Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation

People always ask us how we measure impact. It’s actually the easiest question to answer because we measure through the only lens that matters — lives impacted. Our newly released 2023 Annual Report showcases example after example of people and communities changed for good and the organizations and leaders who have driven that change. It tells a powerful story of what is possible when people lean into problems, not away from them, and when passion, empathy, and belief in something better drive human focus. This is what impact looks like. We hope you will feel as inspired as we do by these hundreds of organizations and people working day and night to make a difference in the lives of others. Read our 2023 Annual Report: https://lnkd.in/gCBcXDrX

Food is at the heart of many holiday traditions. Yet, amid these celebrations, there is often the unfortunate byproduct of food waste, leading to unnecessary resource loss and environmental strain. With over 3 million meals rescued and delivered to those in need, Replate, a DRK Foundation portfolio organization, is proving there is a simple solution to prevent food loss. Through their online platform, Replate enables food-serving businesses — like grocery stores, restaurants, and corporate cafeterias — to easily schedule pickups of their surplus food. These meals are then delivered to communities facing food insecurity — increasing food access while reducing waste, decreasing carbon emissions, and saving water. Unlike traditional models that primarily handle pantry items with longer shelf lives, Replate’s technology focuses on rescuing fresh, perishable meals — the largest source of food waste. Catalyzed by their new partnership with Cisco, Replate is now able to track current and future surpluses with greater precision, maximizing their efficiency as a food rescue organization. “My hope and dream is that food rescuing can become the new norm when tackling food waste. We need to build technology that can help businesses — in fact, any entity that has surplus food — to donate the food, and for that food to end up with the people who need it,” says Maen Mahfoud, founder and CEO of Replate. “Food is not meant to be wasted, it’s meant to be shared.” Watch their feature on BBC StoryWorks to learn more: https://lnkd.in/gMt-Eta4

Since 2009, two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and columnist at The New York Times, Nick Kristof, has written an annual “holiday gift guide” column to raise the profiles of impactful organizations solving the issues covered in his journalism. Included in this year’s column are Muso and Crisis Text Line, two DRK portfolio organizations expanding access to healthcare and mental health resources to save lives. Through government adoption of their rapid care model and community health worker programs, Muso has directly and indirectly reached over 4.5 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa with care during their earliest moments of need — dramatically reducing mortality rates and accelerating access to care for all. And, through their free, 24/7 text-based platform and a network of trained counselors, Crisis Text Line has provided critical mental health support to more than 5.8 million people globally — offering a scalable model for global mental health crisis intervention. Read the column “Gift Ideas That Push Back the Darkness” in The New York Times to learn more about the Kristof Impact Initiative and the organizations bringing light to those who need it most: https://lnkd.in/gDPTB-8h Ari Johnson Dena Trujillo

This week, Nature Magazine, the world’s leading science journal, published a compelling article on the transformative role of community health workers in expanding global access to mental health care. We’re proud to see Friendship Bench Zimbabwe, Shamiri Institute, and StrongMinds — three DRK portfolio organizations — highlighted as pioneers of community-based care in Africa. Through lay counselors and peer-led support groups, these organizations are reshaping the future of mental health care, and have supported over 1.3 million people with accessible, culturally relevant resources to foster individual and community healing. Read the article: https://lnkd.in/gbZP-Raq Dixon Chibanda Sean Mayberry Tom Osborn

Today, the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, through the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), announced it has awarded a catalytic grant to DRK Foundation to accelerate the growth of social impact entrepreneurship in Africa. Over the next four years, the Foundation and its partners, The Amahoro Coalition and GrowthAfrica Foundation, will find and support a total of 140 new social impact entrepreneurs over the next four years across six African countries. This partnership builds upon DRK’s existing impact in Africa: In 2024, more than a quarter of DRK Foundation’s portfolio organizations reported serving constituents in countries across Africa, and collectively, these organizations have impacted more than 130 million lives across the continent. "Africa stands on the brink of substantial global growth,” says Kanini Mutooni, DRK’s Senior Managing Director for Africa. “This project embodies our commitment to fostering transformative change and expanding support for local founders across Africa who are tackling some of the continent's toughest challenges. We are now poised to not only champion emerging social entrepreneurs but also foster impactful collaborations that will undoubtedly reshape the future and the trajectory of the continent.” Learn more: https://lnkd.in/ga_KMRUr

Climate TRACE is a global coalition — including DRK portfolio organizations OceanMind, WattTime.org, Earth Genome, and Open Supply Hub — harnessing the power of AI to track global emissions with unprecedented detail and speed. Co-founded by Al Gore and WattTime CEO Gavin McCormick, Climate TRACE is creating a unique, comprehensive inventory of the exact sources of harmful emissions to dramatically accelerate sustainability efforts. Last Friday at the 29th United Nations Climate Change Conference, Gavin and former Vice President Gore unveiled Climate TRACE’s latest dataset, which, for the first time, provides monthly emissions data for every country and major individual source of emissions in the world. This openly available dataset includes estimated emissions from over 660 million assets — allowing anyone, anywhere to enact meaningful and informed climate action. Explore the dataset: https://lnkd.in/g79gSi4x Nick Wise Steve McCormick Glen Low Natalie F. Grillon

FreeFrom, a DRK Foundation portfolio organization, is creating a world where every survivor of gender-based violence has the wealth and financial security to ensure their individual, intergenerational, and community healing and thriving. Through more than $2.6 million generated through their social enterprise, Gifted, and over $5 million in direct cash assistance, FreeFrom has provided pathways to long-term safety for nearly 175,000 survivors. Set in Los Angeles during the holiday season, FreeFrom’s SURVIVOR MADE is a documentary directed by an all-survivor crew that immerses viewers into the lives of six dynamic survivors as they pursue big entrepreneurial dreams, nurture vibrant family lives, and work toward a collective holiday sales goal. Premiering next Friday, November 22nd, SURVIVOR MADE unveils the transformative power of FreeFrom, and the potential that emerges when survivors are empowered with resources and opportunity. Watch the trailer: https://lnkd.in/gKwZAem5 Sonya Passi

In India, 800 million people are underemployed, with 230 million living in poverty and earning just $2.15 per day. Karya — meaning "work that gives one dignity" in Sanskrit — offers a solution by bringing dignified, digital work to rural Indians. Through their innovative app, rural workers can complete simple online tasks and receive compensation nearly 20x the minimum wage in India. To date, Karya, a DRK Foundation portfolio organization, has created a critical pathway out of poverty for 50,000 gig-workers who have executed over 40 million digital tasks. In recognition of their impactful work and commitment to building an AI-ready workforce, Google.org, the philanthropic branch of Google, has awarded Karya a $1 million grant to scale their solution globally, creating greater access to inclusive, AI-based economic opportunities.    “At Karya, we believe that low-income communities around the world are not only excellent beneficiaries of AI, but they are also excellent builders of AI. We want to use AI to bring earning and learning opportunities to low-income communities across the Global South," says Manu Chopra, co-founder and CEO of Karya. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gG8MkYiW

We’re excited to see BarefootLaw and Rwanda Men's Resource Centre (RWAMREC), two DRK Foundation portfolio organizations, featured in Devex’s 19 Local Organizations to Watch list. BarefootLaw and RWAMREC — both spearheaded by leaders deeply embedded within the communities they serve — exemplify the transformative power of investing in proximate leaders: BarefootLaw, based in Uganda and led by Gerald Abila, is pioneering the evolution of legal tech in Africa to equip people with the knowledge and means to enforce their own rights. To date, BarefootLaw has served over 1 million people with free legal support, empowering them to take agency of their legal problems and be the lead in resolving them. RWAMREC, based in Rwanda and led by Fidele Rutayisire, is engaging men in their communities to reduce gender-based violence, advance child and maternal health, and promote economic mobility. Through their evidence-driven programs and advocacy, RWAMREC has reached nearly 700,000 people, improving gender equality and family outcomes.

Driven by the mission to serve 30 million children by 2030, Labhya, a DRK Foundation portfolio organization, has pioneered the creation of the world’s largest — and India’s first — at-scale well-being programs for vulnerable children. Labhya’s daily, state-mandated classes are currently empowering 2.4 million vulnerable children across 22,000 public schools in India to cope with poverty, unlocking their full potential as learners. In recognition of Labhya’s pivotal role in championing children's well-being across India, Richa Gupta, co-founder and CEO of Labhya, has been named a recipient of the 2024 Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Awards. Launched in 2013, the Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Awards honor Ali’s lifelong humanitarianism and celebrate a new generation of social changemakers. Richa receives this award alongside Shaquille O'Neal, Bryan Stevenson, Nile Rodgers, and other influential changemakers committed to creating a more just and compassionate world. Congratulations, Richa, and the entire Labhya team. Learn more about the awards: https://lnkd.in/gFmwEQ6J