Impact

Our mission and work impact two important human rights of disadvantaged youth: (a) the right to work and (b) right to education. Any human rights approach focuses on the dignity of those in poverty by empowering them, so they can gain self-esteem and skills, which will help them to be respected and valued in their community. Here is how our current projects impact youth:

The India program, our oldest, impacts youth below the poverty line, (as identified by the Government of India) by empowering them with ‘ready to work’ skills through online modules. These employable skills match the needs of employers and youth become attractive candidates for employment. We research and provide skills for local jobs so youth do not have to migrate to big cities and become the ‘working poor’. These skills give them the right to decent work that is safe and fairly paid. Underprivileged and vulnerable girls are impacted the greatest. Our online modules are easily accessible in India which has the 2nd largest base of internet users in the world.

Youth in remote areas, who do not have the resources or ability to travel to gain learning, access our courses at local NGOs and charities.

In Canada, we currently have two projects:

  • Building financial literacy and cyber-security skills among middle school children, especially in among marginalized communities in Peel.
  • We have partnered with a remote, First Nation community in Ontario, to work to end the cycle of poverty by empowering young teen mothers and their children with education and skills. The community has identified the inability of local youth to access training and employment as a root-cause of poverty.

In Africa, we provide mobile content on cell phones through Facebook’s Internet.org initiative. We are, through this initiative, able to reach users who do not incur data charges in accessing the content we provide. In an era where mobile phone penetration levels are extremely high, this greatly enhances our reach and impact.

Young lives have been transformed by our programs. The impact is not limited to skill development. The biggest impact is seen in the enhanced self-esteem of youth. The confidence gained through our courses is evident as graduating learners take initiatives to make their lives even better, with jobs, higher education, or aspiring for more progress in life.

Learner Speak