reflects the program’s emphasis on intercultural dialogue, inclusive leadership, and systems thinking.
In addition to these quantitative indicators, the program fostered deep internal shifts:
95% reported a significant transformation in their understanding of leadership, moving toward inclusive, relational, and self-aware practices.
90% embraced diverse perspectives as integral to effective changemaking.
84% moved away from top-down authority, adopting shared-power, empathy-driven leadership.
Participants also reflected on the contribution of the GSA to their project development, from refining their vision to enhancing operational capacity.
Participants’ ratings of the GSA’s contribution to various areas of project development.
Key progress areas included:
Improved strategic clarity
Increased confidence in project execution
Expanded collaborative networks
Stronger alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
By the end of the program:
94% reported enhanced understanding of how their projects intersect with the SDGs
83% gained clarity on which SDGs they contribute to most
- 100% reported feeling better prepared to identify and approach key stakeholders
The Global Solvers Accelerator (GSA) 2024 was made possible through a strong collaboration of global and local partners committed to empowering changemakers and advancing sustainable development.
Tapping into our shared passion for transformative leadership and social entrepreneurship, we seek to inspire one another by bridging academia and grassroots innovation, exchanging insights, connecting theory with practice, and integrating local and global social innovation ecosystems.
Melton Foundation
Founded in 1991, We are a global network of 600+ Fellows committed to advancing global citizenship through equity, sustainability, and diversity. We drive the Global Solvers Accelerator as a flagship initiative to equip changemakers with the tools to address global challenges across boundaries of place and identity.
Ernst-Abbe-Stiftung
A long-standing partner and primary co-sponsor of the Global Solvers Accelerator & Co-Lab 2024, the Ernst-Abbe-Stiftung supports innovation, research, and social impact locally in Thuringia and globally. Their support has been pivotal in enabling the Co-Lab, the largest cost driver and key experiential component of the program.
Melton Foundation Africa
Established in Ghana in 2022, Melton Foundation Africa serves as a regional anchor for the Melton Foundation’s work in Africa. Focused on youth and the SDGs, MFA co-hosts the Co-Lab every alternate year in Accra, helping embed the Global Solvers Accelerator in local ecosystems for long-term impact and meaningful community engagement.
Gotha Research Centre – University of Erfurt
With a focus on the history of knowledge and culture, the Gotha Research Centre offers Global Solvers Accelerator participants a reflective space to connect theory and practice. By hosting the Co-Lab biennially, the Centre fosters intercultural exchange and academic-practitioner collaboration.
Willy Brandt School of Public Policy – University of Erfurt
One of Germany’s leading public policy schools, the Brandt School brings an international, interdisciplinary lens to the Global Solvers Accelerator. Through academic exchange and research collaboration, it helps bridge policy, practice, and innovation while shaping future leaders for sustainable development.
Dive into 5 Years of Impact
Want to explore the stories, outcomes, and transformative journeys that have shaped five powerful editions of the Global Solvers Accelerator?
The 2024 Global Solvers Accelerator Impact Report takes you inside the evolution of this initiative, showcasing how changemakers from around the world have driven personal growth, sparked project innovation, and catalyzed systemic change through the Global Solvers Accelerator and Co-Lab.
Want to explore how the Global Solvers Accelerator empowers changemakers worldwide? Visit our exclusive Global Solvers Accelerator page to meet the Fellows, dive into their projects, and see how global citizenship comes to life through action.