MADRE
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
MADRE works for a world where all people enjoy the fullest range of individual and collective human rights. A world where resources are shared equitably and sustainably. A world where women participate effectively in all aspects of society. And a world where people have a meaningful say in policies that affect their lives. We bring our vision to life with an understanding of the inter-relationships between the issues we address. And we are committed to working in partnership with women at the local, regional and international levels who share our goals.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Advancing Climate Justice
Our actions to confront climate change today will decide the futures of our planet and of generations to come. You can join the women leading the way.
Climate change is a global threat, and poor, rural and Indigenous women are hardest hit. They are impacted first and worst by the food shortages, droughts, floods and diseases linked to this growing danger. But they are more than victims. They are sources of solutions, inventing innovative, locally-rooted responses.
Through our Women Climate Defenders initiative, MADRE’s grassroots partners enable their communities to adapt to climate change. They build clean water systems to guard against drought and seed banks to preserve future harvests. And we bring grassroots women's voices to influence national and international climate policy discussions. Through this initiative, we:
> Partner with women to confront immediate climate threats, like flooding and drought, in their communities.
> Give women seeds and tools to plant tree nurseries that protect local water sources and raise organic crops.
> Create spaces for women to exchange their knowledge and strategies to confront climate change, like rain water harvesting and food storage.
> Shine a spotlight on women’s exclusion from policymaking.
> Provide childcare, stipends, translation and more for grassroots women entering policymaking spaces.
> Train and equip our partners to present their demands to policymakers at the local, national, regional and international levels.
> Partner with local activists to make sure their leaders implement policy victories.
Ending Gender Violence
Gender violence, including physical and sexual abuse, is widely used to intimidate, oppress, silence and subjugate girls, women, disabled and LGBTIQ people across the globe. It devastates those who are targeted and destroys the social fabric of families, communities and societies.
In short, gender violence is one of the most significant barriers to women, girls and LGBTIQ people accessing their human rights. Together with our partners, we help people to heal from gender violence and become powerful advocates to end it. We build clinics and counseling centers. We equip women with tools to prevent abuse in war and disaster. And every day, we affirm that gender violence doesn’t have to be a fact of life.
Emergency and Disaster Relief
Our partners need us most when a disaster hits or when war breaks out. That's why MADRE launched an Emergency and Disaster Relief Fund. The Fund lets us act immediately and effectively. We bring crucial resources–like food, water, medical care and shelter– directly to the women and families most in need.
Women are often hardest hit. That's because they have fewer resources to start with and often have no safety net. Women are also responsible for those made most vulnerable–children, the elderly and people who are ill or disabled.
But women need more than aid. Women at the community level must be allowed to lead in relief efforts. When community women distribute emergency aid, it has the best chance of reaching those most in need. That's why MADRE's support strengthens community women's efforts in times of crisis. By partnering directly with local women's groups, we're able to mobilize resources quickly and efficiently. We can carry out relief efforts in ways that respond to the priorities and perspectives of local communities.
Through out Women-Centered Disaster Relief, we sustain and empower our sisters worldwide, and help rebuild communities on a stronger foundation.
Building a Just Peace
Women are vital defenders of communities in times of war. They mobilize humanitarian aid, health care and shelter. They heal rifts between individuals and communities and address the trauma of war survivors.
Despite this essential role, women are often overlooked in peace processes – a missed opportunity to build durable peace. Research has shown that women’s meaningful participation in peace negotiations results in agreements 35% more likely to last at least 15 years. Peace depends on women. MADRE supports grassroots women’s groups striving to create peaceful, just communities in which everyone can thrive. Together, we bring urgent aid to communities, work to address root causes of conflict and advance rights through women’s participation in peace processes.Peace depends on women. MADRE supports grassroots women’s groups striving to create peaceful, just communities in which everyone can thrive. Together, we bring urgent aid to communities, work to address root causes of conflict and advance rights through women’s participation in peace processes.
Campaign: No Borders on Gender Justice
Our current campaign, No Borders on Gender Justice, shines a light on increasingly repressive policies perpetrated by the Trump Administration and other right-wing forces. We mobilize our networks and strategies to protect people put at risk, promote collaborative feminist movement building and offer alternatives for a more gender just future.
We recognize that this moment of political crisis—defined by a resurgent global right-wing—is also an opportunity to strengthen movements for justice. We seek to build bridges between US activist movements and our partners in the Global South, using strategic exchanges, collaborative campaigns, human rights advocacy, targeted grantmaking and public education to sustain and advance the work of progressive social justice activists.
We aim to elevate the visibility, voice and power of women and girls, refugees, migrants, Muslims, and LGBTIQ individuals and communities, as well as racial justice activists targeted for state repression.
Where we work
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Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of groups/individuals benefiting from tools/resources/education materials provided
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Indigenous peoples, People with disabilities, Women and girls, LGBTQ people, Activists
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
These numbers represent the women and girl-led grassroots organizations that MADRE supports. These numbers do not reflect the total number of individual people reached.
Total dollar amount of grants awarded
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults, Children and youth, Indigenous peoples, People with disabilities, LGBTQ people
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
MADRE continues to increase funding to grassroots organizations worldwide.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
MADRE is an international women's human rights organization. We partner with community-based women's groups worldwide facing war and disaster -- our sister organizations. Our mission is to advance women's human rights by meeting urgent needs in communities and building lasting solutions to the crises women face. Our history is rooted in progressive movements for peace, justice and women's human rights.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Women cannot develop long-term solutions to the crises they face when they are struggling to ensure their family's daily survival. MADRE therefore works to meet urgent needs as a necessary component of creating social change.
MADRE partners with community-based women's organizations that share our vision of a world where all people enjoy the full range of human rights. MADRE works with our sister organizations to meet urgent needs in their communities and enhance women's capacity to create positive social change.
The international human rights framework is a powerful, but under-utilized tool for creating positive social change.
MADRE aims to apply human rights to social change initiatives, advance and improve the human rights framework and to make international law relevant and accountable to the people it is meant to serve.
A cogent understanding of the social, economic, and political conditions that confront us is critical to creating positive change. Therefore, MADRE works to communicate the impacts of policies of governments, international financial institutions, and other centers of power on women and their communities worldwide and to formulate and press for alternatives to destructive policies. MADRE enables people to come together and see their own struggles in a broader context and in relation to other peoples' struggles.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
In addition to longer-term development projects, MADRE works in two ways to meet the immediate needs of women and families around the world.
MADRE's Emergency & Disaster Relief Fund enhances MADRE's capacity to respond to crises and enables us to act immediately and effectively when disasters strike, bringing urgently needed resources directly to the women and families most in need.
MADRE's Helping Hands Program delivers medicines, school supplies and other humanitarian aid to our sister organizations around the world. These contributions enable women to meet immediate needs in their communities and strengthen their work for positive social change.
MADRE also offers leadership trainings and human rights education workshops for the women of our sister organizations to gain the skills to advocate effectively in the international arena and, once they have returned home, to hold their governments accountable to the commitments they have made at global conferences.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
MADRE has worked at the intersection of social movements since our beginnings in 1983, when we brought together mothers and peace activists to put an end to the US-sponsored war in Nicaragua. MADRE recognized from the start that prioritizing local leadership is critical for ending human rights violations. Empowering community-based women remained at the core of our mission as we grew into an international organization, endowed with consultative status at the United Nations.
Since our inception, MADRE has nurtured women leaders from more than 90 visionary grassroots groups in over 25 countries. We have delivered $34 million in humanitarian aid to families facing war, displacement, natural disasters, and poverty. Today, MADRE distinguishes itself by standing at the intersection of the movements for global peace, economic and climate justice, women's and LGBTIQ rights, and Indigenous and sexual rights.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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MADRE
Board of directorsas of 04/20/2023
Anne Hess
Community Volunteer
Blaine Bookey
Center for Gender and Refugee Studies, University of California Hastings College of the Law
Term: 2018 - 2023
Anne Hess
Community Volunteer
Blaine Bookey
Elz Cuya Jones
Nadia Allaudin
Anika Rahman
Louisa Shipnuck-Jones
Rhonda Diaz Caldewey
Carla Christofferson
Christopher Price
Ramatu Bangura
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data