Current Projects

HOPE worldwide is a US-based, global charity that operates at a grassroots level around the world with a simple statement of vision: "Bringing hope. Changing lives." We work with impoverished communities around the world, helping them to overcome the challenges that are most important to them in their day-to-day lives. The needs differ from country to country, but in all places people want the opportunity to make a better life for themselves. We try to provide them with those opportunities through better health and education for their children and mothers, and training for young people.

Wal-Mart's Ethical Standards Team approached us in 2006, asking us to develop a program that could impact the communities of supplier factory workers. Together we identified five areas where there is a strong concentration of factories. In each area we have established a program, in partnership with local factories, local government, and Wal-Mart, that addresses educational gaps for the children and provides training for young adults. The goal is to educate and train at least 1,000 children and 1,000 young people per year, with the vast majority of these people coming from the factory workers' families. Already all five centers are up and running (in Chennai, Bangalore, Mumbai, Panipat, and Moradabad), and we've enjoyed a very positive response from the Wal-Mart team, the suppliers, and local communities.

I've personally been impressed with how genuine the people on the ethical standards team are – they really care about people and are very down to earth. They visited a local school we are running for the children of ragpickers in New Delhi, and all of them took a real interest in the people they were interacting with. The Vice President of Ethical Standards has visited many cities in India and was very keen that we work with the poorest places from which merchandise for sale by Wal-Mart is sourced. We work with many partners and we are really excited when we find a partner whose heart for the poor is the same as ours.

We believe this new initiative of helping factory worker communities is one that is highly complementary to what the ethical standards team already does. We are glad to participate because we have the tools to help many people make a better life for themselves.