Spotlight on Innovation Works
Building Bold Solutions with Fearless Creativity
Just over a year has passed since Global Communities first launched our Innovation Works (IW) office to explore new avenues for fulfilling our mission. Its aim is to expedite the development and testing of cutting-edge products, processes and business models that could significantly contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
In this interview with Radhika Bhavsar, Senior Technical Specialist for Innovation, learn how IW is helping Global Communities accelerate positive impact for people and the planet.
“Innovation is ultimately about people, problem-solving and partnerships,” Radhika says. “Empowering local voices in the innovation process not only leads to richer, more impactful solutions but also ensures sustainability and alignment with real needs.”
Global Communities works at the intersection of humanitarian assistance, sustainable development and financial inclusion to save lives and secure strong futures.
We partner with a range of public and private sector entities, including communities directly affected by poverty, disasters and conflict, helping them to develop and lead their own paths to self-reliance. Our work is driven by constant innovation and a commitment to holistic, fit-for-purpose solutions tailored to community needs, local opportunities, capabilities and operating contexts. We envision a world where opportunities are expanded, crises give way to resilience and all people thrive.
4.4 million+
people reached to meet urgent needs and build long-term resilience
16,711,841
healthy meals served to 300,000 primary school students in three countries
$249 million
in loans to entrepreneurs, small businesses and homeowners to increase economic opportunity
OUR APPROACH
We believe resilience is built together - across organizations, within communities, alongside governments, but most importantly, in partnership with people.
Because we were founded in the cooperative housing movement, a community-led approach has been central to our work from the very start. Global Communities prioritizes nimble, evidence-based programs developed in partnership with communities impacted by poverty, disasters and conflict.
OUR GLOBAL REACH
We have deep roots in more than 30 countries around the world.
We stand with communities at the forefront of their own development in the Americas, Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East.
Global Intersections
TESTIMONIAL
Improving Access to Water and Sanitation
The extent to which these projects will help our people cannot be overemphasized. They have brought tremendous improvement in the lives of the people, as they will reduce the time wasted in searching for water from streams and other unreliable sources.
—Lawal Tamimu, District Chief Executive of Sawla-TunaKalba, Ghana
In the small farming community of Kalba, Ghana, all ten of the town’s wells had run dry. So Global Communities partnered with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to accelerate sustainable improvement in water and sanitation access. The project connected schools, health facilities and more than 4,500 people with safe drinking water.