In This World Cup, the Goal Is a Better Life

In New York and across eleven other cities in the United States, a non-profit organization called Back On My Feet leads early morning runs (starting at 5:30am) with members overcoming homelessness and the volunteers who choose to join them. In the course of twelve years, the organization helped over 7,500 members transition into permanent jobs and homes, with 83 percent of members maintaining employment and 70 percent maintaining housing. There are also physical health benefits including lower blood pressure, less dependence on nicotine, and a reduced BMI and obesity risk.

A soccer camp has given refugee children in the Washington region a home away from home. L.A.C.E.S. — Life And Change Experienced thru Sports — shares the fun of the sport and aims to build young people’s confidence and sense of community.

Covenant House is Philadelphia's only shelter for older adolescents who have run away, been victims of abuse, been sex trafficked or abandoned.

Ahead of the World Cup, Seattle organizations worked to find shelter for people living outside in the city’s Pioneer Square with a focus on connecting each person to the right type of housing or temporary shelter for them, not just whatever happened to be available. In all, the effort has helped 66 people get into shelter or housing, while 14 are still waiting to be placed.

In 2007, Moldova launched a National Strategy to reduce the number of children living in orphanages by providing more support to disadvantaged families, creating more inclusive education programs, and expanding the country’s foster care capacity. As of now, only about 700 children remain in orphanages.

After experiencing a high rate of drownings among children due to the number of rivers and ponds in the country, a non-profit organization in Bangladesh has been offering swim lessons to children in rural areas that are more susceptible to encountering dangerous waters. Since the program started, the rate has decreased nearly 50 percent while the confidence of the participants has increased.

There are thousands of children caught in the midst of the migrant crisis, and many of them end up without their parents or with a relative. To avoid placing migrant children in facilities that would be unable to give them specialized care, people are stepping up to serve as foster parents for the time being. The foster parents support the children's emotional well being and sense of self, and now foster aunts—forming a relationship without taking over care—are also emerging. These initiatives help ease the process of starting over in a new place, especially for children.

Denmark has developed an effective model for children's homes centered around community, safety, and low staff turnover. Could the setup work in the United Kingdom?

In Philadelphia, an HIV-prevention group has partnered with another youth-focused social services organization to connect patients experiencing homeless or housing insecurity with appropriate resources. By offering wellness and housing services in one location, the partnership is making accessing help a lot easier for the vulnerable populations they serve.

Youth Villages, a nonprofit started in Tennessee over 30 years ago has helped improve the lives of children who face difficulties in their homes while saving money on the child welfare system. Instead of immediately removing children from their problematic homes, Youth Villages works on building relationships with the parents and providing in-home support services to both the parents and the children to ensure that they have a successful future. Additionally, the organization supports foster kids who age out of the system, and has managed to place many children back with their families securely.