named programs · 6 · from sources
What they call their work
Communities of Practice (CoPs)
Country- or regional-level forums where grantee partners connect, share best practices, and address challenges in youth programming; currently seven active CoPs globally.
Empowering Her Voice
Initiative supporting young women and girls to recover and prosper from the negative effects of COVID-19, founded with support from the Ford Foundation.
Learning Exchanges
In-person events that bring together grantee partners to explore specific topics such as mental health, youth engagement, and organizational development, often resulting in public reports.
Meaningful Youth Engagement (MYE)
Systematic approach to involving young people in program design and leadership, deepened through CIFF support and shared at global convenings.
Technical Assistance and Capacity Strengthening
Provides ongoing technical support from EMpower program officers to strengthen grantee partners’ organizational and programmatic capacities, including monitoring, evaluation, learning, and child safeguarding.
YouthNet
Multi-partner project in Brazil and Colombia that equips marginalized youth with digital and employability skills, supported by the Internet Society Foundation.
activities · 3 groups
What they do
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Youth and Community Research Initiatives 1 activity
- Conducting research on youth development and philanthropyConducts global surveys, participatory research, and learning exchanges to assess the impact of programs on marginalized young people, particularly in mental health and wellbeing. Produces publications and shares findings with stakeholders to inform effective philanthropy.
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Flexible Grants to Grassroots Organizations 1 activity
- Funding long-term programs for marginalized young people in emerging marketsFunds local organizations in emerging market countries to support marginalized young people through long-term partnerships of up to 10 years, with a focus on health, education, and livelihoods. Since 2000, awarded $61.4 million in grants and supported 1,730 initiatives.
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Nonprofit Capacity Building Services 1 activity
- Providing capacity-building support to local partner organizationsDelivers flexible funding, technical assistance, communities of practice, and learning exchanges to strengthen the organizational capacity of local partner organizations. Supports monitoring, evaluation, and learning systems and has hosted over 82 events in the past year to share best practices.
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financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$11.80M
Contributions & grants$11.59M98%
Program service revenue$00%
Investment income$83K1%
Other revenue$124K
expenses
Total expenses$10.29M
Program expenses77%
Admin / overhead11%
Fundraising12%
Salaries & benefits$3.36M
Grants paid out$5.19M
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$7.67M
Cash$4.67M
Investments$0
Liabilities$2.00M
Net assets$5.67M
Liquid reserves5.4 mo
6 years on record · 2019–2024 · YoY revenue +37.5%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024
Who runs it
paid leadership · 4
| Name | Title | Hours/wk | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| CYNTHIA STEELE | PRESIDENT AND CEO | 40 | $298K |
| LARRY BLOOM | CFO | 40 | $161K |
| WILSON VENTURA | DIRECTOR OF FINANCE | 40 | $156K |
| DANIEL PARNETTI | SR PROGRAM MANAGER | 40 | $126K |
board members · 21
- AASHA PAI — BOARD MEMBER-HK
- ALEEM JIVRAJ — BOARD MEMBER-HK
- APARNA UPPALURI — BOARD MEMBER-HK
- AVON NEO — BOARD MEMBER-HK
- BASAK YAVUZ — BOARD MEMBER-US
- BETH FREDRICK — BOARD MEMBER-US
- EG MORSE — BOARD MEMBER-HK
- FINBAR COOKE — BOARD MEMBER-UK
- FLAVIO FIGUEIREDO — BOARD MEMBER-US
- HARSHID PATEL — BOARD MEMBER-HK
- JAMES DONALD — BOARD MEMBER-US
- JAMES ELLERY — BOARD MEMBER-UK
- JEREMY LLEWELYN — BOARD MEMBER-UK
- JESSICA KOH — BOARD MEMBER-HK
- JONATHAN BELL — BOARD MEMBER-UK
- KEVIN MURPHY — BOARD MEMBER-US
- KRISTIN CEVA — BOARD MEMBER-US
- LILIANA CASTILLO — BOARD MEMBER-UK
- LINDA WEISERT — BOARD MEMBER-UK
- LIZA GREEN — BOARD MEMBER-US
- MADDY FOO — BOARD MEMBER-HK
relationships · 43
Who they work with
- 106 partner organisations Partner — Partner organizations surveyed across 15 countries to inform the 2025 Global Mental Health Survey Report.
- 26 partner organizations Partner — Consulted to understand pandemic impacts on their programs and how funders can provide more effective support.
- Anglo American Foundation Partner — Collaborates with EMpower in Arequipa, Peru to strengthen civil society organizations and institutionalize youth leadership in mental health policy and system design.
- Antarang Foundation Partner — Grantee partner in India whose innovations were funded by EMpower and evolved into systems change models.
- Ares Charitable Foundation Funder — Supports EMpower’s programs empowering young women in India to achieve economic independence.
- Arisaig Partners Foundation Partner — Strategic partner and early supporter of EMpower’s participatory work with girls in India, helping leverage additional institutional funding.
- Board Directors Funder — Underwrite all Management, General and Fundraising expenses.
- Board Directors Government — Underwrite all Management, General and Fundraising expenses.
- Board Directors Government — Underwrite all management, general, and fundraising expenses to ensure 100% of public donations support youth programs.
- Board Directors Partner — Group that underwrites management, general, and fundraising expenses to ensure 100% of public donations go to programs
- Board Directors Partner — Underwrite Management, General and Fundraising expenses to ensure 100% of donations go to program support.
- Board Directors Partner — Underwrite all Management, General and Fundraising expenses
- CARE Partner — Collaborated to adapt EMpower’s Learning Community model for use in Bangladesh and Nepal, resulting in a shared toolkit on shifting social and gender norms.
- Cargill Partner — Longstanding partner working with EMpower to equip youth in emerging markets with 21st century skills for decent jobs across 5 countries.
- Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) Funder — Enables EMpower to embed Meaningful Youth Engagement across regions and within the broader philanthropic sector.
- Citi e for education Partner — Longstanding partner supporting EMpower for over a decade through proceeds from global trading to fund education-focused organizations.
- Co-Impact Partner — Supports EMpower’s systems change work to strengthen the ecosystem for marginalized youth in Indonesia.
- Dodge & Cox Funder — Provides unrestricted funding since 2025 to allow flexible resource allocation to areas of greatest need for marginalized youth.
- Ford Foundation Funder — Founding supporter of EMpower’s Empowering Her Voice initiative to uplift young women and girls recovering from the effects of COVID-19.
- Fundación Alvaralice Partner — Grantee partner in Colombia that co-leads the Online Regional Community of Practice in Latin America with EMpower.
- ICONIQ Impact Funder — Supports EMpower’s Youth Mental Wellbeing Co-Lab to strengthen mental health programming across 15 emerging market countries.
- JPMorganChase Foundation Partner — Partnered since December 2022 to equip marginalized young people in Argentina with skills for the global economy.
- Leadership Council Funder — Underwrites all Management, General and Fundraising expenses.
- Leadership Council Government — Underwrites all administrative and fundraising costs, enabling full donor contribution to go directly to youth empowerment programs.
- Leadership Council Partner — Group that underwrites management, general, and fundraising expenses to ensure 100% of public donations go to programs
- Leadership Council Partner — Underwrite Management, General and Fundraising expenses to ensure 100% of donations go to program support.
- Leadership Council Partner — Underwrites all Management, General and Fundraising expenses
- Leadership Council Partner — Underwrites all Management, General and Fundraising expenses.
- LinkedIn Network — Platform used to share media publications and coverage
- MFS Partner — Long-time corporate supporter contributing through event sponsorship and grantmaking with a focus on employee engagement.
+ 13 more
strategies · 5
How they approach the work
Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.
- Equity-Centered Targeting 597 orgsmethodology: equity-centered_targetingBy prioritizing girls, young women, and non-binary youth who face intersecting layers of discrimination, the organization addresses systemic exclusion and amplifies impact because targeting the most marginalized produces more just and far-reaching change.shared approach: Community-Led Systems Change →
- Long-Term Local Partnership Model 597 orgsmethodology: long-term_local_partnershipsBy building sustained, multi-year partnerships with local organizations and supporting them through flexible funding and tailored capacity strengthening, the organization produces deeper, contextually relevant impact because long-term engagement allows for trust, adaptive learning, and locally-led solutions to emerge.shared approach: Community-Led Systems Change →
- Participatory Research and Grantmaking 597 orgsmethodology: participatory_researchBy using participatory research and involving stakeholders—including young people and grantees—in shaping funding decisions, the organization generates more responsive, adaptive programming because inclusive knowledge generation leads to better alignment with community needs and leverages grassroots expertise.shared approach: Community-Led Systems Change →
- Youth-Led Development 80 orgsmethodology: youth_led_developmentBy centering young people from marginalized communities in decision-making, program design, and grantmaking processes, the organization increases program legitimacy and effectiveness because solutions shaped by lived experience are more relevant, sustainable, and transformative.shared approach: Youth-Led Change →
- Integrated Capacity Strengtheningmethodology: integrated_capacity_strengtheningBy combining technical assistance, Communities of Practice, and Learning Exchanges, the organization strengthens local organizations’ sustainability and effectiveness because holistic, peer-driven learning builds adaptive and resilient institutions.