The Red Elephant Foundation facts for kids

The Red Elephant Foundation is a group started by young people. It helps build peace and works for gender equality. They do this by sharing stories, using art to spread messages, creating helpful technology, and using digital media. Kirthi Jayakumar started the foundation in Chennai, India, on June 5, 2013. In 2017, the United Nations (UN) suggested that The Red Elephant Foundation should have a special role with the UN's Economic and Social Council. This means they can advise the UN on important issues.

What The Red Elephant Foundation Does

The Red Elephant Foundation does many things. Their work is divided into five main areas:

Sharing Inspiring Stories

The foundation wants to change how people think over time. They hope to guide everyone towards equality, peace, and non-violence. Their storytelling part collects true stories from people who have overcome challenges, made a difference, or worked for peace. These stories are meant to inspire others to act, feel empathy, and learn more about the world. They have shared stories from many amazing people. These include Maya Azucena, Zak Ebrahim, Kamla Bhasin, Tabish Khair, and Vaishnavi Sundar.

Education with ChalkPeace

The foundation turns its stories into action by creating special lessons. These lessons teach about gender equality, how to communicate without violence, and how to be more understanding about gender-based violence. The lessons are made to fit different groups, like schools, colleges, and community groups. They use these lessons to hold training sessions. The foundation's education programs are found on their platform called ChalkPeace. The ChalkPeace Program has even made new versions of board games. These games, like Snakes and Ladders and Guess Who, teach about gender equality and peace.

Using Tech for Good

While storytelling and education help in the long run, the foundation also focuses on helping people right away. They want to give quick, kind, and helpful support to those who have experienced violence. This led them to create an online tool called the GBV Help Map. This map shows organizations that offer legal, medical, and other help in 196 countries. They also collect stories about online bullying through the Troll Register. Another tool, Report a Bully, helps with school bullying.

The UN's Youth Solutions Report named the #GBVHelpMap as one of the top 50 ideas in the world. It helps achieve #SDG5, which is about #GenderEquality. The foundation also created Saahas, which is a mobile app version of the GBV Help Map. Kirthi Jayakumar wrote the code for this app.

The Building Peace Project

The Building Peace Project is a special online program that lasts for eight weeks. People from all over the world can join these sessions. Trained leaders guide the sessions using lessons about peace education, talking things through, and creative thinking. Even though there's a plan, the sessions let participants explore their own ideas and creativity.

Digital Campaigns for Change

The foundation runs online campaigns using digital media. These campaigns have two goals: to raise awareness online and to start real-life discussions. Some of their campaigns include "More than my Body" and "Break a Gender Stereotype." They also take part in the "16 Days of Activism against VAW" and "He For She" campaigns. The "Break a Gender Stereotype" campaign won an award in 2016.

The foundation has also worked with other groups on their campaigns. For example, they helped fight against making stalking seem normal in Indian movies. They also helped the United Nations with its MyWorld Campaign by collecting votes online. In 2016, they partnered with the US Consulate in Chennai for their Pride Month event. They also supported the "Her Story Wikipedia Editathon" in August 2016. The team also helped choose questions for candidates running for UN Secretary General.

The foundation also does research to help with their work. Offline, they have helped communities during natural disasters. They provided aid and support during the Nepal earthquake, the Manipur earthquake, and the floods in Chennai.

Awards and Recognition

The Red Elephant Foundation has received several awards for their important work:

• They won the People's Choice Award from Femvertising in 2016 for their "Breaking Gender Stereotypes" campaign.
• They were finalists in the Social Media for Empowerment Awards in 2017 for their work in women's empowerment.
• Their mobile app, Saahas, made them finalists in the Early Stage Innovation Category for the mBillionth Awards in 2017.
• In February 2018, FICCI FLO in Chennai gave them the Outstanding NGO Award.
• They also won the UN Online Volunteering Award in 2017.

Here is a list of some of their awards:

• People's Choice Award, 2016 (Femvertising)
• Finalists (Women's Empowerment), 2017 (Social Media for Empowerment Awards, 2017 (DEF India))
• Finalists (Early Stage Innovation Category), 2017 (mBillionth Awards, 2017 (DEF India))
• Outstanding NGO Award, 2018 (FICCI FLO, 2018)
• UN Online Volunteering Award, 2018 (UNV, 2018)
• Finalists (Women's Empowerment), 2018 (Social Media for Empowerment Awards, 2018 (DEF India))
• Outstanding Social Enterprise of the year, FICCI FLO, (February 2018)
• Special Mention, sm4e Awards, DEF India (April 2018)
• mBillionth Awards, mBillionth (August 2017)

See also

In Spanish: La Fundación Elefante Rojo para niños