2027 NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship: $20,000 Fellowship for Climate Screenwriters and TV Pilot Writers

The 2027 NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship is now accepting submissions from writers with completed feature film screenplays or television pilots that engage meaningfully with climate change.

The fellowship will select three writers, with each recipient receiving $20,000 to support the revision of a feature screenplay or pilot. The selected writers will also receive professional feedback and guidance from experienced screenwriters and climate experts, giving them an opportunity to strengthen both the creative quality and climate dimensions of their work.

The program is the sixth annual NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship and is a partnership involving The Black List, the Natural Resources Defense Council’s Rewrite the Future program, The Redford Center, NBCUniversal, and CAA Community + Impact.

The fellowship is particularly interested in stories that move beyond conventional depictions of climate change as simply an apocalyptic or dystopian crisis. Writers are encouraged to explore the human, social, economic, political and emotional dimensions of climate change through compelling characters, events, choices, relationships and solutions.

The application deadline is December 4, 2026, at 11:59 PM PST.

What Is the NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship?

The NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship is designed to support screenwriters who are using film and television storytelling to explore climate change and the human experience of a changing planet.

The fellowship recognizes the influence that entertainment can have on how audiences understand major social and environmental issues. Climate change can affect virtually every aspect of life, including health, food, employment, relationships, communities, migration, politics, justice and security.

Rather than requiring writers to work within a particular genre, the fellowship welcomes different approaches to climate storytelling. A climate story can be a comedy, drama, horror film, action or adventure story, romance, or another genre, provided that climate change and climate solutions meaningfully influence the story.

What Does the Fellowship Provide?

Three selected writers will each receive $20,000 to support the revision of their screenplay or pilot.

In addition to the financial award, Fellows receive professional development and script guidance designed to help them strengthen their projects.

$20,000 for Each Fellow

Each of the three selected writers will receive $20,000.

The funding is intended to support the revision of a feature screenplay or television pilot that engages with climate change in a compelling way.

This financial support can provide writers with the time and resources needed to undertake substantial revisions and develop their projects further.

Professional Screenwriter Feedback

Each Fellow will be connected with a credited professional screenwriter who has an interest in climate storytelling.

This provides an opportunity to receive feedback from an experienced screenwriting professional and to consider creative approaches to improving the script.

Guidance From NRDC’s Rewrite the Future Program

Fellows will also receive guidance from NRDC’s Rewrite the Future program on effective approaches to climate storytelling.

The purpose is to help writers create stories that are not only entertaining but also capable of communicating climate issues and solutions in meaningful ways.

Access to Climate Experts

Where applicable, Fellows may be connected with one or more NRDC experts who can advise on climate issues highlighted in their scripts.

This can help writers strengthen the accuracy and depth of the climate-related elements of their stories.

Climate Spring Development Consultation

Each Fellow will receive one dedicated meeting with a Climate Spring development executive.

The meeting will provide development advice and consultation relating to the Fellow’s script. Climate Spring focuses on supporting storytelling that can influence how the climate crisis is represented in film, television and popular culture.

Potential Industry Development Opportunities

After receiving consultations, Fellows will have six months to complete a revision of their scripts.

Revised scripts may subsequently be reviewed for development by studios, agencies and production companies, including organizations such as Climate Spring, Creative Artists Agency, Hyperobject Industries, NBCUniversal, UTA, WME and Yellow Dot Studios, among others.

Importantly, writers retain all rights to their work.

What Happens During the Fellowship?

The fellowship is structured around developing and improving the selected writers’ scripts.

After receiving feedback and consultations, Fellows have six months to revise their work.

At the end of the fellowship, each recipient is expected to provide:

• A short reflection explaining how the fellowship advanced their work and/or career.
• A revised version of their script.
• An overview of the changes made during the revision process.

The structure therefore combines financial support, professional mentorship, climate expertise, script development and opportunities for further industry exposure.

What Makes a Strong Climate Story?

The fellowship does not require a specific genre.

Instead, the central requirement is that climate change and solutions must meaningfully influence the story.

The climate connection can appear through:

• Events
• Character decisions
• Actions
• Emotions
• Plot
• Setting
• Social or community circumstances

The source emphasizes that climate change should not simply be mentioned in a script. It should have a meaningful effect on the story and the choices made by important characters.

Climate Stories Can Be Any Genre

Applicants should not assume that climate storytelling means producing only documentaries, disaster films or serious environmental dramas.

The fellowship explicitly welcomes a broad range of genres, including:

• Comedy
• Drama
• Horror
• Action and adventure
• Romance
• Inspirational stories
• Apocalyptic stories
• Other forms of narrative storytelling

The important factor is that climate change or climate solutions meaningfully influence the characters, action or story.

This approach gives writers considerable creative freedom.

A climate story could, for example, explore the effect of environmental change on a family, a community, a business, a relationship, a political campaign or a person’s career.

What Types of Climate Stories Is the Fellowship Looking For?

The fellowship is particularly interested in stories that help audiences understand climate change through human experiences.

Climate Change and Human Choices

Strong climate stories can demonstrate how climate change affects characters, influences their choices and drives their actions.

This can make climate issues more relatable by connecting large-scale environmental changes to individual lives.

Life in a Climate-Altered World

The fellowship encourages stories that acknowledge that people already live in a climate-altered world.

This could include the effects of climate change on:

• Homes
• Health
• Communities
• Jobs
• Families
• Relationships
• Local economies

Communities Most Affected by Climate Change

Writers are encouraged to highlight communities that are particularly affected by the climate crisis.

Stories can also focus on people and communities working toward solutions.

This creates opportunities for writers to explore climate change through diverse perspectives rather than relying exclusively on conventional global narratives.

Climate Storytelling Beyond Apocalypse and Dystopia

A significant element of the fellowship’s approach is its encouragement of stories that move beyond the familiar climate apocalypse narrative.

Climate disasters and dystopian futures can provide compelling stories, but the fellowship argues that focusing exclusively on despair can create the impression that there is no possible way forward.

The program therefore encourages writers to explore more complex and nuanced human experiences of the climate crisis, including stories about people working toward a healthier, more equitable and sustainable future.

This means that applicants can consider stories centered on:

• Hope
• Human agency
• Innovation
• Community action
• Adaptation
• Climate solutions
• Environmental justice
• A more sustainable future

Climate Topics That Can Be Explored

The fellowship’s requirements indicate that climate storytelling can intersect with a wide variety of subjects.

Potential themes include:

• Environmental racism
• Climate injustice
• Food systems
• Water
• Public health
• War and national security
• Natural disasters
• Corporate responsibility and malfeasance
• Immigration
• Political scandals
• Consumption
• Deforestation
• Wildlife and wilderness
• Pollution
• Sea-level rise
• Relationships
• Family planning
• Employment and careers
• Climate emotions and psychology
• Fossil fuel economies
• Activism
• Education
• Journalism
• Politics
• Science and technology
• Renewable energy
• Transportation
• Business and finance
• Building and product design
• Waste management
• Circular economy
• Food justice
• Urban farming
• Community-based innovation
• A just and equitable transition to a decarbonized economy

The source also encourages stories about people discovering or engaging with climate solutions in areas such as farming, food, public health, law, policy, energy, transportation, science, technology, business and community development.

Who Can Submit a Script?

The fellowship has relatively broad eligibility for writers and does not restrict submissions to a particular country.

Eligible submissions include:

• Feature film scripts.
• Pilots for episodic television series.
• Scripts in any genre, provided they meaningfully incorporate climate change.
• Scripts that are new to The Black List.
• Scripts that have previously been reviewed by The Black List.
• Scripts by writers who have professional representation.
• Scripts by writers who do not have professional representation.
• Scripts submitted in previous cycles of the NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship.
• Adapted works, although applicants are encouraged to secure the necessary option or permission for the original material.
• Scripts from writers in any country, provided the script is submitted in English.

The fellowship therefore has international reach rather than being restricted to writers from the United States.

Age Requirement

Applicants must be at least 18 years old and must not be considered a minor under the laws of their state or country of residence at the time of submission.

Requirements for the Script

The submitted project must meet specific requirements.

Completed Script Required

Applicants must submit a completed draft of an original feature film script or pilot teleplay.

Incomplete scripts are not eligible.

Climate Connection Required

The script must engage with climate change through elements such as:

• Events
• Actions
• Character
• Emotions
• Plot
• Setting

Climate change and solutions must be a meaningful driver of the action and/or affect important choices made by characters.

Original Ownership

The script must be wholly original to the applicant, and the applicant must be the sole owner of all rights to the work.

The script must not infringe the copyright or other rights of another person or entity.

See the Submission Requirements HERE and the Submission Agreement HERE

What Is Not Eligible?

Several types of projects are specifically excluded from consideration.

The fellowship does not accept:

• Content created as part of a commercial campaign.
• Incomplete scripts.
• Stage plays.
• Musical scripts.
• Novels.
• Podcasts.
• Games.
• VR/AR experiences.
• Scripts already in development.

The submitted project must be a completed feature film script or pilot teleplay that meets the climate storytelling requirements.

Requirements for TV Pilot Applicants

Applicants submitting a television pilot should pay particular attention to an additional requirement.

If a TV pilot applicant reaches the shortlist, they must provide a long synopsis or treatment explaining:

• The primary story arcs.
• How the climate themes will be developed throughout the show.

This allows the selection process to assess not only the pilot episode but also the broader potential of the series.

The program requirements also specify that, if requested, TV pilot applicants must submit a long synopsis or treatment describing the primary story arcs and development of climate themes.

How to Submit

Applications for the 2027 NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship must be made through The Black List website.

The organizers explicitly state that submissions sent by email will not be accepted.

Applicants must:

1. Create or access an account on The Black List.
2. Upload their eligible screenplay or television pilot.
3. Ensure the project clearly demonstrates its connection to climate change.
4. Provide the required description explaining how the project qualifies as a climate story.
5. Opt into consideration for the NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship.
6. Submit the project before the deadline.

If an applicant is new to The Black List, they can register for a free account. The source states that applicants do not have to pay for hosting or evaluations in order to submit for consideration.

Learn More HERE

Important Submission Process: Maximum of 500 Scripts

Applicants should pay close attention to the fellowship’s submission capacity.

A maximum of 500 qualified scripts will be accepted for consideration for the 2027 fellowship.

Scripts submitted for consideration will first be reviewed by the NRDC team to determine whether they meet the climate-story qualification requirements.

If a project is accepted for consideration, the writer will automatically receive:

• One free month of hosting.
• One free script evaluation.
• Automatic consideration for the fellowship.

The writer does not need to take additional action after the project has been accepted for consideration.

If a submitted project does not qualify, it will not be eligible for fellowship consideration.

Free Hosting and Script Evaluation

One useful feature of the submission process is that scripts accepted for consideration receive a free month of hosting and a free evaluation.

The Black List evaluation is subsequently important to the selection process because the strength of eligible scripts, as determined through the evaluations, contributes to identifying the shortlist.

Selection Process

The selection process takes place over several stages.

Stage 1: Script Submission

Writers submit their scripts through The Black List by the deadline.

The NRDC team reviews submissions to determine whether they qualify for consideration.

Stage 2: Script Evaluation

Up to 500 eligible scripts can receive one free month of hosting and one free evaluation.

The strength of the scripts, as determined through The Black List’s evaluations, is used in the selection process.

Stage 3: Shortlist

Writers whose scripts are shortlisted will be invited to submit additional materials during the selection period, which runs from December through April.

These materials include:

• A one-page personal statement.
• A professional résumé.

Stage 4: Semifinalist Interviews

Semifinalists may be asked to participate in a short interview.

Stage 5: Final Selection

Three fellowship recipients will be selected no later than April 30, 2027.

Learn More HERE

Application Deadline

The submission deadline is:

December 4, 2026, at 11:59 PM Pacific Standard Time (PST).

The organizers emphasize that scripts must be submitted through The Black List before this deadline. Updated versions of scripts must also be uploaded directly to The Black List before the deadline because the NRDC Rewrite the Future program cannot accept scripts through email.

Because only a maximum of 500 qualified scripts will be accepted for consideration, eligible writers should not wait until the last possible moment to submit.

Retaining Ownership of Your Work

An important feature of the fellowship is that selected writers retain complete ownership of their work.

Participation in the fellowship does not transfer ownership of the screenplay or pilot to the fellowship organizers.

Applicants should nevertheless carefully review the applicable submission requirements and legal agreements before submitting.

The program requirements state that applicants must agree to the Submission Requirements, the program terms and the Submission Agreement governing submission to the company and The Black List. The Submission Agreement contains legally binding provisions, including provisions concerning dispute resolution.

How Writers Can Strengthen Their Submission

A strong submission should make the climate connection immediately understandable.

Make Climate Central to the Story

Do not simply add a climate reference to an otherwise unrelated script.

The program specifically looks for projects in which climate change and/or climate solutions influence the action and important decisions made by characters.

Explain the Climate Connection

Applicants are required to provide a brief description explaining how their project qualifies as a climate story.

Writers should use this opportunity to clearly explain why climate change is integral to the story.

Focus on Human Experience

The fellowship encourages writers to explore the ways climate change affects people’s lives.

This can include emotional, economic, social, political, health-related and community-level consequences.

Explore Solutions

Writers are encouraged to consider stories that demonstrate human agency and illuminate possible solutions.

The fellowship specifically highlights stories that inspire hope, demonstrate solutions and explore pathways toward healthier, more equitable and sustainable futures.

Avoid Relying Only on Climate Disaster Tropes

While disaster and dystopian stories are eligible, applicants should consider whether their story can offer a more nuanced representation of climate change.

The fellowship encourages writers to explore complex human realities, including people working to solve problems and create better futures.

Previous Fellowship Mentors

The source lists a range of notable professionals who have served as mentors in previous fellowship cycles.

The listed 2026 mentors include:

• Dustin Lance Black
• Stephen Markley
• J.J. Philbin

Previous mentors have included Pamela Adlon, Roxane Gay, Dorothy Fortenberry, Brit Marling, Daniel Scheinert, Mike Schur, Naren Shankar, Sarah Treem and Scott Z. Burns.

This history illustrates the fellowship’s connection to experienced screenwriters and television professionals.

Resources for Climate Storytellers

The fellowship also provides applicants and writers with access to resources for developing stronger climate stories.

These include resources associated with:

• NRDC’s Rewrite the Future program.
• Climateonscreen.org.
• The Sustainable Entertainment Alliance.
• The Redford Center.
• The Green Production Guide.
• BAFTA’s albert program.
• Climate storytelling discussions and panels from Sundance and other industry events.

The resources cover subjects such as climate representation, climate emotions, alternative climate futures, sustainable entertainment and creative approaches to incorporating environmental themes into film and television.

Key Dates

Stage	Date
Submission deadline	December 4, 2026, 11:59 PM PST
Selection period	December 2026–April 2027
Shortlist/semifinalist process	December 2026–April 2027
Three Fellows selected	No later than April 30, 2027
Fellowship revision period	Six months after consultations

Visit HERE to learn more about the 2027 NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship.

Conclusion

The 2027 NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship offers an important opportunity for screenwriters and television writers who want to explore climate change through compelling narrative storytelling.

The fellowship combines $20,000 in funding for each of three selected writers, professional screenwriting mentorship, climate expertise, development guidance and potential exposure to major industry organizations. Selected writers will have six months to revise their projects and will retain ownership of their work.

The opportunity is deliberately broad in terms of genre and geography. Writers from any country can apply, provided their scripts are submitted in English and meet the program’s requirements. However, the project itself must be a completed feature screenplay or television pilot with a meaningful and integral connection to climate change.

For writers considering applying, the strongest approach is to demonstrate that climate change is not simply a background theme but something that genuinely shapes the story, characters, decisions and action. Stories can address climate injustice, public health, food systems, employment, migration, politics, technology, environmental protection, community action and many other dimensions of the climate crisis.

Interested writers should submit through The Black List by December 4, 2026, at 11:59 PM PST, while also keeping in mind that only a maximum of 500 qualified scripts will be accepted for consideration.

Discover more global Fellowship and Storytelling opportunities on OFY.