Mon Ami Foundation - Blogs #Sustainability Development Goals

Storytelling for Impact: How NGOs Can Win Corporate Partnerships

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 15:35:30 +0530

What makes a company choose one NGO over another? It isn’t always the size of the organization or the number of projects completed. More often, it comes down to one simple question: What difference did you make?

In today’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) landscape, companies want more than reports filled with numbers. They want to understand the people behind those numbers. As fundraising expert Ken Burnett famously said, “People give to people, not to organizations.” That principle increasingly shapes corporate partnerships.

Why Stories Matter More Than Numbers

Stories have a unique ability to do what data alone cannot: they create connection. A report might say that 500 women were trained, but the story of one woman who gained financial independence, sent her children to school, or discovered her own confidence gives those numbers meaning.

Research published in the Harvard Business Review found that people who feel an emotional connection are 52% more valuable to an organization than those who are simply satisfied. Whether it’s a customer, donor, or CSR partner, genuine connection begins with a story.

Building Trust Through Storytelling

Strong partnerships don’t grow because a company writes a cheque. They thrive when both organizations believe in the same goal and trust each other enough to work towards it. Strengthening Civil Society (SCS Global) describes partnerships as relationships built on shared purpose, collaboration, and mutual respect—not simply funding.

That trust has to be earned, and one of the simplest ways to earn it is by telling honest stories about the work being done.

Case Studies: Stories That Changed the Game

Think about what people remember after reading an annual report. It usually isn’t the graphs or percentages—it’s the story of the person whose life changed.

The Global Fund’s “Here I Am” campaign let beneficiaries speak about their own experiences, turning statistics into lived realities.
Organizations like charity: water have long used storytelling to help supporters understand the people behind every project. The numbers were still there, but they finally had meaning.

Mon Ami Foundation: Stories Behind Every Product

At Mon Ami Foundation, every artisan, entrepreneur, and woman has her own journey. Some are learning a skill for the first time. Others are turning that skill into an income that supports their family. These stories deserve to be told because they remind us that behind every handcrafted product is a person who worked hard to create it. The product matters—but the person behind it matters even more.

The Bottom Line

Companies don’t partner with NGOs because of impressive presentations alone. They partner with organizations they understand and trust. Data may show the impact of a program, but stories help people believe in it. And when belief is backed by measurable results, partnerships become stronger, longer lasting, and capable of creating real change.

This blog is contributed by Aanavi Anand, a student of lady Shri Ram College for Women

https://www.linkedin.com/in/aanavi-anand-0a6b91308/

CSR Dashboards: Making Transparency Work for Communities

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 11:01:00 +0530

Open any company’s CSR report today and you’ll likely find a dashboard: neat charts showing donation amounts, volunteer hours, and the number of communities “reached.” It looks like transparency. But pause for a moment—transparent to whom?

Most CSR dashboards are designed with investors and regulators in mind. They exist to prove compliance under laws like Section 135 of the Companies Act and to reassure stakeholders that social spending is real, measurable, and accountable. That is a legitimate need. Numbers build trust, and trust is hard to earn without evidence. A well-designed dashboard can also help companies identify which programmes are working and redirect resources faster than a year-end report ever could.

Yet here lies the gap: a dashboard full of impressive totals can still tell a beneficiary nothing about whether their own life has changed. A village may appear as a data point in a “communities reached” figure while having no way to see what was promised, what was delivered, or whom to approach if it fell short. Transparency often flows upward to boardrooms rather than outward to the people it claims to represent. This is where accusations of “CSR-washing” arise—numbers that look accountable while the people on the ground remain unheard.

For transparency to genuinely serve communities, dashboards must include the community’s own voice, not just administrative figures. That means:

Beneficiary feedback integrated into reporting.
Outcome tracking at an individual or household level.
Accessible formats that allow communities to question and engage with the data.

The MAMTA Institute for Mother and Child’s beneficiary feedback pilot in Kaushambi District shows what this can look like in practice. By giving communities, a direct channel to raise issues and see them addressed, feedback volumes rose sharply, and most respondents reported real improvements in service delivery.

A recent Times of India report underscores the scale of the challenge. Despite CSR spending crossing thousands of crores in a single year, a nationwide study found that most NGOs—especially smaller ones—still struggle to access those funds. The disconnect between intent and impact remains stark.

At Mon Ami Foundation, we try to bridge this gap. Rather than reducing an artisan’s progress to a single number, our impact stories highlight each woman’s tangible gains in skill, income, and confidence. A dashboard can show that a hundred artisans were trained. A story can show what that training actually meant for one of them. Real transparency probably needs both: the dashboard’s scale and the story’s honesty.

Works Cited

MAMTA Health Institute for Mother and Child. Beneficiary Feedback Mechanisms Case Study: India. World Vision UK, 2016, feedbackmechanisms.org/public/files/MAMTAIndia.pdf.
Clear White Space. CSR Washing. Clear White Space, www.clearwhitespace.com/post/csr-washing. Accessed 12 July 2026.
CallMyCA. CSR Section 135 Companies Act 2013 Explained. CallMyCA, callmyca.com/blog/csr-section-135-companies-act-2013-explained. Accessed 12 July 2026.
Rupera, Prashant. Corporate Intent vs Community Impact: Big CSR Spend, Small Impact. The Times of India, 25 Aug. 2025, timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/vadodara/corporate-intent-vs-community-impact-big-csr-spend-small-impact/articleshow/123488897.cms.

Contributed by Shreya Mangla, student St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University

https://www.linkedin.com/in/shreya-mangla-03486124a/

Virtual Volunteering: The Future of Employee Engagement

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 15:27:46 +0530

For years, employee engagement followed a familiar playbook: team lunches, birthday shoutouts, an annual off-site. That worked when everyone sat in the same office. It works far less now, with teams split between home offices, co-working hubs, and cities apart. Into that gap steps virtual volunteering—and it is quickly becoming the next major shift in how companies keep people invested.

What Virtual Volunteering Really Means

At its core, virtual volunteering is simple: giving your time and skills to a cause from wherever you are, using nothing but a laptop. As Katherine Gorman puts it, “Volunteering takes place on your couch, with your coworkers, during your workday.” That could mean mentoring a student over video call, writing website copy for an NGO, or teaching digital skills to someone who never had access before.
Unlike an office party, virtual volunteering scales across a whole company at once. That scalability is exactly why it is shaping the future of engagement.

Purpose Overtakes Perks

The real driver here isn’t perks—it’s purpose. As Joshua Harris notes, “Employee volunteering is no longer just about social good; it’s a strategic business advantage.”

That shift explains the rise of Volunteer Time Off (VTO), treating giving back as paid work, not a weekend Favor. It also feeds directly into CSR strategy, building trust with stakeholders and compounding results over time rather than creating one-off PR moments. Technology now matches employee skills to real needs, ensuring impact is both authentic and measurable.

Artisan Incubation Model: Mon Ami Foundation

Our unique AI model demonstrates how this works in practice. Backed by CSR partners like DCM Shriram Foundation, HCL Foundation, Dalmia Bharat Foundation, and Synergy Consulting Inc., it has:

Trained over 1,000 women artisans across Uttar Pradesh, Delhi NCR, and West Bengal in crafts like zardozi and crochet.
Paired IIT Roorkee research students with the camel-herding community in Rajasthan, exploring new uses for camel dung, wool, and milk by-products—skilled volunteering feeding directly into livelihood innovation.
Extended impact inward through initiatives like a Dental Health Camp for school staff in NCR, showing how volunteering can strengthen an organization’s own workforce.

This is not yet a finished success story. Mon Ami’s reach is still concentrated in a few regions, dependent on year-to-year CSR funding. Projects like Pastoral Livelihoods and Project Ektara need deeper market linkages to scale. But the proof is clear: expert time and CSR partnerships already work, even as honest ground remains to cover.

The Road Ahead

Virtual volunteering is more than a stopgap for remote teams—it is a blueprint for the future of employee engagement. It aligns purpose with productivity, scales across geographies, and embeds CSR into everyday work.
So, the next time your company mentions virtual volunteering, recognize it for what it is: not a trend, but the trajectory of engagement itself.

Contributed by Shreya Mangla, student St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University

https://www.linkedin.com/in/shreya-mangla-03486124a/

AI in Philanthropy: How Technology is Redefining Impact Measurement.

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 12:34:46 +0530

Artificial Intelligence is continuously redefining the virtual world, from grant writing to coding. This compelling change in technology has not left philanthropy behind. Almost 80% of foundations report some degree of AI usage, though only a small fraction (around 4%) has integrated AI systematically across their organizations.

For decades, the social sector has relied on activity reports, numbers of people trained, events held, products sold, and so on. But these numbers only tell us what was done, not what changed. Measuring real impact, the actual shift in someone’s quality of life, income or dignity, has always been the harder, more difficult question. It is also complex because how does one measure social change? Quality of life is subjective and differs from person to person. For one, QoL can be having three proper meals a day but for another, it can be the freedom to follow passion. Or how does one measure, did these women feel more confident? Or do they feel less alone?

“According to Impact management Project (IMP), it’s a 4-step procedure” (Bartalucci et al. 31),

1. Normative Basis: What do we believe is good? What are our goals?

2. Impact Chains: How does our work lead to those goals?

3. Indicators: How do we measure whether those changes happened?

4. Calculate Impact: What is our overall impact score? (SROI analysis or normalised impact score)

This is where Artificial intelligence redefines its value in philanthropy. It’s starting to help organisations figure out what to measure and how. There are thousands of social indicators like wellbeing, health, confidence, QoL, etc., and already built tools and surveys to measure them in abundance. No small team can read all of them and pick the right one. So, AI does it instead. It reads through everything, spots the patterns, and surfaces what matters most in a fraction of time.

Mon Ami Foundation keeps pace with the growing technology and benefitting from it. AI doesn’t just simplify the foundation’s empirical, evidence-based evaluation process but also helps the donors and CSR partners to make rational decisions as they can now access the impact their investment is creating. AI helps identify our contributions to global challenges (impact on SDGs). Our project aligns with UN SDG goals, Decent work and Economic Growth (#8), Responsible Consumption and Production (#12), Partnerships for the Goals (#17). Today, Mon Ami has successfully supported 1500+ artisans, 6000+ families and created an economic impact of Rs. 10 crores+. It engages in direct surveys with its beneficiaries to measure different indicators of impact and AI helps calculate the overall impact.

When impact measurement becomes this accessible, something important shifts. Smaller organisations can fully tell their story. Donors can invest with more confidence. And the women whose lives are changing get the recognition they deserve.

Because at the end of the day, the goal was never to count training sessions. It was always to change lives. Now we have better tools to prove that it’s working.

Works Cited

Bartalucci, Simone, et al. "Measuring Meaningful Change: AI-Enhanced Impact Measurement in Philanthropy." The Routledge Handbook of Artificial Intelligence and Philanthropy, 1st ed., Routledge, 2024, pp. 29–50. DOI: 10.4324/9781003468615-4.

Hosseini, Sam. “AI in Philanthropy: From Donations to Data Driven Impact.” Paralleliq, Paralleliq.ai, https://www.paralleliq.ai/blog/ai-in-philanthropy

Coffman, Julia. “Artificial Intelligence and Philanthropy.” Johnson Center for Philanthropy Blog, 10 Dec. 2025, https://johnsoncenter.org/blog/artificial-intelligence-and-philanthropy.

Contributed by Shreya Mangla, student St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University. https://www.linkedin.com/in/shreya-mangla-03486124a/

Craft Musings

Mon, 18 May 2026 10:50:15 +0530

Last Mile Impact and Collaboration

Fri, 20 Mar 2026 11:40:12 +0530

When we talk about impact assessment, the conversation often stops at numbers—beneficiaries reached, income generated, or funds disbursed. These metrics, usually compiled by third-party agencies, satisfy regulatory requirements but rarely capture the deeper story. True last mile impact is not about ticking boxes; it is about long-term transformation in habits, aspirations, and community resilience.

Consider hygiene practices, food choices, education, or even gender sensitivity. These are not easily quantified, yet they define whether an intervention has genuinely shifted the trajectory of a community. Unfortunately, field staff conducting assessments often lack emotional investment. Their reports emphasize scale over depth: 1,000 people earning ₹1,000 each is rated higher than 50 individuals consistently earning ₹10,000. But which scenario truly breaks cycles of poverty?

Real change happens when projects create role models—individuals who embody possibility and inspire others. Numbers alone cannot measure hope, dignity, or the courage to challenge entrenched norms. Communities need aspirational frameworks, not handouts. They must see that escaping poverty is possible but also recognize that the responsibility lies with them to take charge of their own progress.

At Mon Ami Foundation, our Red Earth Model is built on this philosophy. We nurture community resource persons who act as catalysts, encouraging peers to adopt new practices and envision brighter futures. For us, impact is not an entry in an Excel sheet—it is the ripple effect of one person’s transformation inspiring many others.

Collaboration, therefore, must go beyond compliance-driven assessments. It requires empathy, storytelling, and a commitment to measuring what truly matters: sustained behavioural change, strengthened social fabric, and the emergence of local champions. That is the essence of last mile impact—where numbers fade but hope and agency endure.

Internships in Social Organizations: Building Empathy and Perspective

Fri, 27 Feb 2026 11:27:24 +0530

Internships are often seen as stepping stones into corporate careers, but their role in social organizations is equally vital. College students should be encouraged to spend at least 4–6 weeks interning with social enterprises. This experience not only broadens their understanding of the sector but also nurtures empathy—an essential quality for future leaders.

For students, such internships provide exposure to grassroots realities. They learn how social enterprises tackle challenges like sustainability, livelihood creation, and community empowerment. Unlike classroom lessons, these experiences are immersive, teaching adaptability, problem‑solving, and cultural sensitivity. Students return with a deeper appreciation of social impact and a stronger sense of responsibility toward society.

For the enterprises, the benefits are equally significant. Many social organizations operate with limited resources and cannot afford to hire young graduates full‑time. Interns bring fresh perspectives, digital skills, and innovative ideas that help bridge generational and demographic gaps. Their energy and curiosity often spark creative solutions, while their presence strengthens the organization’s connection to younger audiences.

At CraftsAQ, we have been actively encouraging such internships. By connecting students with artisans supported by the Mon Ami Foundation, we create opportunities for them to witness firsthand the resilience, creativity, and individuality of craft communities. This exposure not only enriches students’ learning but also deepens their empathy for artisans whose livelihoods depend on sustainable growth and fair opportunities. It is a powerful way to blend youthful innovation with traditional wisdom.

Educational institutions play a pivotal role in making this connection possible. By integrating social internships into academic programs, colleges can encourage students to step outside conventional career paths. When universities champion these initiatives, they create a culture where social responsibility is valued alongside academic excellence.

In essence, internships in social organizations foster a symbiotic relationship—students gain empathy and practical insights, while enterprises benefit from youthful innovation.

Why Should All the Turtles Look the Same?

Fri, 13 Feb 2026 11:59:02 +0530

The Crochet Movement: Weaving threads of continuity, to empower women

Wed, 06 Jan 2021 17:34:00 +0530

The Crochet Movement: Weaving threads of continuity, to empower women

It gives me great pride to pay my college fees with my own earnings, gushes one of the participants, aged 20, poring over the intricate design she creates with the crochet needle in her hand

India is built on a culture of craft and weaving, as is evident by the archaeological discovery of a small shred of cotton cloth stuck to a pottery shard dated back to the Harappa and Mohenjo-daro settlements of 2600 BC. Women in particular are intrinsically linked to heritage arts and crafts.

These knowledge systems of weaving and creation, are interconnected, as they have been passed down from one generation to the next, to ensure continuity between communities and their ecosystems. When Mon Ami Foundation began work with migrant women in the NCR region, this intrinsic crafting know-how allowed for ease of training. Inherent dexterity, aesthetic acumen, fluidity of movement and innate skills ensure that these women learn crochet with minimum effort to create contemporary designs, under the guidance of our trainers.

The team at Mon Ami Foundation conducts face-to-face classes daily, where women are skilled, reskilled and upskilled to learn new stiches, finishing techniques and patterns. Today, with the onset of the pandemic, our training sessions have continued remotely via technology. These group training sessions create lasting bonds between women who have been displaced from their homes, giving them a sense of community. Often, little girls who accompany their mothers, show a keen interest in the art and pick up the skill alongside. Going forward, Mon Ami is looking to set up "Train the Trainer Programs" to broaden the scope on the number of women they can impact

Women play a crucial role in the growth of any economy, and hence, it is essential to promote skill development to provide high productivity, increased employment opportunities and higher income. We can realise Goal # 5 of the Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030, that of gender equality, by harnessing the power of women as key agents to achieve socio-economic transformation. Recognizing this, Mon Ami Foundation, in partnership with HCL Foundations Craft Hub, has embarked on setting up the largest Crochet movement in the country.

To become a market linkage partner or to commission direct projects, do connect: contact@monamifoundation.com