The Emerging Leaders Foundation Africa (ELF-Africa) exists to empower, support and accompany young women and men to achieve meaningful, dignified and impactful participation in governance, economy and public affairs at all levels of society anchored on the foundational values-based approach to leadership as service. Emerging Leaders Foundation is a platform that nurtures, grows and equips leaders to sustainable change in their communities. At ELF, the approach is to equip young people with knowledge and skills to not just prepare them for the future but to support them to create the future they want to see through capacity building, experiential learning, mentorship & coaching, Advocacy & Lobbying as well as policy dialogue. ELF has steadily worked towards realising dignified societies with values-based leaders by imparting over 7000 and over 200,000 youth directly and indirectly across Kenya with a larger representation of young women.

Celebrating Inclusion’s key objective is to bring together rightsholder voices together and through an Award, highlight unsung efforts to take us one step closer to a responsive and inclusive society. As a NOW Us! Awards Organiser, ELF will work with the Voice country team to identify 10 organisations or initiatives from the Voice rightsholder groups in Kenya who are already implementing amazing inclusive innovations to their empowerment or influencing practice; Organise and facilitate a participatory 5-day inclusive innovation boot camp for the 10 organisations or movements to reflect, refine, and ideate the next steps for their initiative; Organise the award ceremony, preferably as a component of a larger event or celebration where different civil society members and stakeholders gather; Support and mentor the winners in their inclusion innovation journey, including their participation in the Innovation Festival in the Netherlands; and amplify and promote the NOW-Us! Awards to influence national conversations on diversity and inclusion.