History to shape history

(for the better)

Learn from the lessons of history to make the future better

5-week free online fellowship exploring how you can use the lessons of history to make a positive impact and steer humanity onto a better path.

  • Dates: 24th February to 31st March, 2024 (5 weeks finishing by Easter)

  • Who: Smart, curious, and ambitiously altruistic UK students in years 11-13 studying history

  • Applications: Apply by Sunday 11th February, 2024

What you can expect

Oxbridge-style learning with tutorials and a cohort of smart, curious historians

Talks and Q&As with professionals using history to tackle pressing problems

Mentorship and up to £1,000 in grant funding for alumni to pursue follow-up projects

Support with UCAS applications and Oxbridge interviews

8.7/10 Fellow overall satisfaction

Surveyed at the end of our first cohort of History to shape history, Fellows gave an average of 8.7 when asked to rate from 1 to 10 their satisfaction with the Fellowship.

Plus, 84% of Fellows feel both more confident in their ability to make a positive impact and more ready to take ambitious actions as a result of participating.

Fellowship overview

    • History never repeats itself, but we can see patterns

    • Not all history is equal(ly useful)

    Example resources:

    🎧 The Rest is History podcast: “The Lessons of History”

    📚 Book by Richard J. Evans: In Defence of History

    📝 Report by Jamie Harris: “What Can the Farmed Animal Movement Learn from History?”

    • Identifying pivotal moments in our past and future

    • Where should we actually steer it to?

    Example resources:

    🎧 Blog readout by Holden Karnofsky: “Summary of history (empowerment and well-being lens)”

    📚 Book by William MacAskill: What We Owe the Future

    🎥 Video by Rational Animations: “Can we make the future a million years from now go better?”

    • Preserving or shaping the future: quantity vs quality

    • Learning from past revolutionaries and technologies

    Example resources:

    🎧 Podcast by 80,000 Hours: How long did it take computers and electricity to have economy-wide effects?

    📚 Book by Leslie Crutchfield: How Change Happens: Why Some Social Movements Succeed While Others Don’t

    📝 Forum post by Jamie Harris: “Key Lessons From Social Movement History”

    • What are the most important questions in the subject?

    • Research with real results: EPQ, thesis, and beyond

    Example resources:

    🌐 Webpage by Effective Thesis: “Research topics we recommend” (can be filtered to history)

    📝 Forum post by Center for Applied Rationality: What are the important problems of your field?

    🎥 Workshop by Michael Aird: “Building a Theory of Change for Your Research”

    • Subjects to supplement or supplant history: alternatives that use similar skills

    • Considering careers that capitalise on your strengths

    Example resources:

    🎧 Readout of an article by 80,000 Hours: “How to find the right career for you”

    📑 Directory by Leaf: “Different potentially impactful career pathways, organised by degree subjects”

    📝 Article by Probably Good: “The SELF Framework” — a simple tool to help you assess a role’s potential for improving the world

Weekly structure

  • Dive deep into intriguing historical topics using our curated resources or your own research. Challenge your assumptions with thought-provoking new perspectives, organised on our online learning platform with interactive videos, engaging quizzes, and other activities.

    You can try some sample activities here

  • Weekly check-in and discussion with an advisor and 3-5 peers; develop your critical thinking in conversation with intelligent, interesting, like-minded teens.

    We’ll do our best to find a slot that works around your other commitments!

    You can watch a sample recording here

  • Read around the topic and write up your hot takes. Get feedback from peers and Leaf staff. Win prizes!

  • Meet professionals who studied history and are using what they learned to change the world.

    Watch a sample recorded Q&A here

  • Share your own knowledge plus join sessions run by Fellows and alumni! Meet inspiring peers with shared interests; collaborate on projects; discover exciting new ideas.

  • Discord channel, paired 1:1s, and opportunities to get to know peers with different backgrounds but shared passions. Share opportunities or enthuse about your niche historical hobbies.

Want a more detailed sense of what the Fellowship really looks like before you sign up?

Meet the speakers & staff

Leaf is supported by a wide range of experts, facilitators, and alumni to help support the growth of our Fellows.

Rutger Bregman

Bestselling author & historian

  • Rutger’s books Humankind (2020) and Utopia for Realists (2017) were both New York Times Bestsellers and have been Giving What We Can translated in more than 40 languages. They take a historical perspective on human nature. He’s a member of Giving What We Can and his TED talk on poverty has been viewed 1.6 million times. He has a Master’s Degree in history from Utrecht University.

Lara Thurnherr

Rhyme (history research consultancy)

  • Lara studied History and Public Law at the University of Bern. She is the founder of Rhyme, a history research consultancy focused on answering historical questions relevant to the challenges today of governing AI. She is also a Tech Diplomacy Affiliate at the Simon Institute for Longterm Governance, and recently worked on research for the grant-making foundation Open Philanthropy.

Waqar Zaidi

LUMS & Centre for Governance of AI

  • Waqar is an Associate Professor of History at Lahore University of Management Sciences and a Research Affiliate at GovAI. His research is focused on the history of technology and international relations in the twentieth century. His first book, on Aviation, Atomic Energy, and the Search for International Peace 1920-50, was published in 2021. He holds a BA in Physics from Oxford University, and an MSc and PhD in History of Science, Technology, and Medicine from Imperial College London.

Jamie Harris

Leaf

  • After graduating with a first-class degree in history from the University of Oxford, Jamie taught history for several years at a Sixth Form college. He then joined the think tank Sentience Institute where he researched past social movements and academics to draw strategic insights for present-day advocates. He has co-founded and led multiple nonprofits providing impact-focused advice.

Joe Mansour

Foreign Office (UK civil service)

  • Joe has a first class degree in history from Oxford University. He explored working directly with nonprofits tackling poverty or protecting democracy and human rights, but soon came to focus on a policy career. He has worked in 5 different UK government departments and is currently an Energy Diplomat at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

Charlotte Darnell

Centre for Effective Altruism

  • Charlotte studied History and Modern Languages at the University of Exeter. Charlotte has done operations work for various organisations seeking to build a better future, including Leaf. She has organised a conference in Oxford exploring such themes. She works full time at the Centre for Effective Altruism; she first joined their events team, and has now transitioned to being a Community Liaison.

The opportunities don’t end after 5 weeks

Alumni are being supported to pursue projects like:

  • Research into “Learning from war: What were the main risk factors for conflict during the Cold War and how can we reduce future risks?”

  • A podcast investigating effective altruism — what it is, how it can be applied, and what its limitations are

  • A new fundraising initiative, Youth United for Good, coordinating an inter-school non-uniform day to raise money for GiveWell-recommended cost-effective charities


Plus taking follow-up opportunities* offered by Leaf like:

  • Weekly accountability calls to create a long-term career plan

  • Virtual work experience with a high-impact nonprofit

  • Up to £1,000 in grant funding plus mentorship for projects

*These follow-ups are applied for or earned, not guaranteed!

Plus, you’ll still have access to the online learning platform, the Discord channel, and your new friends after the 5 weeks end.

How our last cohort helped

  • "Perhaps the most impactful program I’ve ever done, both philosophically and historically. I was able to ponder on how to maximise my impact for the future, having learnt of new methodologies to tackle issues which permeate society today. Moreover, I was able to discuss these topics in profound depth through weekly discussion calls with like-minded fellows. The fellowship is easily the best online opportunity I've encountered."

    Ibrahim

  • "I have been introduced to such a wide range of ideas that I had never even heard about before. I have always thought that I wanted to change things for the better but I am now interested in the idea of doing good that will sow seeds for the long term future. For example, I’m exploring how current AI developments are at risk of dismantling property rights and personal liberties in the future. I liked the aspects of independence that allowed me to explore things I was interested in and start up new conversations."

    Jessica

  • "History to shape history has vastly exceeded my expectations. It opened up rabbit holes that I didn’t expect to be interested in, such as the history of totalitarian states compared to modern democracies. Exploring the value of research in improving the world was insightful; although I was working on a project before, I decided to change my question. It also got me thinking of other options outside History and led to exploring Economics as not just a GCSE, but maybe something I want to do in the long term."

    Tosin

  • "The stories of watchmen who prevented the possibility of a nuclear war encouraged me to have more faith in the careers I intend to pursue. These might be extreme examples but it suggests that we can really drive positive change! The programme has also been fun; I made new friends that I'd like to keep in touch with, and it made me excited to explore niche historical topics at university."

    Melodi

  • "I found the ideas of longtermism and effective altruism really interesting and they changed my mind over the best ways to have an impact. I’m planning to do a deep dive into research on extinction risks and post it on a blog, in order to use my love for history to make a difference."

    Anjali

  • "I found the ‘8 rules of thumb for useful historical study’ particularly helpful. I have taken these forward into my independent study, which is oriented at the role of AI in governmental structures in the future. But the best thing was the group discussion calls — I've had the opportunity to discuss with like-minded, intelligent people about fascinating concepts and I feel like I have built a little community of the people I've met."

    Yonal

  • It helped me realise that career choice might be crucial in determining how much impact my future will have. I’m considering different degrees now, to avoid limiting my potential. Besides, the course was fun — it was interesting to meet new people who share the same interests from other walks of life. And it was genuinely enlightening meeting working adults in fields I am interested in with relatable experience.

    Leo

Where Leaf alumni are now

Oxford University

Cambridge University

Harvard University

London School of Economics

Secure a place in 15 minutes

The first stage of your application is a short written form (~15 minutes). We mostly ask for basic info about you to check eligibility. At this point, we will either invite you to participate as an Independent Learner with access to our platform for self-paced exploration, or proceed with your application for the full fellowship.

If you are invited to the final stage (~45 minutes), you’ll answer a small number of thought-provoking, open-ended questions relevant to the topics of the programme, plus a series of rapid-fire, brain teaser questions. (There’s no interview!)

More questions? See our “FAQ” page.