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Diocese of Marsabit: The Catholic Diocese of Marsabit was established in November 1964 through the efforts of Bishop Charles Cavallera (Bishop of the Diocese of Marsabit 1964-81). The jurisdiction previously covered the two Counties of Northern Kenya namely: Marsabit and Samburu. In 1981 the Diocese got a new Bishop, the Rt. Rev. Ambrose Ravasi was in charge of the Diocese until 2006. Rt. Rev. Peter Kihara Kariuki the current Bishop was installed as the third Bishop of the Diocese in January 2007. Coverage: The Diocese covers the entire Marsabit County, which is the second largest in Kenya after Turkana and covers an area of 70,961.2 sq. km. Marsabit is classified as 100% Arid and Semi-Arid Land (ASAL). According to the 2019 census, the county has a population of 459,785. It has 17 Parishes served by clergy from different congregations and nationalities. The county is mainly inhabited by pastoralist communities with a mix of indigenous ethnic and sub-ethnic communities who profess Christianity, Islam, and African traditional religions. Caritas Marsabi: Catholic Diocese of Marsabit's development agency - Caritas Marsabit is a committed Faith Based Organization that supports integral human development of the pastoralists' communities in Marsabit County. The function of Caritas Marsabit aligns itself with the objectives of the pastoral department of the diocese, whose main function is evangelization. The organization's mission is to empower the people to know God and live in dignity and harmony. It envisions a people holistically empowered in line with the gospel values. W In her programs, Caritas Marsabit aims to facilitate, network, and empower the target communities through need-based multi-sectoral programs built on positive cultural and modern practices that utilize available local resources and modern technology. In all these, we are guided by core values of Love, Honesty, Stewardship, Accountability, and Community engagement. Target: Our target groups are largely pastoralists and agro-pastoralists who rely on agriculture which is a highly climate-sensitive sector. As such, the goal of promoting adaptation, mitigation, and poverty reduction is core in our program designs. The organization adopts the Kenya National Adaptation Plan (2015-2030) recommendation of mainstreaming climate change adaptation in all sectors. As such the organization undertakes short-term, medium-term, and long-term measures to build communities' resilience against climate change-related shocks. Our Programs: Caritas Marsabit has identified six strategic pillars that guide our work and help us address the diverse needs of the communities we serve. These pillars form the foundation of our programs and initiatives: 1. Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH): We strive to improve access to clean water, and proper sanitation facilities, and promote hygienic practices. Our WASH programs focus on constructing and rehabilitating water sources, building latrines, and conducting hygiene promotion activities to ensure healthier living conditions for the most vulnerable communities of Marsabit County. Caritas Marsabit Specific objectives under this program include; Potable water supply at the household and institution levels increased Empowered communities managing water resources effectively Improved access to safe sanitation and hygiene 2. Health and Nutrition: Caritas Marsabit is dedicated to improving the health and nutrition status of the people in the county. We provide healthcare services, promote preventive health practices, conduct awareness campaigns, and support nutrition programs to combat malnutrition and enhance overall well-being. The program`s specific objectives include: To reduce morbidity and mortality rates of children and mothers To promote preventive Health practices Promote advocacy on health issues 3. Sustainable Livelihoods: Caritas Marsabit supports the development of sustainable livelihood options for individuals and communities. We provide vocational training, entrepreneurship development, and access to microfinance to empower people to generate income, improve their economic situation, and reduce poverty. The specific objectives under this theme include: To promote diverse income-generating activities To enhance Livestock production and marketing 4. Justice and Peace (JP): We advocate for justice, equality, and peace in Marsabit. Our programs focus on promoting social cohesion, conflict resolution, human rights awareness, and strengthening community-based justice systems. We strive for a just and peaceful society where everyone can live harmoniously. The specific objectives under this program include: To promote communities` engagement in peace-building and conflict transformation processes. Increase public participation in good governance issues at local and national levels 5. Disaster Risk Reduction, Climate Change, and Natural Resource Management (DCC-NRM): We work towards building resilience and mitigating the impacts of disasters and climate change. Our efforts include disaster preparedness, climate change adaptation strategies, sustainable land and water management, and conservation of natural resources. The specific objectives include: Promote sustainable use of natural resources Increase communities` capacities to manage disaster Reduce communities` suffering during emergencies. 6. Institutional Development and Capacity Strengthening (IDCS): Caritas Marsabit places significant emphasis on Institutional Development and Capacity Strengthening as a pivotal pillar in its strategic plan. This commitment stems from the organization's recognition of deficiencies in organizational policies before 2015, wherein the Human Resources (HR) policy was merely a two-page document utilized across the entire diocese, lacking the depth necessary for effective management. The financial manual was brief, outlining minimal guidelines on procurement, and several essential policies were absent. During the preceding strategic period (2015-2020), Caritas Marsabit underwent substantial institutional growth. A series of self-assessments revealed longstanding institutional gaps, allowing the organization to formulate comprehensive work plans addressing these issues. Notably, the strategic initiative aligned with the Encyclical Deus Caritas Est, which emphasized the importance of professional competence among individuals caring for those in need. In response, Caritas Marsabit developed a robust HR policy, aligning with contemporary standards, and fostering improved recruitment processes, staff establishment, and retention. The implementation of a structured organogram, clear reporting lines, and detailed job descriptions for all positions significantly contributed to attracting and retaining competent staff. The positive shift is evident as Caritas Marsabit now attracts professionals from peer organizations, marking a departure from the high staff turnover experienced in the past. Financial management and operational procedures have undergone periodic improvements, earning approval from partners and auditors due to robust internal control systems. Annual organizational audits and project-specific audits enhance accountability, transparency, and quality management, culminating in organizational efficiency and a diverse resource base. Caritas Marsabit further refined logistics and procurement through a separate policy document. Manuals for fleet management, warehouse operations, anti-fraud, gender, child protection, sexual harassment, and community feedback and complaints handling mechanisms were developed and implemented. The organization's governance structure now includes a fully constituted board meeting bi-annually, providing oversight to different departments. As a member of the CHS Alliance, Caritas Marsabit has achieved a well-structured institutional system. Nevertheless, the organization acknowledges the need for continuous improvement in capacity. Collaborating with partners and donors, Caritas Marsabit has undertaken various capacity-strengthening initiatives. The organization engaged in discussions with Caritas Kenya on institutional capacity strengthening and shared learning with other diocesan Caritas Organizations. One significant proposal involved the assessment against the Caritas Internationalis Management Standards (CIMS) within the dioceses. Caritas Marsabit aims to conduct a self-assessment against CIMS in the new strategic plan, reflecting the organization's commitment to sustained growth and adherence to international standards. Here are three specific objectives for IDCS: Comprehensive Policy Framework: Develop and implement a comprehensive policy framework that addresses organizational deficiencies, ensuring adherence to contemporary standards and best practices. This includes revising and expanding the Human Resources (HR) policy, financial manual, and other essential policies to guide effective management, recruitment processes, and operational procedures. Professional Competence and Staff Retention: Enhance the professional competence of the organization's workforce by implementing a robust HR policy. This involves providing proper training for staff, improving recruitment processes, establishing clear reporting lines through the development of an organogram, and creating detailed job descriptions for all positions. The goal is to attract, retain, and empower competent professionals, reducing staff turnover and fostering a more stable and skilled workforce. Efficient Financial Management and Accountability: Strengthen financial management and accountability through the periodic improvement of operational procedures, and internal control systems, and the development of specific manuals for logistics, procurement, fleet management, and warehouse operations. Conduct routine audits, including annual organizational audits and project-specific

Rural Support Programmes Network (RSPN) Vision: Realising people's potential for economic and social empowerment. Mission: Strengthen RSPs to foster institutions of the people. The Rural Support Programmes Network (RSPN) is the largest civil society network of Pakistan representing nine Rural Support Programmes (RSPs). It was established in the year 2000 and has been operational in Pakistan for more than two decades now. RSPN vision is 'realising people's potential for economic and social empowerment' while mission is to 'strengthen and support Rural Support Programmes to foster people's institution'. RSPN is registered under the Companies Act, 2017 and registered as a Non-Profit Organisation (NPO) under clause (36) of Section 2 of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001. RSPN has also been duly evaluated and certified as a non-profit organisation by Pakistan Centre for Philanthropy (PCP). As a part of standard operating procedures RSPN has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Economic Affairs Division for the implementation of foreign funded projects which is valid till April 2024. RSPN serves as a critical national-level strategic platform for the RSPs and provides capacity-building support to RSPs besides taking a lead in advocating policy advocacy and developing donor linkages. It is geographically well positioned to work with the government and donors at the national level while maintaining an edge through its vast countrywide outreach to rural communities through its partner RSPs. RSPN also serves as a one window operation for large scale donor funded projects. Management Structure The Board of Directors is responsible for setting strategic direction, reviews and approves RSPN's Business Plans and develops guiding policies for RSPN. The Board is a mix of representatives from public and private sector institutions, academia, industry and philanthropists. The Board comprises 23 Directors and 2 Advisors and includes the CEOs and Chairpersons of all member RSPs. Operationally, RSPN has a core office in Islamabad with project support/ management units. In addition, RSPN has field and project offices in selected locations. In partnership with member RSPs, RSPN implement programmes and projects in all provinces across Pakistan. The core office, led by the CEO and supported by the COO and sector specialists, provides technical and intellectual backstopping support to projects and member RSPs, besides ensuring quality standards to deliver projects and services, mobilising resources for expansion/coverage, donor liaison, knowledge sharing, and overall guidance and supervision of RSPN's programme. Community Outreach RSPN, through the Rural Support Programmes (RSPs), is operating in 152 districts working with over 8.68 million poor households (56 million people) that have been organised through a three-tiered social mobilisation approach (figure on right). At the first level (the neighbourhood), rural households are organised into Community Organisations (COs) consisting of members from 10-15 households. Most often, women and men have their own CBOs. CBOs commit to have monthly meetings, start a savings programme and choose trustworthy leaders who are then trained by the RSP. At the second tier, the COs are federated at the village level into Village Organisations (VOs), through their leaders. And, at the third tier, VOs federate at the union council level (lowest tier of government administrative structure) to form a Local Support Organisation (LSO) with representatives from all levels. To date, RSPN has organised almost 8.7 million rural households (58.5 million people) in the form of 535,211 COs, of which 53% are women's COs, 44,762 VOs, of which 76% are women VOs and a total of 2,471 LSOs, of which 45% are women LSOs. The social capital RSPN has developed is in partnership with its member RSPs and is a unique and incomparable resource. The membership of these community institutions is diverse i.e. inclusive of religious minorities, people with special needs, youth, poor and vulnerable populations. By engaging these community institutions, RSPN/RSPs have implemented many initiatives/programmes that have been 'contextualised' and tailored to local conditions, in areas of livelihood improvement, women's economic empowerment, micro enterprise development, family planning, Maternal Neonatal and Child Health (MNCH), Disaster Risk Reduction, agriculture and climate resilience, renewable energy, etc. An existing network of community institutions means that project start-up is quick, and implementation is effective due to RSPN's long-standing relationship with community institutions across the country. Partners in Development Since its inception in the year 2000, RSPN has implemented 127 projects and programmes worth USD 305 million. The long-term relationship with donors, partners and communities is a definitive indicator of RSPN's performance, transparency and accountability. RSPN has worked with a diverse array of donors including UN agencies, national and provincial governments, private foundations, and non-profit and non-governmental organizations including the World Bank, UK-FCDO, the European Union, Gates Foundation, USAID, CIDA, Coffey International, UNDP, UNHCR, UN Women, UNFPA, UNICEF, WFP, FAO, OSI, IFAD, Education cannot Wait (ECW), British Council, Asian Development Bank, ASI, PPAF, KfW, SDC and Provincial and Federal Governments. RSPN has a Grant Management Manual, approved by its Board. RSPN implements all projects in partnership with the RSPs by following the Grant Management Manual. Grants are managed, monitored, and evaluated programmatically and financially by the Programme Operations section of RSPN. A strong internal and external audit and compliance system exists to track grants, to ensure transparency and quality. RSPN's internal audit system is self-funded and all projects and regularly audited. Systems and Procedures RSPN relies on well-established management processes developed through RSPN's extensive engagement with various donors and public sector projects, apart from adhering to international standards. RSPN has Board approved policies and related manuals that are available on request. As a compliance protocol for contracts and agreements, renowned agencies and organisations such as PCP, UN Agencies, USAID and KPMG have reviewed and certified RSPN's systems of management and internal controls. RSPN Financial Management system RSPN has well established financial, procurement, internal audit, compliance and human resource management systems and internal control procedures documented in manuals approved by its Board of Directors. RSPN has fully functional internal audit and compliance systems. The Manager Internal Audit & Compliance (MIA&C) periodically audits all projects and visits relevant RSPs and other partners for financial reviews and audits of funds sub-granted to RSPN partners. MIA&C also conducts monthly compliance reviews in accordance with the grant agreements signed between RSPN and the partners. RSPN maintains financial and other records and prepares annual financial statements in accordance with the requirements of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) and the Companies Act, 2017. RSPN has deployed SAP-B1 for accounting and financial reporting purposes. SAP-B1 has the capability of maintaining project-wise accounts and producing project-wise ledgers, reports and asset listings. RSPN's financial statements are audited annually by an external auditor appointed by its members on the recommendation of the Board of Directors. RSPN's current external auditors are Grant Thorton Chartered Accountants, a top ranked international audit firms. RSPN has always remained fully compliant in the submission of various statements and records required to be submitted under the Companies Act 2017, Income Tax Ordinance 2001 and other applicable laws. Compliance with Donor Requirements RSPN has put in place a sound internal compliance system to ensure full compliance with donor requirements in the implementation of projects. As per RSPN policy, all project staff and relevant RSP core staff is given an orientation on each project and its compliance requirements before implementation begins in the field. RSPN develops a project specific Compliance Checklist which each Project Manager fills and submits once a month to RSPN's Manager Internal Audit and Compliance. Each Project's Finance Officer and RSPN's Manager Compliance undertake quarterly visits to partner RSPs and project districts to ensure compliance with the terms of the contract and review financial transactions, documentation, and processes. RSPN's Internal Auditor also makes two visits per year to each partner RSP to ensure that all processes comply with donor agreements. RSPN Monitoring and Evaluation System RSPN has a core Monitoring and Evaluation section to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of RSPN and partner RSPs programmes. RSPN's M&E section provides technical support to all projects and RSPN's core team. It is responsible for developing project-wise M&E plans as per donor requirements and tracking progress. The section also supports RSPs in developing their M&E capacities through regular meeting of an M&E Resource Group. RSPN's M&E section produces regular/useful knowledge products and shares these with member RSPs and external organisations to enrich learning and contribute to official policies and strategies. Digital, Electronic and Social Media Footprint RSPN has a strong presence on digital, electronic, print, and social media platforms. It produces useful knowledge products e.g. research studies, policy briefs, case studies, impact assessments, success stories, newsletters, video documentaries, infographics which are shared with stakeholders, development partners, government officials and policy makers. RSPN has an active presence on Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin.

IPcko was established in 2012 as an online chat-helpline for young people. It served as an answer to the demand of people who wanted to talk about their problems through unconventional communication channel. This has been the groundwork for us and the approach we have towards psychology as our main target audience were young people - teenagers and young adults. We aim to connect psychology with technologies, offer it as an attractive service and most importantly make it accessible. For this reason, everything we do is anonymous, free of charge and round the clock. To this day our chatline has been our most successful way of reaching out to people as can be seen on the number of contacts in our statistic. During the pandemic the topic of mental health began to come into foreground of the Slovak public space and with it we have created multiple concepts of how we want to develop our work in the future. We have created a Crisis helpline - through e-mail and phone, to make it more accessible for other age groups as well. We expanded our view, focusing on people of all ages in crisis situations, while maintaining some key projects focused on younger audiences. Suicide prevention is our key objective and by creating widely accessible ways of how to contact us (eg. Chatline and phoneline) we can start the whole helping process smoothly. As the pandemic progressed, we also started developing our Crisis outreach team - KITIP, that went out into the field, especially to clients that needed it in centers where people were isolated for a certain period of time after their arrival from abroad. With enough safety measures we were able to arrange "in-person" meetings with the affected people. This team was established to also be a part of "crisis services" during mentally exhausting situations, such as search for missing persons, suicide attempts, car crashes and other tragical events. One of the most internationally known tragedy in Slovakia was the widely medialized terrorist attack last year in October, where we responded and helped the directly affected people but also the bystanders of the event. With the pandemic regressing one of the biggest demands was to offer services that are offline. For this specific reason we have established Crisis Intervention centers - Kacko. We created a safe place where people can have in-person sessions with psychologists and utilize different tools to cope with their difficulties. Each Kacko is created in the center of the city, with accessibility and visibility being the main 2 goals. It is important to create a comfortable place that feels exclusive as usually mental health is associated with old and worn-out psychiatric hospitals which discourages people from seeking mental health support. Lastly, I would like to talk about clubs and then tie all of these services together and give you context of how they operate and what is the rationale behind it. Clubs are safe spaces for young people where they can spend their free time engaging with different activities. There is always a regular program for each opening day (Wed-Sat) that is voluntary and people can decide to take part in it if they feel like it. It can be discussions, presentations, board games, tournaments, art/music-therapy, workshops, cooking, etc. All of these activities aim to help people develop, socialize and enjoy their free time while getting to know the psychologists working there. That is why all of the abovementioned activities are done with psychologists, clients can really get to know them and see them for the people they are. These clubs (currently 4 with 5th one on the way) are located together with Kackos, in case somebody attending feels like they want to talk about something in private. All of these projects are built with the thought of creating a coherent network of psychosocial support, crisis help and suicide prevention. I will demonstrate how this works on an example case. 18-year-old Dorothy contacts us with suicidal thoughts, claiming to be on train tracks and wanting to say goodbye. In serious cases such as this one there is never just one person working on them. Supervisors of the line assist the operator, contact the police or other departments if necessary and work together to come to a solution and minimize the risk of individual mistakes. Our client might be in a serious mental state and in such cases, we contact our outreach team. Naturally we first need to come into agreement about this approach with the client. If they agree, the operator - representing the team of people on the other side, stays in contact with the client until the outreach team reaches our client and continues the intervention. Part of this intervention are also Kackos and Clubs. Kacko gives clients option to schedule a personal meeting when they feel they need it. The clubs on the other hand give options to socialize with peers, utilize time meaningfully and feel accepted. Currently we operate Crisis helpline (e-mail, video and phone), crisis chatline "IPcko.sk", 9 Kackos (each regional city of Slovakia + Malacky) - soon opening 10th in Michalovce, 4 Clubs (Nitra, Presov, Bratislava and Trnava + soon opening Michalovce). Apart from these we also have online terrain workers that engage with people on discord and other social media. We are looking to expand in this idea a create a proper community online as well, with regular content on discord and twitch as to answer the needs of young people as they live fully-fledged lives both outside and inside the online environment. With the invasion of Ukraine, it felt just natural that this network of help that we are trying to create would respond and adapt to the situation. Our psychologists are present at the border crossings from Ukraine since the 3rd day and are present to this day. In addition, we have also established Intervention facilities in Transit center Michalovce and Hotspot Kosice. Our services are reflection of systematic gaps in our mental health system and therefore we don't see our projects related to the war as additional "short-term" opportunities but more like expansion of our current network and adapting it to the needs in our country. For this exact reason all of our services are available in Ukrainian language as well, with the only exception being the chatline on which we are not able to guarantee the same level of quality as on the Slovak version. We strive to create a systematic form of help that is available in each region with the ability to respond and adapt to different situations and crises. It is key to bridge the gap between the beneficiary and the psychologists by utilizing different means, in our case mostly technology, to make the feeling of attractiveness stronger than the stigma mental health faced over the past 40 years. It is in our best interest to make MHPSS available to everybody who needs it and not create exclusive forms of help available to only a certain group as that only deepens the tensions and supports false discourses. This is where we see IPckos mission currently within our national context. We do not only provide MHPSS services but also educate about how to handle different situations. We created multiple leaflets with coping mechanisms to utilize in difficult moments, educate parents about improvements in communication with children, work with schools - teachers, psychologists, students and other relevant actors on how to include Ukrainian students in classes, how to handle crisis situations (suicides or attempts) in school environment. Currently in Bratislava we have a training of directors of high schools about crisis intervention - they then appoint one person who will go through our accredited training and will be responsible for knowing what to do in crisis situation in the given school. To sum it up we do not see the intervention only as direct action in crisis but also as offering psychoeducation or alternative ways to spend free time and socialize. Only with this systematic approach focusing on all the different aspects can we create a network offering a safety-net to people who need it and actually provide the change to the system that crumbles.

The Belgian Women in Science (BeWiSe) initiative was started more than 20 years ago by a German woman who came to Belgium to conduct research at a public research institute. She encountered gender inequalities in her work environment and was amazed that there was no such association to tackle this challenge in an organized way. She brought her insights from her home country and convinced a few fellow scientists to establish BeWiSe. Since then, all past and present Board members have been convinced that the association should continue until the attainment of its mission. BeWiSe is a non-profit organization that supports the position of women in science, both in the public and private sectors, and aims to improve communication among women in the Belgian and European scientific community. We develop support that is relevant to the research community, students and citizen and adapt them to participants' feedbacks and changing contexts. Our target group is girls and women. As we believe that diversity is a source of excellence, and that we need allies from all genders to achieve our aims, we include boys and men in some activities, while ensuring that girls and women are always in a leading position. BeWiSe wants to achieve gender-equal participation at all levels of science and engineering in the public and private sectors. It is open to specifically women, butanybody who promotes equal participation of women in science is welcome to join BeWiSe. BeWiSe encourages: Equal opportunities for both women and men to reach the most senior level in sciences Appropriate actions to achieve equal participation of women in science at universities, research institutes and companies all over Belgium Laws and policies that encourage and sustain increased participation of underrepresented genders in science Programmes for change towards more democratic and participatory systems in science Measures that facilitate the reconciliation of men's and women's professional and family life Equal participation of women in decision-making bodies Citizen of any age, gender and background to be interested and engaged in science, value the scientific methods in generating knowledge and advancing society The organization is mainly driven by the Board, which consists of four positions: President, Vice-President, Treasurer, and Secretary. All members are working on a voluntary basis. The board is assisted by a pool of 3 to 6 regular volunteers: two responsible for the social media, and several former BeWiSe Board members. By choice, BeWiSe is operating only in Belgium: we tailor our reach to the Board and volunteers capacity, our focus is a communication strength, and we operate in a geographically distributed network of complementary initiatives. We operate in French, Dutch and English, the three major languages. In a spirit of diversity, we serve as a bridge between the formal Dutch-speaking and French-speaking education and research communities. The organization is strongly connected to European associations and initiatives, including through its active membership to the European Platform of Women Scientists, its participation to European calls and projects on science outreach, and its central Brussels location. Our immediate impact is focusedto the Belgian scientific community understood broadly: schools pupils and teachers, higher education students, professors and staff, private research centers, citizen and families who are temporarily or permanently living in Belgium. However, our indirect impact is broader: as BeWiSe members and target groups are from any nationality and origin, and are mobile throughout their careers, they carry and spread their own insights and BeWiSe's practices in many countries and organizations, including through informal networking practices outside of Europe, such as BeWiSe and the Society of Ethiopian Women in Science and Technology. Additionally, BeWiSe became not long ago a member of the eument-net network, where we reach out, learn, but also network with other organizations regarding mentoring and more specifically mentoring women. Our main activities are diverse, and vary with the target group: Any age (6 years and older): science outreach activities, with a consistent focus on female role models e.g. "exchange without taboo" sessions between pupils and researchers, European Researchers Night interactive workshops on societal challenges, pitching sessions by researchers to their peers, videos and podcasts on research projects and women scientists careers. Our current project has been awarded by the EU for 2 years. Our next edition will be held on Friday September 26th at the Planetarium in Brussels, and on Saturday September 27th at the Institute of Natural sciences. More information on www.wisenight.eu Teenagers: Girls Leading in Science (GirLS) team contest inviting Dutch- and French-speaking middle schools pupils to create, present and pitch their scientific project with team members they don't know, discover daily work at laboratories and stimulate them to enroll at a higher education institution in STEM. The contest is designed to grow the leadership of girls in science and transmit its (the) passion (for research), reflect on scientific methods, the value of collaboration and team diversity. The prize is a fully paid tuition fee for the first year at university within STEMfor each member of the winning team. More information on https://bewise.be/girls-leading-in-science/ Researchers mentoring program in both language communities for junior scientists working in Belgium, mainly to support young scientists who are in the important phases of completing their thesis or in the beginning of their post-doctoral research. The mentees also benefit from our networking and talks e.g. Lunch & Learn, inspirational talk. The program is complementary to intra-university programs. Higher education students, academics, university professionals, companies, diversity and inclusion officers and policy-makers: BeWiSe organizes a yearly Women in Science Conference exploring how to speed up the transition to gender equality in scientific careers and sharing good practices on including the sex and gender dimension in research (all disciplines). Several themes were explored in the past years: recruitment procedures, the Matilda effect, the EU gender equality plan. BeWiSe also organizes every other year an inspirational evening. During this captivating evening) in Brussels, inspirational women in STEM leadership will share experiences and advice from their leadership journeys. From leading in male-dominated environments to showing up as your authentic self, this unique event provides inspiration, energy, and tools for starting and mid-career women in sciences to continue their leadership journey with confidence. If we are awarded the 3M care giving, we would use the donation to Increase the impact of the GirLS by continuing to support students to choose STEM studies on the long term. We had received in the past a donation from Solvay to fund the contest and the prize (1st year university tuition fees for the winning team). However, this fund has ceased and we are currently in discussion with several organizations to find alternative sources of funding, but 3M donation could definitively support the continuation of the initiative. Attract more participants to our yearly Women in Science day Expanding the mentoring program by providing more training and meeting opportunities to both mentors and mentees. Providing more science outreach material in a broad range of disciplines by developing and spreading short video clips, increasing their usage by school teachers and pupils, as well as continue outreach events like WiseNight. Raising awareness of citizen sensitive to arts by organizing pictures exhibitions and talks at different locations (no dependency on uncertain European funding), for example by reusing the 40 portraits and podcasts of women scientists working in Belgium, developed as part of the WiseNight EU project. Discussions are ongoing with several universities to organize such exhibition in other locations after the 2025 edition of WiseNight where 2 series of portraits will be displayed both in the Planetarium and in the Institute of Natural Sciences. Providing space to the Board and key volunteers to discuss and consolidate a long term strategy, including considering synergies and structured collaboration with like-minded organizations. Reach out to other organizations promoting women (at regional level, or industry based) to enlarge our reach and reinforce the impact of our activities.

The Fundacion Oir es Vivir was founded in 2008 to serve as a bridge for the hearing impaired population who are seeking a solution for their disability and lack the knowledge, resources, and financial means. The Foundation has done strong advocacy for early hearing detection and intervention program in the newborn and hearing screening test in preschool and school children. In the older population the Foundation also educates the importance of quality of life through the ability to hear and understand the sounds of life, and the importance to remain connected socially and environmentally.

Offer a widely supported sustainable protection, conservation and restoration of (critically) endangered sea turtle population and their habitats, in a scientifically sound manner.

To connect 1 billion new people to the internet.

Promote the participation of society for the improvement of the well-being and quality of life of the marginalized and vulnerable population groups of the Oaxacan community, through initiatives that generate fundamental and lasting changes

Rewilding in action - restoring habitats and species, connecting people with wildlife and wild places

Giving 9-24 year olds the skills, opportunities and connections needed to overcome barriers and excel in education and careers

We exist to eradicate extreme poverty in Argentina, starting with populations where child malnutrition is present, addressing each case in a comprehensive manner and supporting families in acquiring tools and knowledge that allow them to have decent work and improve their quality of life.

The mission of CWC Kansas City is to provide an excellent public education focused on developing and demonstrating understanding while building connections within a diverse community.