What are ICMA’s Global Awards?

ICMA offers a unique annual opportunity to its members for global knowledge exchange. Through the Tranter-Leong Fellowship and the John Garvey Scholarship, four ICMA members will have the opportunity of a lifetime to grow as local government professionals and leaders in the profession.

For years, ICMA members have traveled to locations in all the continents in pursuit of an international perspective on the experiences and challenges shared by local governments worldwide. These opportunities for personal and professional development not only broaden the leadership skills of ICMA members and equip them with innovative strategies for tackling complex and relatable issues, they create opportunities for global collaboration and relationship building. This peer-to-peer interaction helps to strengthen communities around the world, in direct alignment with ICMA’s core mission and values. 

What’s in Store This Year

Genesis Gavino, chief of staff, Austin, Texas, will travel to the Philippines to assist the city government of Iligan in their transition toward integrating proactive disaster response and emergency management strategies into their governance model. In the six months leading up to her departure, she will work directly with local government staff and community stakeholders in Iligan to develop resiliency frameworks. Emergency management and resilience integration are vital tools for good governance. 

Alongside the rapid growth that the Philippines are experiencing, there is an increasing demand for planning systems and community stability to prevail through times of change. Gavino looks forward to building on her experiences from her ongoing support of global municipal partnerships and returning to Austin with new insights on how resilience governance translates across borders. 

“I’m excited to deepen resilience efforts alongside Iligan City and build on the momentum we created earlier this year when Austin hosted a YSEALI fellow. [The Tranter-Leong Fellowship] is a meaningful opportunity to champion professional local government management and strong governance practices shaped by my experience with ICMA.”

Mohideen Faisal Buharie, transportation engineer, California Department of Education, will work with the Federation of Sri Lankan Local Government Authorities (an ICMA strategic ally) and the Arugam Bay town council to establish a framework for a localized road network asset inventory. He will build on his years of municipal experience and passion for community and public service to support Arugam Bay’s efforts in tracking pavement rehabilitation needs and increasing safety in high-volume tourist areas by creating a sustainable asset management model. He looks forward to leveraging his technical expertise and learning from an international perspective, returning home with long-lasting, cross-border insights that will inform his daily work.

“I am deeply honored and sincerely grateful to receive the Tranter-Leong Fellowship. I extend my heartfelt appreciation to ICMA, the Global Engagement Committee, and the Tranter-Leong Fund for this meaningful recognition, as well as to the ICMA Fellowship partner, Federation of Sri Lankan Local Government Authorities, in Arugam Bay, Sri Lanka. I am especially inspired by the legacy of Revan A. F. Tranter and Eugene Y. Leong and their commitment to advancing professional development and public service. This recognition is both a great honor and a responsibility that I will carry with humility and gratitude. Thank you for your confidence in me and for this wonderful opportunity.”

Adib Altallal, utilities engineer, Tukwila, Washington, will travel to Australia and focus his fellowship on local government leadership, utility management, infrastructure planning, and community engagement. He will participate in an exchange with the Maroondah city council, attend a professional conference in Perth, and shadow a regional water utility organization in Victoria. He is eager to return home with lessons learned and with momentum to continue to support future collaboration and global knowledge exchange between local government professionals and municipalities globally. 

"I am incredibly grateful to ICMA for the Tranter-Leong Fellowship and for continuing to create opportunities that connect local government professionals across the world. I am especially excited to learn alongside Australian local government and utility leaders I first connected with through my involvement with ICMA, and to bring those lessons and relationships back to my own community."

Sara Hutson, strategic initiatives manager, Bend, Oregon, will participate in the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators (CAMA) 2027 Annual Conference in St. John’s, Newfoundland. CAMA is a strategic ally of ICMA and is dedicated to improving municipalities across Canada. Hutson looks forward to learning from experienced local government professionals across North America to develop her own leadership skills and strategies and to return home with practical tools for understanding how international municipalities build meaningful partnerships, create inclusive processes, and address shared community challenges.  

“I’m honored to be a 2026 John Garvey Scholarship recipient and grateful to ICMA for this opportunity. I’m excited to connect with peers from across Canada and experience St. John’s through the lens of a local government practitioner, gaining new perspectives and insights that I can bring back to my community.”

Interested in Learning More or Becoming Globally Involved?

Share your globally minded ideas, knowledge, and interest with international conference participants and like-minded ICMA members at the ICMA 2026 Annual Conference in Long Beach, California. The ICMA Annual Conference is the premier local government gathering for local government professionals worldwide. The conference will offer a variety of programming aimed at highlighting ICMA’s global initiatives and engagement efforts, connecting colleagues from municipal associations and local governments around the world, and exploring real-world international governance challenges and solutions through events like the Global Engagement Committee Forum, the Good Governance Global Meetup, and the Global Reception. While the format for each of these events is still being finalized, you can add the events to your conference schedule today.

The Tranter-Leong Fellowship will open for applications in 2027. The award can be used toward a proposed project outside of the applicant’s home country involving research, job shadowing in a host community, teaching, relationship building, among other initiatives. Members with questions can email Sophie Weyn, program manager, at sweyn@icma.org.