The PRASAD Project is a global charitable organization, committed to uplifting the lives of economically disadvantaged women, children and families. Our programs in India, Mexico, and the U.S. impact thousands of people annually.<br><br>At PRASAD, we are fully invested in the people and communities we serve and wholly committed to their well-being and empowerment. PRASAD takes a holistic approach and works in harmony with the environment. Our programming is wide-ranging because these most vulnerable people face numerous hardships - malnutrition, lack of access to clean water and to economic and educational opportunities, to name a few - and addressing one need at a time is not enough. <br><br>Currently, we offer programs that include general and specialized medical and dental care, water security and sanitation, agriculture and environment, education, women's empowerment, and food security. Offered together, these programs empower individuals and families and create sustainable communities. <br>

The PRASAD Project envisions healthy communities, prospering in harmony with the natural environment

Source: Nonprofit submitted responses

Goal One: We are increasing our fund development staff and board membership to broaden our supporter base and increase organization awareness and are providing support to our programs and licensees.

Goal Type: Invest in the capacity of our organization (financial, management, technical, etc.).

Goal Two: We plan to stabilize and expand the capacity of existing programming while evaluating new needs based on recent assessments of the communities we serve.

Goal Type: Grow, expand, scale or increase access to the existing programs and services.

Goal Three: We are working on new programs to address health issues, food insecurity and economic instability.

Goal Type: New program(s) based on observed changes in needs among our constituencies/communities served.

Describe an investment in leadership

We hired a consultant who provides individual coaching to the Executive Director and the Board. The consultant has helped to accelerate growth and learning so our team can lead at the next level. The Executive Director has also invested time in webinars to keep abreast of trends and understand common sector challenges and response tactics. She is also developing a 3-year vision plan that brings PRASAD to the next level by supporting program expansion and building organizational capacity. The Board has also set leadership goals, has restructured, and is working to identify needed skills and networks for board expansion. The Board and Executive Director are also working with Licensee Boards and staff to help build their capacity.

This organization mobilizes for mission in the following ways:

• Strategic Partnerships

• Networks of Collective Impact Efforts

• Raising Awareness

• Community Building

• Policy Advocacy

What are this organization’s external mobilizaton efforts?

We have developed new partnerships that have helped our organization deliver new services, enhanced its community profile, and served as a foundation for future collaboration. PRASAD is a member of the Sullivan County Public Health Advisory Board and we contribute to relief efforts in the community. We have also partnered with Garnet Health Care and COVID Courage in NYC. A robust social media/digital communications program is in place. In 2020, we live-streamed a successful virtual event. Also, we ran a donor survey focused on donor experience as relates to our communications. We partnered with ImpactMatters and the Kellogg School at Northwestern University for a pro bono student impact measurement study of our programs in India. We collaborated with Columbia University SIPA students, who chose our Women’s Self-Help Groups as a subject of their CapStone project. In NYS, we actively advocate for and support policies that will improve access to health care services.

The PRASAD Project and its programs experienced challenges at a new, heightened scale. Despite the destabilization and uncertainty, there were things we could do, like continuing to regularly assess program needs and ensuring financial and organizational flexibility with scenario planning aligned our mission and vision. We had to shutter or scale back many of our essential programs for a period, to focus on health care, food security, and economic recovery. In the U.S., we reopened our children’s mobile dental clinic following the CDC mandated extra precautions to ensure the safety of our patients and staff. PRASAD provided Protective Personal Equipment (PPE) to Garnet Health Care in Sullivan County and also to healthcare workers in New York City in partnership with COVID Courage. Sullivan County, one of NYS’s poorest, has been severely impacted by these difficult times. PRASAD supported the Federation for the Homeless by donating a commercial freezer and providing 1,800 meals to low-income families. We also donated clothes, food, and toys for children during the 2020 Winter Holiday. In India, we collaborated with members of our Women’s Self-Help Groups to make and distribute 1,300 masks throughout the villages. Also, PRASAD used its extensive network of women in the region to understand how the needs could be met in a safe way. Our volunteers and staff covered 46 villages distributing food packages to approximately 14,000 people and have served 12,000 hot meals to date. In Mexico, volunteers provided food for tourism day workers who completely lost their sources of income. The pandemic brought people's essential needs into sharp focus, such that we turned our attention to food and income security, temporarily narrowing our programming in India, pivoting it in Mexico, and broadening it in the U.S. through partnerships. As we move forward in a new operating paradigm, we will carry these lessons with us.