“As a youth-led initiative focused on creating an inclusive digital ecosystem for people with disabilities, we aim to build a resilient and sustainable organisation capable of scaling its impact. Participating in this group will provide us with valuable tools, peer learning opportunities, and expert guidance that will directly support our mission of empowering youth with disabilities and promoting their rights, including access to sexual and reproductive health services.“

“We’re joining this Action Learning Cycle as we are at a pivotal stage of growth as an organisation, recognising that strengthening our governance, financial management, and monitoring systems is essential to ensure long-term sustainability, credibility and impact.“

“As an organisation focused on providing accessible and people-centered sexual health services (specifically for HIV, AIDS, and STIs), we experience huge challenges in maintaining human resources to ensure continued delivery of crucial sexual health services. One of the greatest challenges we face is hesitation and stigma, which not only impede our outreach but also restrict the resources needed to promote, engage, and assist our causes. I look forward to discussing this topic to learn and examine best organizational practices that can help us overcome these challenges and support our vision for inclusive and stigma-free sexual health services.”

Although our organisation proactively works to overcome the challenge of stigma by engaging in regular social media interaction, strategic alliances, and evident outcomes from our efforts, maintaining long-term support from advocates and members is an ongoing struggle. Through learning from other organizations, we can determine how to create a more sustainable and committed network of advocates who believe in our mission and vision for inclusive and stigma-free sexual health services.”

“I look forward to developing knowledge and skills on how to empower fellow youths to stand out and let their voices be heard and not to stay silent when their rights are under threat. This will help strengthen my trust and connection with other young people, opening up more opportunities for young people to have a voice in shaping their own future“

“I’m excited to connect with like-minded organisations to help develop my skills, as a young person, so I can feel more confident in standing up for my rights and shaping my own future.“

“DAWA exists to co-create safe, inclusive spaces for feminist movement building and to strengthen the leadership of girls and young women. This Action Learning Cycle will help us build the resilience needed to implement sustainable projects and ensure meaningful representation of marginalized voices in decision-making spaces.”

“With shifting donor landscapes, youth-led organizations like ours must find new ways to thrive. By joining this group, DAWA is accelerating its mission to promote inclusive, coordinated advocacy for gender equity across community, national, and regional platforms.”

“I would like to better understand approaches to organisational strengthening for youth-led organisations in order to inform my research. My research will describe the organisational characteristics of youth-led organisations, and will also engage with the question of what it means for youth-led organisations to strengthen (and sometimes scale) while staying faithful to their principles of youth leadership and community embedment. Understanding the ways in which youth-led organisations strategise around organisational capacity building would help me to develop my research approach towards understanding and evaluating these characteristics, and would prepare me for participatory research with youth-led organisations. “

“We are joining this cycle to strengthen our capacity for supporting grassroots youth-led AYSRHR organizations in Iraq, many of which face imminent shutdowns due to the recent USAID exit and declining international aid. These NGOs struggle with basic financial management, proposal writing, legal compliance, marketing, and sustainable funding models, making them reliant on seed grants and vulnerable to political restrictions. Without structured governance, strategic planning, and donor engagement capacity, they risk dissolving, cutting off essential SRHR services for marginalized Iraqi youth. This initiative will equip us with innovative ideas and strategies to directly enhance the operational resilience of Iraqi NGOs. “

“Through this cycle, we aim to refine our technical assistance and develop practical tools—like modular financial literacy kits and mentorship pipelines—that empower youth-led NGOs in Iraq to build lasting resilience. Strengthening their financial, legal, and strategic foundations is key to ensuring continued SRHR access for marginalized youth despite shrinking aid and rising political pressure.“

“At Smart Leadership, I have witnessed the transformative impact of youth engagement in driving positive change. By joining this group, I aim to strengthen my organization’s capacity to support youth-led initiatives, particularly in areas like education, health, and rights. Currently, I work closely with vulnerable youth, addressing barriers to their development and advocating for their well-being. This group aligns with my goal of fostering youth leadership and creating sustainable solutions to community challenges. I plan to leverage the insights and networks gained from this group to enhance Smart Leadership’s programs, ensuring they are more inclusive, youth-centered, and impactful.

“At Smart Leadership, we’re committed to equipping young people to lead meaningful change in their communities. Being part of this group is helping us strengthen our programs by deepening our capacity to support inclusive, youth-led initiatives in education, health, and rights. Engaging with this network will help us build more resilient, inclusive, and sustainable youth-led initiatives that make a lasting difference.”

“Pathochala Jubo Kallyan Songstha (PJKS) is joining this cycle to strengthen our efforts in promoting Adolescent and Youth Sexual Reproductive Health & Rights (AYSRHR) in Barguna. We are actively working on this topic through awareness campaigns, peer education, and advocacy to improve access to youth-friendly health services. However, we recognize the need for greater collaboration, knowledge sharing, and capacity building to enhance our impact.“

“Joining this group will provide valuable opportunities to exchange best practices, access technical resources, and build partnerships with like-minded organizations. It will also help us refine our strategies, advocate for policy changes, and ensure that young people in our community receive accurate information and support. By being part of this network, we aim to expand our initiatives and create a more inclusive and rights-based approach to AYSRHR in our region.“

“We applied to join this group because sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) for young people are among our key objectives. Every day, we work with young people, especially girls, to make sure they have the right information, support, and confidence to make good decisions about their health and future.“

“By joining this group, we hope to learn, share, and work with others to expand our impact. We believe that together, we can make a bigger difference, reaching more young people with the knowledge and resources they need to live healthy and empowered lives.“

“We want to make sure that our organisation thrives and our capacity is strengthened in the work we are doing. Working in an environment that is homophobic and full of stigma and discrimination make our work hard especially as young people the environment will be  harsh and unfriendly , The training will equip us to be able to be resilient and this will be a chance for our communities to thrive. We will use this expanded capacity to enrich our systems and allies.“

“This Action Learning Cycle on organisational strengthening is helping us build resilience, creating opportunities for our communities to thrive. We’re using the knowledge gained to strengthen our systems and empower our allies.“

“This learning cycle is of great interest since capacity building for growing organizations has become essential.“

“Our organisational growth has been consistent, hence the need to acquire specific knowledge and mentorship, which we look forward to receiving throughout this action learning cycle.“