Many of you know how deeply connected we feel to India: a country as fascinating as it is complex and controversial, and certainly one of the most spiritual places we have ever been fortunate enough to experience. It is a country that has given us so much, in different ways. For this reason, on the occasion of our wedding, we felt the desire to give back at least a small part of what we have received.

We both grew up being taught that education would be fundamental to the people we would choose to become. This is precisely what we have chosen to support through one of MAD’s projects, dedicated to young students in the final stages of their studies.

**fundraising goal:**

This fundraising campaign aims to provide young students with support, guidance and advice as they make the transition from school to the world of work, helping them to turn their years of study into new opportunities and to shape their own future with greater awareness.

For us, it is a simple way to give this celebration extra meaning: to mark a new beginning in our own lives, whilst at the same time helping to create new beginnings for someone else.

ONE CELEBRATION. MANY NEW BEGINNINGS. (F+P)

Empowering vulnerable children in India with 18 years of holistic support to break the cycle of poverty in a single generation.  

**About MAD**: Make A Difference (MAD) works with children in India who have no one else — children in shelter homes, orphanages, and protection homes who have lost their families or whose families could not keep them safe.

**MAD delivers an 18-year-long intervention to Children in Need of Care & Protection (CNCP) living in child care institutions in India, with the proven capability to enable them to break the cycle of poverty in a single generation.** 

Founded in 2006, MAD has pioneered **a community-powered social protection system t**hat mobilises the community to provide high-touch, highly scalable, age-appropriate progression mentoring — pairing children with trained volunteer mentors who commit a full year, showing up every week in a 2:5 volunteer-to-child ratio. The model **covers education support, emotional wellbeing, life skills, career guidance, and — critically — aftercare that extends from age 18 through to 28, staying with young adults through employment, housing, and independence.**

Without intervention, 92% of children in Indian shelter homes drop out of school by 18. With MAD, 96% pass their board exams. 90%+ continue into higher education (national average for shelter children: 8%). 91% are placed in jobs, college, or vocational training.

These outcomes are independently verified by 60 Decibels, which placed MAD in the top performance band across 115 Indian organisations (NPS: 94). 100% of surveyed beneficiaries reported improved quality of life.

MAD currently supports 8,200+ children across 20 Indian cities with 2,000+ trained volunteers. Cost per child: approximately $215/year ($18/month).

**Vision:** To end poverty in our lifetime.

**Mission:** Empower communities to take radical responsibility for their most vulnerable children and ensure they get the care and support needed to break the cycle of poverty permanently in a single generation.

**Goal:** Build a nationwide network of empowered communities that act as safety nets and springboards for children in need of care and protection. Through our proven Progression Mentoring Program, communities provide step-by-step guidance, empowering children to cross the life-changing empowerment threshold of $360 (INR 30,000) per month and leave poverty behind, permanently.

**Activities:** Progression Mentoring is MAD's award-winning 18-year-long, high-touch intervention model for children born into intergenerational poverty. It is a community-powered, volunteer-driven program for age-appropriate growth and development that enables young people in the community to self-organise to provide the required care, skill-building, and resources to the most vulnerable children around them.

One-on-one mentoring by young individuals, guiding children through critical life stages, has the highest success rate in healing from ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) and bridging the gap left by struggling parents. While it typically takes 7 generations for a family to escape poverty in India, with personalised mentoring, it can be achieved in just one.

**Program Delivery:** MAD delivers Progression Mentoring through a Community Organising model, empowering young leaders to mobilise community members into active citizens. Community Organisers form chapters of 200 volunteers and children, each providing weekly mentoring to 200 vulnerable children from the age of 10 to 28 at no cost to the child. Along with mentoring, we raise funds to meet all expenses a child needs to thrive — including costs towards education, specialised training, clothing, and housing once they reach adulthood and must leave child care institutions.

Our service-based leadership development curriculum, led by Community Organisers (COs), guides chapter leaders in sourcing, recruiting, onboarding, managing, and retaining mentors.

**Breaking the Cycle of Poverty at Scale**

*The Challenge:* India has the world's highest number of children in extreme poverty. 350,000 vulnerable children urgently need care and protection. Current systems reach less than 1% of those in need.

*Our Solution — Scaling for Nationwide Impact:* MAD is working towards doubling the number of children we support every year by enabling young people to set up and run healthy MAD chapters in their communities. Our World-Class Community Organiser Incubator creates the enabling environment for this to happen, and MADapp — our experiential leadership development tool — enables a young person to pick up high-value skills by setting up and running a MAD chapter.

*Our Impact (measured over the past 6 years):* → 90% of children reach college (vs. 15% national average) → 95% secure formal jobs within 6 months → Beneficiaries join the top 10% income bracket by age 28

**The Opportunity:** Partner with us to scale our proven model nationwide. Together, we can end intergenerational poverty in our lifetime.

Make A Difference 

1279515062

148788709

1524399316

control

167058366

1873740264

188270313

2052641908

2088874155

We are a nonprofit, so instead of charging fees we rely on the generosity of donors like you.

Choose a donation for Every.org

2140519340

2183212369

2269066361

2310049938

2477281247

2551237796

2880853031

2883383521

2899462032

316638097

3323783059

3381177838

338811242

3545345297

3705164611

3842241318

3934974605

4167807122

506613571

1287028958

1858760411

2104603717

225261647

2407957277

2729980760

2939442496

3440869557

4143568784

434649596

671754822

87081813

99361

1014384873

1112422858

153399038

2028390811

220342792

2266630408

2519810400

2539558839

2826465835

2843798242

2898624300

3259439560

339774024

3642494300

3902459442

4250940449

472232120

585491400

641510716

91682487

Make A Difference

ONE CELEBRATION. MANY NEW BEGINNINGS. (F+P)

Make A Difference

Donors

Become a supporter!

Become a supporter!

Make A Difference