Public Interest Registry (PIR), the organization behind the .ORG domain, unveiled the winners of the .ORG Impact Awards last night at an annual celebration recognizing mission-driven individuals and organizations internationally.
The seven winners, selected from more than 1,700 entries from more than 87 countries, were announced at the International Spy Museum in Washington, D.C. Alan Cumming, who recently won the Emmy for Outstanding Host on the show The Traitors, hosted the event, where Public Interest Registry awarded $180,000 to organizations from the global .ORG Community across seven categories: Community Building, Quality Education for All, Environmental Stewardship, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Health and Healing, Hunger and Poverty, and Rising Stars (leaders, younger than 25, making a difference in their communities).
Philippines-based nonprofit Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation was selected winner of the .ORG of the Year award, recognizing the organization’s work to provide access to education for children in remote and poverty-stricken areas by providing boats to reach their schools.
The organization started with one yellow boat that could accommodate 25 to 30 children. Through community support, the organization has grown to more than 5,000 yellow boats sailing across the Philippines. The boats have become a symbol of “Bayanihan” — a Filipino concept of cooperative giving — and inspire more community members to get involved by donating school supplies and even building a new school for the children.
“The winners of the .ORG Impact Awards are the very best of the .ORG Community and work tirelessly to create positive change every day. Public Interest Registry is thrilled to uplift their efforts and humbled by the work they are doing to build a bright future for us all, Jon Nevett, president and CEO of Public Interest Registry said via a statement. “I am especially honored to celebrate this year’s .ORG of the Year, Yellow Boat of Hope, for their continued commitment to education access and ability to inspire an entire community to come together and make the world a better place.”
In the six years since the .ORG Impact Awards first started, Public Interest Registry has awarded $685,000.
“These organizations are proof of how the Internet can be used as a force for good — allowing them to share their mission with the world, connect with others, and expand their reach. That’s what we’re celebrating tonight—the power of this global community, united by a shared desire to create a better world,” host Alan Cumming said via a statement.
The winners were:
.ORG of the Year – Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation
Award: $50,000
The Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation is a nonprofit organization in the Philippines that aims to provide access to education for children in remote and poverty-stricken areas by providing boats to reach their schools. The foundation’s story began in 2010 when a group of friends learned about the struggles of children in a coastal community in the Zamboanga Peninsula who had to swim to get to school. The group decided to provide a yellow boat to these children so they could go to school safely and comfortably.
Since then, the Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation has expanded its reach to other parts of the Philippines, providing boats to children in various coastal communities and far-flung areas. The foundation’s boats, which are painted bright yellow, not only serve as a means of transportation but also symbolize hope and a brighter future for the children.
Since 2010, the foundation has been able to provide 5,241 boats, 13 school buildings, 5 dormitories, 2 bridges, 3 starter classrooms, 59 educational hubs, 4 Teach Anywhere chapters, and 3 community learning centers to a total of 127 adopted communities and 143 adopted public schools all over the Philippines.
Yellow Boat of Hope is also the winner of the 2024 .ORG Impact Award for Quality Education for All.
Community Building – Kiva
Award: $10,000
Kiva is an international nonprofit that expands financial access to help underserved communities thrive. There are over a billion unbanked people around the world. That’s a billion people who don’t have a credit card for emergencies, a debit card for easy access to their money, or a credit history to help them get a loan. By connecting people through crowdfunded loans, Kiva supports business owners, farmers, students, and social enterprises with the funding they need to thrive.
Quality Education for All – Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation
Award: $10,000
In addition to receiving the awards for .ORG of the Year, Yellow Boat of Hope is also the winner in the Quality Education for All category.
Environmental Stewardship – Share Our Spare
Award: $10,000
Share Our Spare is a community resource of essentials, education and advocacy for families living in poverty and the agencies that serve them. Parents in financial crisis often must prioritize food, rent and other basic needs over diapers, wipes and baby supplies, making impossible decisions for the wellbeing of their family.
Service agencies often do not have access to these essentials, digging into their own pockets to provide them to the families they serve. Share Our Spare works to help fill these gaps, so that every Chicago area child – from newborn to age 5 – has a healthy, safe start, and every parent the opportunity to provide one.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion – The Center for Courageous Kids
Award: $10,000
The Center for Courageous Kids is a not for profit medical camp facility founded by the late Ms. Elizabeth Turner Campbell and opened in 2008. She was inspired to create a place where children living with life threatening illnesses and their families could come free of charge and have fun, find respite, feel normal and forget about their everyday struggles. Now in its 15th year, CCK has served over 35,000 medically fragile campers and their families. Campers have come from 45 different U.S. States and 13 foreign countries. CCK continues to change the lives of thousands of children and families every year.
Health and Healing – Kids Operating Room
Award: $10,000
Kids Operating Room strives for a world where every child has access to safe surgery. More children die each year from surgically treatable conditions than from Malaria, HIV and TB combined. Kids Operating Room installs operating rooms and provides specialist training to local doctors to build pediatric surgical capacity and improve access to essential medical care. Kids Operating Room has already created capacity for 100,000 life-changing pediatric operations.
Hunger and Poverty – Solidarités International
Award: $10,000
Solidarités International provides emergency aid for food, water, and shelter, helping disaster and conflict – affected communities regain self-sufficiency and sustainable livelihoods. Recognized for its expertise and knowhow in water, sanitation and hygiene access issues, Solidarités International has enabled millions of people worldwide over the last 40 years to enjoy improved access to this vital resource, by implementing humane solutions adapted to suit specific local situations.
Rising Star – Clinton Okechukwu, The R.E.T.I.N.A Initiative
Award: $10,000
The R.E.T.I.N.A Initiative is an acronym for Restoration of Eyecare Through Innovation and Awareness. It is a youth-led nonprofit organization committed to promoting primary eye care services through research, advocacy campaigns, outreach programs, trainings and sustainable eye care innovations that challenges systemic barriers to preventable blindness in underserved African communities.
Here are links to videos of the winners:
Public Interest Registry (PIR) is a nonprofit that operates the .ORG top-level domain with more than 11 million domain names registered worldwide. PIR was founded by the Internet Society in 2002 and is based in Reston, Virginia. Visit www.pir.org for more information.