A Survival Tool In Transgender Community, Breast Binders Are In High Demand

In Washington, D.C., where only 27% of Black students read at grade level, the nonprofit Everybody Wins DC launched Power Readers, a program that pairs elementary students with volunteer mentors for weekly one-on-one reading sessions. Operating in six schools, the program allows students to choose their own books, receive personalized attention during lunchtime sessions, and access free, culturally relevant reading materials. J.O. Wilson Elementary recorded more than a 10% increase in literacy rates between 2022 and 2024 after implementing the program.

Lawrence Hall’s transitional housing in Chicago is a safe space for members of the LGBTQ+ community in the foster care system to live and receive wraparound support while they get ready for the next step in their lives, whatever that may be. Many of the staff also identify as LGBTQ+ and help them learn to cook, keep a job, or answer questions about things like hormone therapy and gender-affirming care.

Gods Closet runs clothing popup shops for transgender and gender nonconforming people in Chicago. All of the clothing is free and the organizers create a safe, celebratory environment with stylists, photographers, and music.

The nonprofit Bryant’s Bridge gives LGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness a place to live and connects them to health insurance and job and life training to help them transition into adulthood successfully.

Angel Rider Wheelchairs provides free wheelchairs to children across Rwanda. The group constructs and distributes the wheelchairs themselves and coordinates with the National Council of Persons with Disabilities, who provides a list of children nominated to receive one. Access to the wheelchairs have changed the quality of life for many of the children, allowing them to attend school and other social activities for the first time in their lives. The non-profit has donated over 2,000 wheelchairs in the last five years.

Twenty high school students enrolled in Territory, an urban design nonprofit, produced a zine and their own quality of life report for West Austin, where many of the students live. The students conducted interviews, surveys, and gathered community input to create the report. It includes sections on public safety, youth empowerment, and mental health.

Founded in 2000, Hopeworks provides coding and computer training combined with connections to internship and job opportunities to youth in Camden. The larger aim of the organization is to cultivate "'a positive, healing atmosphere' capable of helping participants break the cycle of poverty and violence."

The Detroit Food Academy brings together local educators, chefs, and business owners to teach youth and young adults in the city business and entrepreneurship skills through cooking lessons and opportunities. The program is instructing students “how to think about entrepreneurship, equity and production in the food industry, and getting a wide range of experiences to help them understand food sovereignty.”

Two Detroit-based entrepreneurs are determined to help minority youth become stakeholders in community real estate development. Targeting communities that experience gentrification, Project Destined empowers young students with knowledge about the real estate profession, information that is often passed down through families instead of classroom lessons. "It's not a talent gap, it's an information gap," one of the founders emphasizes.

Using a daily soccer practice as a structure, a nonprofit in a remote village in India is teaching girls about gender equality and health and life skills.