Ten non-profit organisations have been named winners of this year's Elevate Prize, each receiving $300,000 in unrestricted funding along with support and training to boost their visibility and storytelling skills. The prize, announced on Tuesday, aims to help leaders amplify their impact by improving how they communicate their work to the public and policymakers.
For Mónica Ramírez, founder of Justice for Migrant Women in Ohio, the award is a crucial show of support amid the Trump administration's immigration crackdown. She said the prize enables her organisation to continue advocating for migrant women and other marginalised communities, adding that such recognition is vital when many others are withdrawing support.
Carolina Garcia Jayaram, CEO of the Elevate Prize Foundation, said that public visibility is increasingly important for non-profits, describing it as 'a form of protection'. She highlighted that last year's winner, Imran Ahmed of the Center for Countering Digital Hate, had been barred from the US, underscoring the need to support leaders facing political challenges.
To help winners gain attention, the foundation launched 'Good Is Trending', including a takeover of NASDAQ's Times Square billboards. Mara Fleishman, CEO of the Chef Ann Foundation, which brings scratch-made meals to schools, said she hopes the prize will help her organisation reach legislators and advocates to scale their work.
The foundation has long emphasised storytelling, and last year launched Elevate Studios to produce content ranging from YouTube videos to feature documentaries. Ramírez said she looks forward to using the prize to 'give a microphone to the people that we serve'.
