About Us

Mission Statement

1. Women Empowerment: The foundation aims to eradicate social taboos and inhumane practices targeting women, including child marriage, dowry systems, and deliberate neglect in basic healthcare. These practices perpetuate vulnerability cycles and impede the realization of fundamental human rights for women in developing nations.
2. Gender-Neutral Society: Ladli Foundation is committed to fostering a society that transcends gender biases and promotes equality, ensuring access to essential services like healthcare, education, and employment for vulnerable women in marginalized communities.
3. One Earth - One Health: Ladli Foundation integrates a commitment to environmental stewardship into its mission, advocating for practices that promote sustainability and protect the Earth, recognizing the interconnectedness between environmental health and human well-being.

About Us

Ladli Foundation USA, a women-led non-profit organization, serves as the United States chapter of Ladli Foundation Trust, India, an emerging international NGO experienced in directly impacting over 2 million beneficiaries through its innovative social initiatives, earning it a special consultative status in the Economic and Social Council since 2020. Founded in 2012 by a slum boy, who began his life as a child laborer, driven by the concern of protecting his sister from evil practices after their parents abandoned them in a crime-ridden slum during his childhood.

Committed to the advancement of the One Earth-One Health approach, Ladli Foundation USA leads transformative and sustainable social projects. Its focus areas include providing equitable access to healthcare, education, life skills, and mental well-being, particularly targeting vulnerable women and youth. It also aims to raise global awareness by promoting ancient Indian traditional practices for sustainable living worldwide, under the patronage of H.H. Swami Avdheshannad Giri, an International Spiritual Leader, Vedanta Scholar, and the Chief of India's oldest ascetic tradition.

Inception - Ladli Foundation

Driven by concerns of health, education & equality for vulnerable women as an integral and critical dimension of human rights, Ladli Foundation became a reality in 2012 as a grassroots social catalyst. It was founded by Devendra Kumar, a young self-made grassroots social worker, who emerged from the depths of a crime-ridden slum where his parents abandoned him and his infant sister at the tender age of two. Growing up in poverty, at the age of 8 he commenced his journey as a child labourer by selling balloons for his survival. These hardships drove him to seek safety, leading him to volunteer in Community Policing Initiatives with the Delhi Police in search of a secure shelter.

In 2010, his struggle to save his sister from child marriage and dowry by surviving amidst vulnerability motivated him to work for the most vulnerable population, for which he established the “Ladli Foundation.” Volunteering became a passion for him, and he took early financial retirement at the age of 35 to devote himself as a full-time volunteer. This is how the power of volunteering has created a notable social reformer who has impacted the lives of millions.

Recent Highlights

With a remarkable impact on over 2.5 million direct beneficiaries, Ladli Foundation has been recognized for its outstanding contributions. Notably, recent achievements include enabling digital education access for more than 157,000 marginalized students, yielding a remarkable impact valued at INR 600 Crore (approximately 75 million USD), all achieved independently without any external financial aid or grants. Furthermore, the organization has implemented innovative solutions that successfully addressed malnutrition among 2.70 lakh marginalized students in the schools of Delhi.

Currently, the organisation is tackling the most pressing social issues concerning health and education for the vulnerable populations residing in slums, striving for sustainable development in India with its active force of over 1.16 lakh youth interns & volunteers through an innovative Social Internship Program.

The Mandate – International Chapter

Ladli Foundation USA—the international wing—is to serve as a gateway for soliciting international partnerships in the development field. The mandate of the Ladli Foundation USA, as envisioned at present, is as follows:

• Building a strong community of women: supporting and empowering women who have survived violence and other atrocities, helping them reform their lives and establish their identities.
• Creating awareness about Indian traditional practices: raising global awareness about the significance of Indian traditional practices for spiritual peace, mental well-being, and sustainable living.
• Showcasing successful community-focused interventions: organizing workshops, sessions, and conferences that showcase innovative interventions implemented in India for potential replication worldwide.
• Advocacy and dialogue with international organizations: engaging with bilateral and multilateral agencies and United Nations entities on issues such as patriarchy, inequality, and gender-based violence.
• Promoting women's reproductive and sexual health: ensuring their dignified well-being, particularly in developing societies.
• Partnerships with colleges, universities, and youth leadership: serving as a gateway to India for students and youths interested in social internships and community volunteering.
• Collaboration with multinational companies for CSR: providing technical assistance to strengthen their corporate social responsibility agenda.
• Engaging small and medium-level organizations and individuals: supporting those interested in social development initiatives.
• Encouraging community-based interventions by the Indian diaspora: motivating the diaspora to initiate social development in their ancestral villages.

Ladli Foundation USA is committed to creating meaningful impact in the world through collaboration, advocacy, and promoting social development initiatives at both local and international levels.

Work Dimensions & Strategies

Ladli Foundation has designed its mission-driven strategies to tackle a spectrum of social challenges, with a primary focus on promoting gender equality and safeguarding women's human rights. Rooted in a holistic approach, these strategies are the result of extensive research, innovation, and collaboration with stakeholders spanning diverse segments of society.

• We prioritize transparency and credibility by advocating for a "By The Local for The Local" crowdfunding model, enhancing effective community outreach and attracting individual donors and volunteers for programs supporting women affected by gender-based violence and youth battling drug addiction.
• We involve the Indian diaspora in meaningful social development through "My Village is My Pilgrimage," nurturing emotional connections with ancestral roots to drive positive transformations in education and healthcare.
• We secure grants from local, international, and family foundations and collaborate with multinational corporations to develop and implement CSR initiatives and employee volunteering engagements across both the United States and India.
• "Voltour" is our groundbreaking social innovation for international youth, offering action-research-based community volunteering alongside immersive tourism experiences in India, fostering cross-cultural understanding and leadership skills.