Freedom 250: Kazakhstan Youth Leadership Camp

The U.S. Mission to Kazakhstan announces an open competition to implement a youth leadership camp in summer 2026, exclusively targeting FLEX program alternates, highly qualified exchange program applicants not selected as finalists due to limited spaces.  The camp will provide up to 50 FLEX alternates with an intensive entrepreneurship and job skills-building experience, focusing on U.S. best practices, American excellence, and leadership development. Themes will include U.S. entrepreneurship case studies, business project design, public speaking in English, and financial literacy. U.S. speakers will be invited as trainers, and FLEX alumni will serve as mentors. In recognition of Freedom250 - the 2026 commemoration of the United States' founding - this program will deepen participants' understanding of American values of innovation, entrepreneurship, and opportunity, equipping them with career skills to champion U.S.-Kazakhstan economic cooperation and partnerships with American businesses as they emerge as future leaders. The most active participants will have the opportunity to implement local entrepreneurship projects after the camp. Proposals that leverage U.S. Department of State resources such as RELO, American Spaces, Makerspaces, and EducationUSA will be given preference. The camp will extend the impact of FLEX to wider audiences in Kazakhstan and develop a new cadre of future leaders to support long-term U.S.-Kazakhstan cooperation.

This project will increase youth engagement with USG alumni and American peers, improve job skills and understanding of U.S. entrepreneurship models among Kazakh youth, and foster a network of youth leaders with a strong interest in the United States.

Project Audience(s): The primary audience for this project includes young people between the ages of 15 and 17 years old, who were semi-finalists and alternates of FLEX youth exchange program in the 2026-2027 academic year. Youth should include:

●      High school students;

●      First- and second-year college students;

●      Alternates of FLEX program from various regions of Kazakhstan, including from outside of Astana and Almaty.

Applicants should propose a location for the camp. This is essential in fostering a network of young leaders who can drive positive change across the whole country. 

Project Goal:  Support youth leadership and entrepreneurship development, as well as understanding of U.S. excellence, by developing a network of up to 50 promising FLEX exchange program applicants.

●      Objective 1: Equip up to 50 Kazakh youth with improved leadership and career preparation skills, resulting in at least 80% of participants demonstrating a 20% or greater improvement in leadership, job skills, and career preparation skills, as measured through standardized pre- and post-training assessments and observation rubrics aligned with specific skill benchmarks.

●      Objective 2: Develop greater understanding of U.S. business culture and entrepreneurial models (e.g. innovation-driven business planning, social entrepreneurship, startup ecosystems) among youth participants by facilitating interactive camp activities that explore these themes, resulting in at least 80% of participants demonstrating increased knowledge on key aspects of U.S. business culture and entrepreneurship addressed in camp activities (e.g., values, traditions, history), as measured by a pre-and post-camp knowledge assessment. 

●      Objective 3: Increase the ability of youth to develop and implement entrepreneurship ideas according to U.S. business practices, resulting in at least 80% of participants developing and submitting a project proposal, with 50% of the proposals scoring a minimum score of 75, as evaluated by a standardized rubric.

●      Objective 4: Facilitate networking and collaboration between participating youth and USG exchange program alumni, resulting in sustained mentorship between alumni and 10-15% of youth participants continuing three months beyond the camp, tracked through follow up surveys and alumni engagement logs.