End caste discrimination in Nepal: Pabitra Badi is a role model for the LGBTQ movement in Nepal and for members of the Badi sub-caste, which is still stigmatized for having practiced prostitution under the caste system. AP will help Backward Society Education (BASE), our long-time partner in Central Nepal, to empower embattled minorities like the Badi and support inspiring advocates like Pabitra. AP is inviting applications from students to work at BASE this summer. Click here for a recent article on caste and child marriage.

Support survivors of forced marriage in Uganda through embroidery: Judith Adong is one of several talented fiber artists who have used embroidery to rebuild their lives after escaping from years of brutal treatment by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in Northern Uganda. The survivors have told their stories through embroidery and formed an association, Women in Action for Women (WAW) led by Victoria Nyanjura, seen seated. AP will support three income-generating projects with WAW in 2025: a) sell butterfly tea towels designed by WAW members; b) exhibit and auction butterfly quilts made from WAW designs through a third Sister Artists quilt challenge; and c) raise funds for a WAW tailoring business. A Peace Fellow will support these WAW initiatives in Gulu and also work on WASH at GDPU. Interested students should apply through this page.

Eradicate malaria and improve personal and community health in tribal villages of India: Pratima Jani collects leaves from a Neem tree near her village in Odisha state, India. Neem trees are at the heart of a 2025 program led by Jeevan Rekha Parishad (“Lifeline”) to protect vulnerable tribal women in 12 villages against malaria and other threats to their health. The program will help women to produce and sell oil from the Neem tree for use as a mosquito repellent and mobilize self-help groups to improve menstrual hygiene and sanitation in their villages. Students interested in a peace fellowship should apply through this page.

Support composting and gardening by women in the informal settlements of Nairobi: The Shield of Faith Association helps members to compost food waste in their homes and produce fertilizer for use on kitchen gardens. The 20 members composted over 5 tons of waste in 2024 and  introduced their model into a school for the first time. Several members have also set up composting “hubs” for neighbors and vendors that they hope will lead to a larger process of community change. The photo shows Stella Makena, the SOF coordinator, with Valine Nyarangi and Valine’s daughter Keilah, 2, at work in Valine’s kitchen garden. Students interested in a peace fellowship should read the blogs of 2023 Fellow Caitlin Mittrick, watch our video and apply through this page.

Use WASH to improve hygiene and raise the enrollment of girl students in Ugandan schools: Last year the Gulu Disabled Persons Union (GDPU) and AP installed a WASH package (accessible toilets, handwashing stations, changing room, and incinerator) for over 400 girl students at the Kulu Opal school in Gulu District. The photo shows parents digging the latrine pit. GDPU hopes to install WASH at four more schools in 2025-2026, produce Clean Wash soap for schools, and monitor WASH in all beneficiary schools. AP will recruit one Peace Fellow to work from Gulu at GDPU and Women in Action with Women in 2025.  Interested students should watch our video and read the blogs of 2024 Peace Fellow Julia Davatzes.

Ensure that the needs of conflict survivors in Nepal are addressed in any transitional justice agreement: AP will work with Ram Bhandari (photo), who founded the Network of families of the Disappeared Nepal (NEFAD) after his own father disappeared during the conflict. Ram is seen here addressing the UN Security Council – a rare honor for an NGO advocate. NEFAD lobbied hard for a new law that was passed by parliament on August 24, but implementation of the law has been bogged down in infighting and NEFAD expects to be very active this year. Students interested in a peace fellowship should apply through this page.

Support a family sickened by Agent Orange in Vietnam: the defoliant Agent Orange has taken a terrible toll on the Cao family in Quang Binh province, as it has on millions of other Vietnamese. All three children – Van, Xuan and Ngoc – were born with serious intellectual and physical disabilities. AP has raised $1,470 to purchase a cow for the family and will raise funds for another affected family in 2025. Read more about the program here. The project is managed by AP’s partner, the Association for the Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (AEPD). AP will recruit a Peace Fellow for AEPD in 2025 and interested students should apply through this page.

Help girls in Zimbabwe to resist early marriage by selling soap: Women Advocacy Project (WAP) trains girls in the under-served neighborhoods of Harare to make and sell their Clean Girl soap, with support from AP. The girls made and sold over 80,000 bottles of soap in 2024, generating about $54 a month for over 90 participants, including Rosemary Panashe (photo). Helped by the inspiring leadership of the program pioneers like Trish Makanhiwa, profiled in this article, not one of the 300+ participating girls has married under the age of 18 since the Clean Girl program began in 2019. Read more here and watch the video!

Make Clean Girl soap in the US and support education in Zimbabwe: AP helps high school students in the US to make and sell their own Clean Girl soap as a way to learn about child marriage in Africa and fund the education of WAP girls in Zimbabwe. Three school groups have participated since 2022, including students from the University School of Nashville, shown in the photo with their soap.  The three teams have raised $2,855 – enough to pay for the schooling of over 30 girls in Zimbabwe. Interested students should contact us at DCOffice@advocacynet and watch these videos from the amazing soap-makers in Georgia and Virginia!

Compost food waste in American high schools: AP encourages climate advocacy by offering fellowships to inspiring young leaders like Emma Pautz, who launched composting at her school in Barrington, Rhode Island and is seen in the photo, and Bella Quiroa in Newport. Read how their advocacy is changing policy in their state. Working with students we also raised $20,000 for composting at the Lower Merion High School in Ardmore, Pennsylvania. Eventually, we hope to connect composting students in Kenya and the US. We welcome inquiries from interested students! Email DCOffice@advocacynet.org.

Sell embroidery and designs by family members of the disappeared in Nepal: AP has commissioned embroidered festival designs from Kushma Chaudhary, seen in the photo, and three other talented fiber artists who lost family members during the conflict in Nepal. We will produce tea towels from the designs for sale through our online store Southern Stitchers. We have sold over $19,000 worth of  embroidery by partners in Uganda, Nepal, Kenya and Mali since 2023. Order here while stocks last! Interested students should apply for a quilting fellowship through this page or email Bobbi Fitzsimmons at Bfitzsimmons@advocacynet.org.