Since launching our annual Impact Heroes program, we have dreamed of being able to provide financial support to help changemakers take their work even further. This year—with the help of our recurring donors in Japan—that dream became a reality.
As part of our commitment to the Impact Heroes Class of 2024, we are awarding $3,000 grants to seven heroes, totaling $21,000. While this amount may seem modest compared to the immense challenges they tackle, we have worked closely with each hero to design projects that fuel long-term impact and growth.
Instead of funding broad initiatives, we prioritized projects that create deep, lasting change—helping our heroes strengthen their work and the communities they serve.
Starting in December 2024, we spent two months refining these projects, ensuring that each initiative is impactful and achievable. We’re excited to share the details with you!
Establishing a Space to Unite Educators & Community Leaders
Deepak will create a network of 10-15 “Wise Educators”—leaders dedicated to preserving wisdom-based education. This space will serve as a bridge between learning and action, equipping educators with tools to document folktales, oral histories, and life lessons.
These stories will be compiled into 10 illustrated books, serving as essential resources for addressing climate change, gender equity, and migration.
📅 Project Timeline:
- Curation of Cohort & Space Design – 1 month
- Running the Community of Practice – 1.5 months
- Designing 10 Books – 2 months
- Production & Delivery – 1 month

Deepak Ramola • India • Project FUEL
A wisdom educator gathering and archiving "life lessons" from 195 countries to provide education for "richer lives".
Mission: Developing a new paradigm of education that draws from life lessons, making them tangible and applicable in building fulfilling lives for individuals and society at large.
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Access to Credit & Financial Resilience for Medical Emergencies among Underserved Communities
By providing small loans and micro-insurance services, this project ensures that low-income families don’t fall into debt due to urgent medical needs. The grant will onboard at least 25 new borrowers in the first month, with a projected total of 47 borrowers in the first year.
📅 Project Timeline:
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Week 1: Loan disbursement setup
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Week 2: Borrower support & financial literacy training
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Week 3: Enrollment in micro-insurance plans
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Week 4: Monitoring & evaluation

Lian Thangvung • India • Qonect
A social entrepreneur offering innovative health insurance to the poor in India, and saving the lives that cannot afford medical expenses!
Mission: Providing same-day small loans for medical expenses to underserved low-income individuals and reshaping India’s healthcare landscape through a FinTech business.
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Protecting Palawan’s Ecosystems & Mentoring Future Environmental Leaders
Bobby’s organization will mentor 3-5 youth leaders through a 10-month internship—immersing them in conservation efforts while covering their board, lodging, and transportation. He aims to increase youth engagement and produce new outreach materials (brochure production) to raise awareness on Palawan’s environmental challenges.
📅 Project Timeline:
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10-month youth program starting Q1 2025

Robert "Bobby" Chan • Philippines • Palawan NGO Network Inc. (PNNI)
An Environmental Lawyer in the Philippines Safeguarding Palawan's Nature by Confiscating Equipment of Illegal Loggers and Fishermen.
Mission: Championing tangible actions for sustainable development among local communities to safeguard Palawan’s natural resources against illegal logging and fisheries.
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Solving Hunger in Just 5 Weeks: Community-Based Food Security in the Philippines
FeedBack program is a community-wide vegetable exchange held weekly in each neighborhood. To join this pseudo-market, families share just 3 kinds of vegetables and take home their fair share of 20+ varieties contributed by their neighbors. This inspires families to create gardens in their backyards. Within 5 weeks, families are self-sufficient, and by week 6, they will have produced in excess—enough to exchange.
The weekly vegetable exchange helps families grow their own food and share surplus within the community—reducing hunger, fostering collaboration, and building local resilience. Through Earth Company's support, Ayesha aims to support 600+ people across 2 communities, encouraging backyard farming, and creating a self-sustaining food network.
📅 Project Timeline:
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Q1 2025: Project launch & field visits
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End of 2025: Completion & impact assessment

Ayesha Vera-Yu • Philippines • ARK Solves
A Former High-Flying Finance Professional in New York Bringing Revolution to Impoverished Areas in Her Home, the Philippines.
Mission: Empowering small farmers through a community-wide vegetable exchange program, to solve hunger and create climate-positive economies and self-sustaining futures.
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Building a Sea Wall to Protect 4,000 People in the Solomon Islands
The rising sea levels is a severe threat to the Lilisiana community. Three rows of graves have already been lost, and now 22 more graves in the fourth row are at critical risk. This devastating loss is not merely environmental—it is cultural, spiritual, and deeply personal. This grant will be used to build a sea wall using locally available materials—buying time for long-term climate adaptation solutions.
The sea wall will protect 4,000 people from further coastal erosion and ensuring cultural preservation.
📅 Project Timeline:
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Phase 1: Immediate shoreline defenses (Q1 2025)
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Phase 2: Semi-permanent sea breaker installation
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Phase 3: Government request for long-term support

Millicent Barty • Solomon Islands • Kastom Keepers
An climate and cultural activist working to preserve and digitize the traditional culture of the Solomon Islands—threatened by the looming climate crisis.
Mission: Documenting ancestral traditions and wisdom, and storing them on digital platforms, in order to preserve the cultural roots and foster a bridge to the succeeding generations in fighting against climate change.
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Writing an Autobiography to Share Stories & Inspire Change
Having experienced domestic violence as a child, and living through the trauma, Sakdiyah believes in the healing power comedy and humor has. Through Earth Company's support, she wants to capture her personal story and the voices of other women in a powerful autobiography, serving as an outreach tool for participants, partners, and supporters. Through her autobiography she hopes to reach, embrace , and relieve the people who are going through the same trauma she did growing up.
📅 Project Timeline:
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January: Research & interviews
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February: Writing phase
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March: Layout, production, and online launch

Sakdiyah Ma'Ruf • Indonesia • Our Voice: Comedy for Change
Indonesia's first female Muslim comedian tackling the challenge of overcoming women's trauma from abuse through the power of comedy.
Mission: Using comedy as a healing force to empower women and youth in challenging societal norms, one voice and one laughter at a time.
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Online Workshops to Empower People Living with HIV (PLHIV) in Indonesia
Scott will run a six-month online workshop series, covering topics like: (1) Rights Awareness – legal empowerment for PLHIV, (2) Entrepreneurship – nurturing financial independence & job creation, (3) Digital Storytelling – amplifying voices & reducing stigma. Scott hopes to equip all participants with advocacy tools & economic resilience.
📅 Project Timeline:
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January-February: Planning & recruitment
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March-May: 3 workshops
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June: Final evaluation & impact report

Scott Alfaz • Indonesia • hayVee
An HIV+ influencer providing essential information and support to those struggling with the challenges of being HIV positive.
Mission: Inspiring people living with HIV (PLHIV) to overcome stigma and eradicate prejudice towards sexual and mental health.
Looking Ahead...
These seven powerful initiatives were made possible by the generosity of our Japanese recurring donors—every donation creating real, tangible change. But this is just the beginning. We will continue to track the impact of these projects and share updates. Stay tuned!
Thank you for believing in the power of regenerative giving. 💚